NBA CAPSULES
HAWKS VS. NETS
Season series: Hawks, 4-0. Atlanta led by at least 14 in every game, once by as much as 39. Brooklyn never led any of the four games by more than eight points.
Story line: Can Atlanta do it in the playoffs? Much has been made of the culture change Mike Budenholzer has engineered, but note this — the Hawks haven’t won two playoff series in the same year since 1958, when they were in St. Louis.
Prediction: Hawks in 5.
CAVALIERSVS. CELTICS
Season series: Tied, 2-2. It’s slightly misleading; both of Boston’s wins came in the final days of the regular season when Cleveland’s spot on the East bracket was already secured. Both teams went 1-1 on the other’s home floor.
Story line: LeBron James, back with the Cavaliers, back in the playoffs, back against the Celtics. Of course. Boston ended James’ first run with Cleveland in 2010, remember. So how perfect is it that James’ second quest to deliver a title to championship-starved Northeast Ohio starts with Boston?
Prediction: Cavaliers in 5.
BULLSVS. BUCKS
Season series: Bulls, 3-1. Chicago held Milwaukee to 87 points or less in all three wins, and neither team scored more than 95 points in any of the four games.
Story line: Welcome back to the playoffs, Derrick Rose. He blew out a knee in Game 1 of Chicago’s 2012 loss to Philadelphia and hasn’t seen the floor in a postseason game since. He’s shown flashes of great things since coming back late this season. The Bulls absolutely need him at a high level, or else.
Prediction: Bulls in 5.
RAPTORSVS. WIZARDS
Season series: Raptors, 3-0. One of the wins was in overtime and another went down to the buzzer, but out of the first 103 minutes where the teams went headto-head this season the Raptors trailed for all of 23 seconds.
Story line: Will this be the breakthrough for the Raptors? They’ve never won a best-ofseven series and have been past the first round only once, back when those were bestof-five matchups.
Prediction: Wizards in 7.
GOLDENSTATE WARRIORSVS. PELICANS
Season series: Warriors, 3-1. Golden State won the two games on its home floor with ease, one by 27 and the other by 16. New Orleans won the last meeting, earlier this month.
Story line: Leading MVP candidate Stephen Curry goes against the league’s unquestioned budding megastar in Anthony Davis. And the Pelicans will play like they have nothing to lose.
Prediction: Warriors in 5.
ROCKETSVS. MAVERICKS
Season series: Rockets, 3-1. Don’t get too swayed by that. Combined score of those four games: Rockets 402, Mavericks 398. Dallas had double-digit leads in three of the games.
Story line: James Harden missed out on the scoring title and will likely miss out on the MVP as well but now gets a chance for something better. Harden has yet to get Houston past the first round, and his postseason career to date has been erratic at best.
Prediction: Rockets in 6.
CLIPPERSVS. SPURS
Season series: Tied, 2-2. The Clippers won by 20 in San Antonio in January, before the Spurs found their end-of-season groove. Both teams went 1-1 on the other team’s floor.
Story line: The best of the eight first-round matchups could very well be this one, pitting the defending champion Spurs against a Clippers team that’s still looking for that big postseason breakout. San Antonio rolled through the last third of its schedule, but now the question is whether the Spurs will be deflated by missing out on a chance to finish No. 2 in the West and falling to the 6 spot.
Prediction: Spurs in 6.
TRAIL BLAZERSVS. GRIZZLIES
Season series: Grizzlies, 4-0. Memphis held the high-octane Blazers to 91.3 points per game — more than 12 below their average output against everyone else.
Story line: Portland gets the higher seed by winning the Northwest Division but doesn’t have home-court because the Grizzlies had the better record. And both of these teams have serious injury concerns.
Prediction: Grizzlies in 6.