"The playoffs are here and guess what—there's no Lebron, or even the Cleveland Cavaliers this year." --Trevor Walton
The playoffs are here and guess what—there's no Lebron, or even the Cleveland Cavaliers this year. But it doesn’t really matter, the Warriors basically win the playoffs every year. On the other hand, they could lose with teams doing well this year. Even though teams in the West have a greater advantage, the Eastern Conference has been leveling up. The 2019 NBA season has been full of many surprises, and fans should expect the same for the playoffs, too. I wanted to know what OSA students and teachers were thinking about all the factors in the playoffs right now: from Boogie Cousins round 1 injury with the Warriors, to the Bucks number 1 status in the East.
From my first question which was, “what do you think about Lebron not being in the playoffs”, and will it make a difference in the 2019 playoffs. Students Derrick Davis and Miles De Rosa had similar answers. Davis said that Lebron’s absence “gives teams a chance to actually win, like the Denver Nuggets and the Portland Trail Blazers. Lebron thought that he didn’t really have to carry the Lakers because he thought that the players were better and were kinda more skilled than his old teammates.”
Others like Lit Arts Chair Jordan Karnes, Security Faculty Patrick Secrease, and Middle School Educational Specialist Paul Callis had different responses.
Callis shared a harsh truth when he said, “I don’t think Lebron is ready to play out in the West because in the East, you play a lot of teams that are not good, but in the West he’s playing better teams and that wears him out. And, he wasn’t a good leader for the Lakers.”
Secrease missed Lebron, but said that, “I kinda knew that when he went to the West, he had a lot more of competition. And, even with his injury, I still knew that he would have not made it.”
The Warriors are good, but could slip a 3-1 lead again against a good team. Karnes, De Rosa, Davis, and Secrease are Warriors fans, while Callis is a Utah Jazz fan. But still, they all had a honest response.
Karnes’ money is on the Warriors all the way, but when I asked what team would win the playoffs if the Warriors get knocked out, she responded, “I think Houston because they had have in incredible year and they’ve been bringing the fire and the heat in the West.”
Davis had the exact same answer, too, which was, “I think the best chance is the Houston Rockets because they almost beat the Warriors in the 2018 NBA playoffs. They just have to have no injuries to make it. And, I think the Celtics could maybe win, too.”
De Rosa had the same answer just like Davis and Karnes. “The best chance is Houston because James Harden wants it very, very bad. And, they have a great system. They shoot a lot of threes and Harden is in the zone a lot, so he can maybe carry them to win. Also, it would be cool to see Damian Lillard get a ring.”
Secrease and Callis thought that Milwaukee has a good chance. Giannis, Bledsoe, and Brook Lopez are good players,” said Callis. “If they didn’t have Giannis, they wouldn’t have been in the playoffs. And, people say Giannis is better than Durant.” While Secrease said, “I think Boston or Milwaukee. Boston since they have a great team and a good chemistry. And with Milwaukee, they have a MVP on their team with young players to with such good chemistry.”
The Warriors are a great back-to-back championship team, soI asked them to pick a starting five to go up against the Warriors, as well as a team captain.
Karnes had a nice squad, including “Anthony Davis for center, James Harden for shooting guard, Kyrie for point guard, Lebron for small forward, and Embiid for power forward. The team would be nasty in a good way. When you have a Lebron James, it’s his team. So, if he’s not the captain he would be a terrible teammate. So, Lebron is captain.”
Davis also had a good squad. “Point guard will be Damian Lillard, shooting guard will be James Harden, small forward would be Lebron James, power forward would be Giannis Antetokounmpo, and center would be Joel Embiid. They fit well together and could maybe win a championship. Lebron would be captain.”
Callis had a surprising response which was, “The captain would be Donovan Mitchell, I would want Lue Williams as point guard, Kawhi as small forward, Giannis as the power forward, and Jokic as center. They could win the playoffs, which would be a challenge.”
De Rosa and Secrease had a similar response to everybody else , except Callis. Secrease said, “I would pick Kyrie, Giannis, Embiid, Kawhi, and Lebron. The captain would be Lebron. They’re all all-stars and they’re are on teams that can beat the Warriors.”
De Rosa, on the other hand, said,“I would have Giannis because I think no one in the league can stop him. So, he’s power forward. The point guard would be Damian because he is great when he plays in Oracle. Shooting guard is Paul George since he can guard Durant, Curry, and Klay, and he’s really a great person who can shoot. Small forward would be Jimmy Butler because I think he can really get in the zone. Center is Myles Turner since he can back Draymond down and can always shoot a bunch of buckets. Giannis would be captain, he’s my guy and he can run his offense through. With the Bucks, they have Giannis and a bunch of shooters.”
A lot of people like Karnes, Davis, and Secrease said the Celtics when I asked who is the best team in the East this playoff season capable of really winning a championship. Karnes thought that it was between the Celtics and the 76ers since the Celtics have Kyrie (who is a great player) and a team which is kinda good. She also said that, “These teams can maybe win the playoffs, they’re the best two teams in the East. But, I say the West coast with the Warriors would win.”
Others like like De Rosa and Callis think that the Milwaukee Bucks would win. De Rosa said “I think Milwaukee could win since they are well-built with Brook Lopez, Giannis who will be the Kia MVP for this year, and Malcolm Brogdon. He had a 50-40-90 this year. There’s only been 8 people who done it, it’s very rare. And, he’s joined the club.”
The people had to pick a bad NBA team. Then, put 3 top players on that team. And, I also asked who would it be and can they actually win a playoff championship. Davis, Secrease, and Paul Callis picked the Phoenix Suns and this is why. Derrick said “he team would be the Suns since they already have a future all star and Devin Booker. The 3 players would be Joel Embiid for center, the small forward would be Giannis, and to lead would be Stephen Curry. I don’t know if they could win a championship, but they could make it pretty far.”
Karnes and De Rosa actually had different teams.. Karnes said, “I’ll pick the Pistons since they have two good players and can actually improve from that. I would add Kevin Durant, Kyrie, and James Harden. The team could win a championship with these good players.”
I also asked who will become the 2019 NBA playoff MVP and why. Jordan, Miles, and had some similar answers. One of them said it’s either Durant or Curry because it depends on who gets going and who is the person that is pushing themselves the most.
Davis and Callis had different answers from the rest but had similar answers with each other. Davis said “I probably say Damian Lillard because right now since his team and himself went against the Thunder with Westbrook, Paul George, and Steven Adams which is big. Damian stepped up and is really leading his team.”
I asked them what team(s) do you think will surprise everyone in the playoffs. Secrease, Karnes, and De Rosa said The Trailblazers. De Rosa also said more than the Trailblazers, “I think 76ers because there's so much potential and can maybe beat the Toronto Raptors. And, Portland already surprised so much and Damian Lillard is doing really great that I don’t want to run into him so far.”
Callis and Davis had different responses than the others. Callis said “The Utah Jazz because their the best team ever, haters gonna hate. I heard Klay Thompson was shopping for fishing poles. I think he’s planning on going fishing because he’s been thinking that he is going to have extra time this summer.
From my first question which was, “what do you think about Lebron not being in the playoffs”, and will it make a difference in the 2019 playoffs. Students Derrick Davis and Miles De Rosa had similar answers. Davis said that Lebron’s absence “gives teams a chance to actually win, like the Denver Nuggets and the Portland Trail Blazers. Lebron thought that he didn’t really have to carry the Lakers because he thought that the players were better and were kinda more skilled than his old teammates.”
Others like Lit Arts Chair Jordan Karnes, Security Faculty Patrick Secrease, and Middle School Educational Specialist Paul Callis had different responses.
Callis shared a harsh truth when he said, “I don’t think Lebron is ready to play out in the West because in the East, you play a lot of teams that are not good, but in the West he’s playing better teams and that wears him out. And, he wasn’t a good leader for the Lakers.”
Secrease missed Lebron, but said that, “I kinda knew that when he went to the West, he had a lot more of competition. And, even with his injury, I still knew that he would have not made it.”
The Warriors are good, but could slip a 3-1 lead again against a good team. Karnes, De Rosa, Davis, and Secrease are Warriors fans, while Callis is a Utah Jazz fan. But still, they all had a honest response.
Karnes’ money is on the Warriors all the way, but when I asked what team would win the playoffs if the Warriors get knocked out, she responded, “I think Houston because they had have in incredible year and they’ve been bringing the fire and the heat in the West.”
Davis had the exact same answer, too, which was, “I think the best chance is the Houston Rockets because they almost beat the Warriors in the 2018 NBA playoffs. They just have to have no injuries to make it. And, I think the Celtics could maybe win, too.”
De Rosa had the same answer just like Davis and Karnes. “The best chance is Houston because James Harden wants it very, very bad. And, they have a great system. They shoot a lot of threes and Harden is in the zone a lot, so he can maybe carry them to win. Also, it would be cool to see Damian Lillard get a ring.”
Secrease and Callis thought that Milwaukee has a good chance. Giannis, Bledsoe, and Brook Lopez are good players,” said Callis. “If they didn’t have Giannis, they wouldn’t have been in the playoffs. And, people say Giannis is better than Durant.” While Secrease said, “I think Boston or Milwaukee. Boston since they have a great team and a good chemistry. And with Milwaukee, they have a MVP on their team with young players to with such good chemistry.”
The Warriors are a great back-to-back championship team, soI asked them to pick a starting five to go up against the Warriors, as well as a team captain.
Karnes had a nice squad, including “Anthony Davis for center, James Harden for shooting guard, Kyrie for point guard, Lebron for small forward, and Embiid for power forward. The team would be nasty in a good way. When you have a Lebron James, it’s his team. So, if he’s not the captain he would be a terrible teammate. So, Lebron is captain.”
Davis also had a good squad. “Point guard will be Damian Lillard, shooting guard will be James Harden, small forward would be Lebron James, power forward would be Giannis Antetokounmpo, and center would be Joel Embiid. They fit well together and could maybe win a championship. Lebron would be captain.”
Callis had a surprising response which was, “The captain would be Donovan Mitchell, I would want Lue Williams as point guard, Kawhi as small forward, Giannis as the power forward, and Jokic as center. They could win the playoffs, which would be a challenge.”
De Rosa and Secrease had a similar response to everybody else , except Callis. Secrease said, “I would pick Kyrie, Giannis, Embiid, Kawhi, and Lebron. The captain would be Lebron. They’re all all-stars and they’re are on teams that can beat the Warriors.”
De Rosa, on the other hand, said,“I would have Giannis because I think no one in the league can stop him. So, he’s power forward. The point guard would be Damian because he is great when he plays in Oracle. Shooting guard is Paul George since he can guard Durant, Curry, and Klay, and he’s really a great person who can shoot. Small forward would be Jimmy Butler because I think he can really get in the zone. Center is Myles Turner since he can back Draymond down and can always shoot a bunch of buckets. Giannis would be captain, he’s my guy and he can run his offense through. With the Bucks, they have Giannis and a bunch of shooters.”
A lot of people like Karnes, Davis, and Secrease said the Celtics when I asked who is the best team in the East this playoff season capable of really winning a championship. Karnes thought that it was between the Celtics and the 76ers since the Celtics have Kyrie (who is a great player) and a team which is kinda good. She also said that, “These teams can maybe win the playoffs, they’re the best two teams in the East. But, I say the West coast with the Warriors would win.”
Others like like De Rosa and Callis think that the Milwaukee Bucks would win. De Rosa said “I think Milwaukee could win since they are well-built with Brook Lopez, Giannis who will be the Kia MVP for this year, and Malcolm Brogdon. He had a 50-40-90 this year. There’s only been 8 people who done it, it’s very rare. And, he’s joined the club.”
The people had to pick a bad NBA team. Then, put 3 top players on that team. And, I also asked who would it be and can they actually win a playoff championship. Davis, Secrease, and Paul Callis picked the Phoenix Suns and this is why. Derrick said “he team would be the Suns since they already have a future all star and Devin Booker. The 3 players would be Joel Embiid for center, the small forward would be Giannis, and to lead would be Stephen Curry. I don’t know if they could win a championship, but they could make it pretty far.”
Karnes and De Rosa actually had different teams.. Karnes said, “I’ll pick the Pistons since they have two good players and can actually improve from that. I would add Kevin Durant, Kyrie, and James Harden. The team could win a championship with these good players.”
I also asked who will become the 2019 NBA playoff MVP and why. Jordan, Miles, and had some similar answers. One of them said it’s either Durant or Curry because it depends on who gets going and who is the person that is pushing themselves the most.
Davis and Callis had different answers from the rest but had similar answers with each other. Davis said “I probably say Damian Lillard because right now since his team and himself went against the Thunder with Westbrook, Paul George, and Steven Adams which is big. Damian stepped up and is really leading his team.”
I asked them what team(s) do you think will surprise everyone in the playoffs. Secrease, Karnes, and De Rosa said The Trailblazers. De Rosa also said more than the Trailblazers, “I think 76ers because there's so much potential and can maybe beat the Toronto Raptors. And, Portland already surprised so much and Damian Lillard is doing really great that I don’t want to run into him so far.”
Callis and Davis had different responses than the others. Callis said “The Utah Jazz because their the best team ever, haters gonna hate. I heard Klay Thompson was shopping for fishing poles. I think he’s planning on going fishing because he’s been thinking that he is going to have extra time this summer.