By Jacob Ervin, Senior Reporter
The National Basketball Association will start the 2023 NBA playoffs Saturday at noon with the Brooklyn Nets versus the Philadelphia 76ers.
In the eastern conference, the three clear favorites to win the conference championship are the 76ers, the Boston Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks. While oddsmakers would have you believe the Bucks are the best bet to win the east, I would not be so sure.
The early warning signs are already there, as the Bucks’ three best players — Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and Antetokounmpo — have all played fewer than 68 games of the 82-game regular season because of injury and injury management.
When the Bucks are healthy they are indeed great. They won the championship the last time they managed to stay relatively healthy, but betting on them to be healthy is a longshot at best.
The reigning conference champions, the Celtics, are definitely a safe option. Despite rumors of internal differences and the controversial firing of head coach Ime Udoka, the team has looked just as good as last year with the addition of Malcom Brogdon.
That being said, the best choice to win the east would have to be the 76ers. The Sixers combine the best of the Celtics and Bucks; they possess both a deep bench and dominant big man in Embiid. Furthermore, Harden, Embiid and head coach Glenn “Doc” River have been criticized for their inability to win in the postseason and are primed to prove their doubters wrong.
While the east is definitely a three-team race, the western conference is much less clear. The conference has been plagued by mediocrity this season. Even the top teams by record, the Denver Nuggets and the Memphis Grizzlies, look short on the pieces needed to win a ring.
With the trade of Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns, analysts and fans alike are suspecting the fourth seed team to inevitably win the conference; however, this faith is misplaced. The one thing this star trio of Devin Booker, Durant and Chris Paul have shown fans throughout their careers is the inability to win in the postseason.
Between the three players, they have allowed lower-seeded teams to embarrass them (look no further than last year’s Mavericks series), blown 3-1 playoff leads and lost countless series because of their inability to stay healthy. While the conference could be open for whichever team wants it, the best options reside in Los Angeles.
The Clippers, with the addition of players such as Mason Plumlee, Bones Hyland and Russel Westbrook, have created the only team in the league to have a true big three as well as one of the best benches in the NBA.
While the Lakers do not have the depth of the Clippers, the team has both Lebron James and Anthony Davis, making it the only team in the league with two Top Ten players on the roster. In stark contrast to the Suns’ star players, James has proven his ability to defy odds in the playoffs, and if his teammates can stay healthy, it would not be surprising to see him do so again.