April 18^th should have been the start of one of the greatest events sports has to offer: the NBA Playoffs. But instead, everyone is stuck at home, social distancing with nothing but old re-runs on T.V. As the days keep passing, it’s becoming more and more likely that we never see a champion crowned this season in the NBA, leaving the rest of the season up to imagination. Any person’s prediction could be right. Any wild or crazy theory will never be proven wrong. Instead we are left with endless speculation. And, since there isn’t anything better to do, let’s do some speculation too. Assuming the playoffs started on April 18^th and seeding remained the same as it was when the season was postponed, here is how I would have seen the playoffs going down.

Round 2:

1 seed Milwaukee Bucks vs. 4 seed Miami Heat

My prediction: Bucks -4, Heat- 2

Throughout the season the Milwaukee Bucks have proven themselves as the greatest team in the league, and they deserve the honor of making it to the coveted Lion’s Roar NBA playoff conference finals. The Bucks are led by most likely MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, and have done a great job surrounding him, a mostly pain centric player, with more than capable shooters. The Bucks have had trouble dealing with the Heat in the past, as proven by the two losses to the Heat the Bucks have suffered this season, but the Heat have too many unexperienced players. While Miami does hang their hat on being tough and wanting it more, I can’t think of one player more determined coming into this series than the man who was two games away from being in the finals last season. That man being Giannis Antetokounmpo.

2 seed Toronto Raptors vs. 3 seed Boston Celtics

My Prediction: Raptors -4, Celtics- 3

This is an extremely tough series to pick. Honestly, even considering the Bucks’ success, I think this deserves to be the conference finals. The Raptors are extremely versatile, with lengthy, defensive minded guards and forwards all throughout their lineup. They match up incredibly against just about any team in the league. The Celtics have a lot of talent. They are one of the few teams to have three 20 plus points per game scorers, and also have a lot of great defensive players. In a series like this, most likely all games will be down to the wire, and I’m betting on Toronto Raptors’ coach Nick Nurse to be the better coach down the stretch. He’s already won a championship and is willing to try crazy things on defense and offense. I think we will be seeing a rematch of last year’s conference finals: Bucks vs. Raptors.