@KeepTheJuice21 NBA Playoff Picks - 4/16

I’m generally high on the Warriors in this playoff run. They’ve got the veteran core back plus some very impressive young talent in Kuminga and Poole. But Stephs injury is being downplayed. I see this a lot like the 2016 playoffs where he wasn’t playing like himself and they had to get by on some very close series. And the Nuggets are definitely talented enough to give them a run. Jokic should have the MVP locked up and the way he runs this offense is very difficult to game plan. I think this stays a lot closer than the line suggests.

It doesn’t often happen that we get to see a preview of the playoff series at the end of a regular season with real implications, but the Raptors win a week ago over Philly should be telling. They did a fantastic job guarding Harden and Siakam was scoring at will. The Raptors could now potentially get back OG Annunoby and Fred Vanvleet and be at full strength for the first time in weeks. Plus the story of Harden’s career has been struggling in the playoffs, I won’t be the first to bet on that turning around.