Only one arch-nemesis on the other side of the bracket will meet the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, as both the Los Angeles Lakers & Philadelphia 76ers will have to devour each other first to get there, if Coach Pop's squad has its way with three opponents first. With the top 16 teams judging from win/loss records making the cut, the Lakers became the #6 seed with Philadelphia becoming the #2 seed, with Philly & San Antonio leading each's side of the bracket, respectively.
The initial challenge for the Spurs comes from a resurgent Brooklyn Nets team led by Kevin Durant & Kyrie Irving, boosted by rookie point guard lottery pick Daishen Nix chose to forego the college experience and opt for the G-League's enticing path instead. Ex-Warrior, Kevon Looney, has had a quality year as a starting center given his prior health issues and Latvian talent, Rodion Kurucs, has come into his own alongside an also healthy Caris LeVert.
Meanwhile, the Lakers will have their hands full with the Boston Celtics in the first round, whereas the Nets earned the #16 seed, sporting one of the cut's only .500 records.
For San Antonio, Kevin Durant poses an always deadly threat as the Spurs begin a historic quest to tie the Celtics & Lakers for 17 championships as a basketball organization. The Spurs have won 11 consecutive NBA Titles leading up to this point, with 5 more championship runs in the team's past history. Just three seasons ago, the Spurs made history by winning the most consecutive titles at nine, passing the Celtics previous mark of 8 straight championship runs. But to win this year's title would align San Antonio with LA & Boston as the winningest franchise in NBA history--ever, period.
And to, then, win another one potentially? One can dream, but first the Spurs will have to win sixteen games, and with the new bracket design, they will likely come across and must defeat the Nets, Warriors & Timberwolves before meeting most likely the Lakers or 76ers (if Vegas odds come to fruition) from the other side in the final match. The Spurs were able to avoid the Lakers last time around after a Game 7 spectacle for the Western Conference crown two seasons ago, and the 76ers have met San Antonio there for the last two years. Only this time, they've added James Harden (who hit 7-9 3PT shots in a Game 1 rout for Philly earlier today). It will be very tough title run.
"Nothing's gonna stop us," Brandon Ingram, the reigning consecutive Finals MVP, stated at practice today before tomorrow night's Game 1.
