
Do the Thunder have what it takes to reach the Finals?
Oklahoma City has the pieces—but do they have the experience to win three playoff series?
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Indiana Pacers. Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets. Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Golden State Warriors.
The NBA’s Eastern conference semifinals are set; the Western Conference semifinals fell into place Sunday night when the Warriors beat the Houston Rockets in Game 7.
The No. 1 seeds (Cavaliers, Thunder) have been impressive; sixth-seeded Minnesota sent the Los Angeles Lakers packing with relative ease; Denver routed the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 7; Boston rolled through Orlando; Indiana beat down beat-up Milwaukee; New York out-executed the Pistons in fourth quarters; Golden State’s experience proved too much for the Rockets.
CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS PREVIEWS: NYK-BOS | IND-CLE | DEN-OKC
Who will win and advance to the conference finals? USA TODAY Sports experts make their predictions:
NBA predictions for conference semifinalsLorenzo Reyes:Â Cavaliers in 6Heather Tucker:Â Cavaliers in 6James Williams:Â Cavaliers in 6Jeff Zillgitt:Â Cavaliers in 5Lorenzo Reyes:Â Celtics in 5Heather Tucker:Â Celtics in 5James Williams:Â Celtics in 6Jeff Zillgitt:Â Celtics in 6Lorenzo Reyes:Â Thunder is sixHeather Tucker:Â Thunder in sixJames Williams:Â Thunder in fiveJeff Zillgitt:Â Thunder in fiveNo. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 7 Golden State WarriorsLorenzo Reyes:Â Timberwolves in sixHeather Tucker:Â Timberwolves in sevenJames Williams:Â Timberwolves in sixJeff Zillgitt:Â Timberwolves in seven