The NBA’s best teams will set up for their playoff runs during the last stretch of the season starting Thursday.
The Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs have been the best teams all season in the Western Conference. The Cleveland Cavaliers were the best team in the Eastern Conference, placing first nearly all season.
Many people picked either the Warriors or Spurs to win the Western Conference, and the Cavaliers were everyone’s pick for the East. It is possible, however, none of these teams will make it.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Toronto Raptors have had nice seasons thus far and could both be dangerous in the playoffs.
The Thunder are currently No. 3 in the West and are the only team, other than the Warriors and Spurs, to reach 40 wins this season.
Arguably, they have the most explosive duo in the NBA with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Both guys average over 24 points per game, according to ESPN’s official site.
Oklahoma City already beat the Spurs this year and can match up well against Warriors.
Everyone raves over Steph Curry’s play, but Westbrook is a better all-around point guard and could easily get the best of Curry in a playoff series.
The Spurs and Warriors both have big men who can spread the floor in LaMarcus Aldridge for San Antonio and Draymond Green for Golden State. The Thunder have tools to combat that as well.
Serge Ibaka stretches the floor with his jump shot but also can rebound with the best of them. He is averaging nearly 13 points and seven rebounds per game.
He adds a third piece to the Thunder that could be troublesome for the Warriors and Spurs, which gives them a better chance than anybody to come out on top in the west.
The Raptors are currently No. 2 in the Eastern Conference and only three games back from the Cavaliers. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have separated themselves significantly from the rest of the conference.
Much like the Thunder, they have a dynamic duo in DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry, with both guys averaging over 20 points per game, according to ESPN. The Raptors also have two other players averaging in double figures.
Guys like DeMarre Carroll and Terrence Ross are role players that could give trouble to the Cavaliers during any given game. They also have Jonas Valanciunas who could match up well against Tristan Thompson when fighting for boards.
They bested the Cavaliers in November beating them by 4 points in Toronto. In their most recent matchup, however, the Cavaliers won by 22 points in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers are still the most talented team in the East, but the Raptors have the best chance to dethrone them and go to the NBA Finals.
With two months left in the NBA season, the true championship contenders will begin to separate themselves from other teams.