5 Narratives to Look Out for During the NBA Playoffs
With summer on the horizon, it could only mean one thing, and no, we don’t mean long, warm evenings and BBQ weather. It’s the NBA Playoffs. We will be treated to two months or so of furious on-court action, pitting the best teams in the NBA against each other. It’s always box office, and 2025 will be no different.
But what should we be looking out for? Which teams should be in your basketball picks? Let’s look at five narratives that could have a big influence between now and the NBA Finals:
The Weight of the Favorite Tag
By and large, the Oklahoma City Thunder has been tagged with the pressure of being the betting favorite for large parts of the season. OKC topped the Western Conference early in the season and never looked back. A lot of pundits backed them to do well before the season got underway, and the players have done really well in dealing with that level of expectation, putting up historic numbers. But the Playoffs are a different matter. OKC’s players gained some playoff experience last year, and that will put them in good stead. Yet, this is the real test for the team that was the most impressive in the league throughout the regular season.
The Juggernaut Never Ran Out of Steam
If everyone predicted that OKC would have a superb season, very few said the same about the Cleveland Cavaliers. Back in the fall, the sense was the Celtics would catch the Cavs, eventually. Then, the New Year came, and Cleveland just kept going. Sure, the Celtics narrowed the game to just three games by the end of the regular season, but the Cavs hung in there, and it’s difficult to argue that they did not deserve the No.1 seed spot in the East. Cleveland remains the third favorite for the NBA Championship (behind the Celtics and OKC), but the team has earned a lot of respect and shouldn’t be ruled out.
The Champions and the Knack of Winning
As for the Celtics, well, let’s address that: Not a bad season by any means, yet just not as imperious as last season. Here’s the thing, though: the champions arguably have the most momentum going into the Playoffs. The Celtics went 18-3 across March and April, looking every bit like the team that was head and shoulders above the rest last time around. The Celtics’ postseason experience should stand them in good stead, too. Great teams have a knack for winning ugly, grinding out results when things aren’t going their way. That’s a quality possessed by the Celtics, and it could be the difference in the Playoffs.
Doncic the Difference-Maker for Lakers?
In the mid-season trade that NBA fans, and sports fans in general, will be talking about for years, the Dallas Mavericks let their franchise player go to the LA Lakers. Months later, and the Mavs fans have not yet forgiven the team’s hierarchy. The Mavs’ loss was the Lakers’ gain. The Lakers had been decent enough before Luka Doncic arrived in LA, but the trade could be just what the team needs to take another step forward. He can’t do it all alone, sure, but the Lakers’ roster is stuffed with players who know what it takes to win, including a certain Lebron James. Should the chemistry be right – and the early signs are promising – Doncic could become a hero early in his Lakers tenure.
The Under the Radar Team
The Houston Rockets finished the regular season with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and the fourth-best in the NBA overall. Yet, nobody is talking about them as potential champions. It’s a tough ask, sure, but the betting odds have the Rockets way back among the underdogs. This is by no means a prediction, but the standings don’t lie at the end of the season. This is a good team, and the Rockets might surprise everyone.