Luka’s Corner

Following up my picks for the 1st round, here are my picks for the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, as well as the Finals in June:

Eastern Conference Finals:

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics (Cleveland in 6 games)

The home-court advantage on Cleveland’s side, loss of Kevin Garnett, and explosiveness of LeBron James will prevent the C’s from repeating as champions. Paul Pierce cannot carry the load of both guarding LeBron (due to the departure of James Posey) and scoring in the place of KG, despite his previous success against LeBron. Boston is yet to prove that it can win in Cleveland, which I do not see happening this year either. Lastly, the addition of Mo Williams will be enough to catapult the exuberant Cavaliers into the Finals for the second time in three years. However, be sure that the defending champs will give LeBron and company all they can handle.

Western Conference Finals

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Denver Nuggets (Los Angeles in 5 games)

Denver will pull out a victory in Denver, but the Nuggets’ explosive scoring will fail them in a series of such magnitude against a team that has proven it can lock other teams down. I do not see Carmelo Anthony outplaying Kobe Bryant, who is motivated to win that elusive championship without Shaquille O’Neal. I also do not see Nene and Kenyon Martin outplaying the likes of Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. The only clear advantage Denver has is at the point guard spot, with Chauncey Billups and Derek Fisher. But expect the superior Laker bench, which has been sporadic this year, to overcome that one disadvantage and guide LA to its second straight Finals appearance.

Finals

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Los Angeles Lakers (Los Angeles in 6 games)

This will be a hard-fought series, with both teams looking to their home court to give them the slightest advantage. Cleveland has the advantage in that department, but the Lakers have already proven they can beat a Cleveland team at full strength in their own building. I do think that KB24 will outperform LBJ (not to say that LeBron won’t have a great series), especially because he is entering the twilight of his career and this is his best chance to win that championship. Both teams have strong rotations, but it will be the low-post scoring by the Lakers, where they have the clear advantage, that will prove to be the difference in the series. One year after losing in the Finals, the Lakers will emerge victorious this time around.