Our Picks For Monday’s NBA Playoff Games
By A.J. Olona and Shawn Stewart
After dropping the first game of the series, the Milwaukee Bucks performed a gentleman’s sweep of the Orlando Magic to send them right down the street, out of the Bubble. Now the Bucks will have a much more difficult task facing the number four seed, the Miami Heat. Miami is coming fresh off of their impressive battle of the Indiana Pacers, in which they swept them convincingly.
Later tonight, we will also get to see if the Houston Rockets can close out the series against the Oklahoma City Thunder or if the Thunder will be able to rebound from a horrible offensive go in Game 5 and force one more game to decide who moves on to the next round.
Milwaukee Bucks vs. Miami Heat (Series tied at 0-0)
USA TODAY Sports
Shawn’s Take:
Coming off of a victory against the Indiana Pacers, the Heat have had some time to rest for their next round opponent. During the bubble restart, the Heat had the Bucks’ number winning 130-116. While the Bucks finished strong against the Magic after an iffy start, the Heat started hot and finished hot against the Pacers (pun intender). If the Heat can maintain a hold on the rebounding battle against Giannis and company, and with Jimmy Butler playing as efficient as ever, the Heat will take Game 1 in this series.
Shawn’ Prediction: MIAMI HEAT WINS
AJ’s Take:
Both the Bucks and the Heat finished their series’ off on 4 game win streaks and look to be unstoppable. While Brooke Lopez and Giannis were able to lock the Magic up inside and force them to shoot from deep, do not expect them to have the same success against Miami. Throughout the season, and the playoffs in particular, the Heat have been able to get their offense going from beyond the arc at a consistent rate. In order to win this game, the Bucks will need much more than Giannis, offensively and will ned Kris Middleton to finally step up. If that doesn’t happen, look for Miami to continue their hot streak and take Game 1 with authority.
AJ’s Prediction: MIAMI HEAT WINS
Oklahoma Thunder vs. Houston Rockets (Rockets lead series 3-2)
Ashley Landis/Associated Press
Shawn’s Take:
After the Rockets closed out Game 5 of this series with a 34 point lead against the Thunder, Game 6 looks to be sealed. This series was a close one to begin with, but then the Rockets got Russell Westbrook back from injury and took back control. While Westbrook only scored 7 points in the win for Houston, being back in the starting lineup makes the Rockets that much better of team. Look for the Rockets to close out the series tonight and move on to the next round.
Shawn’s Prediction: HOUSTON ROCKETS WIN
AJ’s Take:
OKC is going to have a hard time putting up a fight if they continue to struggle offensively like they did in Game 5. The Thunder’s starting five only played a total of 11 minutes together in Game 5 and could not put together anything significant, offensively. The Thunder are going to be going against an even healthier Russell Westbrook in this game and can almost guarantee that he will score more than 7. However, despite all of this, I don’t see OKC going down tonight. Look for the Thunder to win tonight and force another Game 7 in the West.
AJ's Prediction: OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER WIN
Follow A.J. on twitter @age_lona and Shawn @ShawnSportsNut.
