2018 Eastern Conference Semifinals: Toronto vs. Cleveland
All Sports Talk,  Basketball,  NBA

2018 Eastern Conference Semifinals: Toronto vs. Cleveland

2018 Eastern Conference Semifinals: Toronto vs. Cleveland

We finally have the final series in the NBA Playoffs to start their second round match-up. The #1 seed in the Eastern Conference, Toronto Raptors will take on their arch-nemesis in Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. In their first round series, Toronto managed to oust the Washington Wizards in six games, which shocked me. In another shocker, Cleveland needed the entire seven games to beat the pesky Indiana Pacers. DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry stepped up their game in the opening round against the Wizards, but now here’s their test. The Raptors have never been able to get by the Cavs and Lebron James, but this could be the time for them to do it. Once again, Lebron had epic performances in the opening round series against the Pacers. None was more critical than the Game 7 performance where he stated he was beyond tired after the game.

With the Toronto Raptors being the best team all season in the East, this is their best shot to dethrone Lebron. While many people are riding the 76ers bandwagon, Toronto still have the most complete and best team in the East. This year, DeMar DeRozan looked like an MVP candidate as he lead this Raptors team to the best record in the East. The key for this series will be the play of Kyle Lowry as he’s dealt with some bad playoff performances in the past. For Cleveland, the supporting cast of Lebron will need to step up if they’re going to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals and beyond. With Lebron playing 82 games for the first time this year and the number of minutes he played in the first series, he will likely be drained. Can Tristian Thompson come up huge in this series like Game 7?

We all know about the starting five for Toronto, but the bench will need to come up big like they did against Washington. OG Anunoby, CJ Miles, Norman Powell and Fred VanVleet will need to play a huge role in this series. Toronto will have to set the tone in the first game to show their ready for this series. With Lebron being tired, Toronto can take Game 1 and put pressure on the Cavs. With Cleveland, they just played a game two days ago and they will need to continue that momentum. Kevin Love will need to get some touches and guys like George Hill and Rodney Hood could factor in this series. One sleeper for the Cavs will be the athleticism of Larry Nance Jr. and with that, I’m still picking the Cavs in another seven-game series. I’m not picking against Lebron, sorry!!

Cleveland Wins Series 4-3

 

How do you see this series between Toronto and Cleveland playing out? Will the Raptors finally get past the Cavs? Will Lebron lead the Cavs over the Raptors again in another epic performance? What are some of the keys in this series? Who do you have advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals? Leave a comment below.

Please follow and like us:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *