For the first time since 2015, the second round of the postseason will not feature the defending NBA champions. The Los Angeles Lakers were knocked out of the first round by the Phoenix Suns, and the defeat was symbolically fitting. The Lakers have won 17 banners. So have the Boston Celtics, who were also knocked out of the first round. None of the nine teams left in the field have more than three championships to their name. Combined, the nine teams remaining have won only six in total. That's as many as the Lakers alone have won this century.
And if the Los Angeles Clippers knock the Dallas Mavericks out of Game 7 of their first-round series, not one of those championships will have come in the 21st century. In fact, at that point, the most recent NBA champion left in the field would be the 1983 Philadelphia 76ers. The Brooklyn
Nets, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Clippers have never won one before.
In other words, we're officially in uncharted waters. The old guard is gone, and as the second round begins, we'll turn our attention to a new set of contenders, and in the end, a new one will be crowned champions. Here are our picks for which of those contenders will advance to the final four.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-playoffs-second-round-predictions-experts-split-on-nets-bucks-winner-favor-suns-show-concern-for-76ers/
