With the NBA Playoffs well underway, it’s an exciting time to dive into the sport if you’re not familiar with it. The Conference Finals are the last series of games to determine which two teams will face off in the Championship Finals in just a few weeks.
The Championship Final is a best-of-seven tournament, with games played at both teams’ home arenas. While this is obviously the big prize that every team sets their sights on, the Conference Finals are also a big deal since they determine the winner for each half of the country.
Betting on the NBA is becoming big business, and the Conference Finals are one of the hottest events to bet on at the moment. For years, the NFL dominated sports betting thanks to the popularity of Fantasy Football, but now that sports betting is becoming more widespread, more sports are gaining ground.
Since the Conference Finals are a best-of-seven series just like the Championship, bettors have plenty of opportunities to make their wagers when betting on the NBA playoffs. For fans of accumulator bets, this is the perfect time to test out your prediction making skills over a run.
Whether you’re betting on the games or are simply a new fan of the sport thanks to the hype surrounding this season, knowing about the Conference Finals and the teams playing in them is a good idea. It can give you an edge when betting or help you better understand what all is going on.
This guide to the 2022 NBA Conference Finals will explain a bit about the games themselves. Then it will give you a breakdown of each team that’s playing in them and what their performance in the Conference Semi-Finals can tell us about their chances of making it all the way.
The Conferences
As we see with all major sports leagues, breaking the league down into Conferences and Divisions makes it all a lot more manageable and simpler to organize. It prevents any one region from getting top-heavy with talented teams and ensures that fans across the country have a team that is fairly local.
The NBA has 30 teams divided evenly between the Eastern and Western Conferences. Geographically, the Western Conference covers more of the country, but that has more to do with how big those western states are than anything else.
Both Conferences are broken up into three Divisions. The Eastern is made up of the Atlantic, Central and Southeast Divisions. The Western has the Northwest, Pacific and Southwest Divisions.
The range of each Division varies pretty dramatically. For example, the Pacific Division is almost entirely made up of teams from California, while the Northwest Division has teams from Oregon, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Colorado and Utah.
The Conference Finals
Competition across the entire NBA is always fierce, especially during the playoffs, but any sports fan knows that competition between local rivals is always the most intense. It’s the same within each Division and Conference.
While some teams have rivalries with teams clear across the country, the majority of the biggest NBA rivalries are between teams in the same Conference. This means that even though winning the Championship title is important, the bragging rights that come along with a Conference win are huge.
In this year’s Conference Finals, there are some surprise appearances: the Boston Celtics will face the Miami Heat to determine the Eastern Conference winner, meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors are duking it out with the Dallas Mavericks for the Western Conference title.
Boston Celtics
It’s safe to say that the Boston Celtics had one of the toughest fights to make it to the Conference Finals of all the teams playing. First, they played the Brooklyn Nets, and then the real challenge came – from the Milwaukee Bucks.
There is little argument that the Celtics are currently the best defensive team in the Eastern Conference. However, what has surprised some analysts is how effective their offense has been during the playoffs; their newfound aggression and urgency have translated into some high-scoring wins.
The Celtics and the Heat are heading into game five with two wins apiece. In order to win, the Celtics are going to have to focus on scoring from everywhere. They have a tendency to be too reliant on 3-pointers and free throws, but midrange shots and layups are essential to keeping scores high.
Miami Heat
While Tampa can boast about the Rays, the Buccaneers and the Lightning when comparing with Miami teams, Miami does have the only NBA team in southern Florida. And the Miami Heat have impressed everyone with their performance so far this season.
Their quick defeat of the Atlanta Hawks wasn’t much of a surprise to anyone, but the ease with which they defeated the Philadelphia 76ers was a show of pure talent. The Heat are renowned for their ferocious, bruising style of basketball. Many teams simply can’t last against their physicality.
Golden State Warriors
Even though they finished third in the standings, the Golden State Warriors were supposed to be on their way out with their glory days behind them. Apparently, no one told them that. They smashed through the Denver Nuggets and also made quick work of the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Golden State Warriors are a unique team because their success relies on their star player not acting like a star. Stephen Curry might be one of the best players ever, but he doesn’t let ego drive how he plays. Instead, he focuses on the team and elevating each member. This strategy has certainly paid off.
Dallas Mavericks
The Phoenix Suns were expected to make it all the way to the Final this year, but the Dallas Mavericks made short work of that dream. They also shut down the Utah Jazz’s hopes of a Conference Final appearance.
Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson are both incredible players who are point scoring machines when they get going. The only issue is they can’t carry the entire team by themselves. The Mavericks lack the balance that other teams in the Conference Finals have.
As of May 23rd, the Golden State Warriors were leading by three games to zero. If the Mavericks don’t find a way to disrupt the flow and communication that their rivals from California have, there is little chance that they’ll make it to game five.
The Conference Finals are off to an exciting start. In the Western Conference, it seems like a sure thing that the Golden State Warriors will win. The Eastern Conference leaves a lot more room for uncertainty. It could be either team’s game, and we can’t wait to see who comes out on top.
Visit Tampafp.com for Politics, Tampa Area Local News, Sports, and National Headlines. Support journalism by clicking here to our GiveSendGo or sign up for our free newsletter by clicking here.
Android Users, Click Here To Download The Free Press App And Never Miss A Story. Follow Us On Facebook Here Or Twitter Here.
Copyright 2022 The Free Press, LLC, tampafp.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.