Published May. 15, 2025
Isaac Campbell
Reporter
As the NBA playoffs are underway, the Boston Celtics were the leading favorites to win the NBA Championship, But are now down 3-1 against the New York Knicks and Jayson Tatum presumably tearing his achilles in game 4. They finished the regular season with a league-best 64–18 record, securing the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. The Celtics’ roster, featuring stars like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, is complemented by a strong supporting cast, including Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis. The new sixth man of the year Payton Prichard has also risen to stardom this season giving an extra kick off the bench. Their combination of offensive firepower and defensive prowess positions them as the team to beat.
In the Western Conference, the Minnesota Timberwolves have emerged as strong contenders and are my personal favorites to win the NBA championship because of star Anthony Edwards. They recently eliminated the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs and are set to face the Golden State Warriors in the Conference SemiFinals. Led also by Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert the Timberwolves have demonstrated what it means to be flawless in the playoffs and depth throughout the playoffs.
But no one can forget about the most complete team in the NBA, the OKC thunder, lead by MVP favorite Gilgeous Alexander had ended the season with a 68-14 record and already blew by the Memphis grizzlies and are currently tied with the Denver Nuggets.
This is the NBA playoffs though so anything can happen. Even if Minnesota can make it to the NBA finals, they must stay flawless every step of the way.