2016 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Round 1 Predictions
Written by David Strauss on April 18, 2016
What the hell is wrong with the Eastern Conference? During the regular season, Cleveland and Toronto dominated the conference, and Atlanta was arguably the best team in the East during the final two months of the year and they were covering the NBA betting lines. None of these three of the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference looked dominant in their respective first round NBA betting playoff matchups. The #2 home- favored Toronto Raptors were upset by the #7 Indiana Pacers on Saturday; the #4 Atlanta Hawks blew a 19-point lead and had to squeak past the #5 Boston Celtics in a oh-so-close 1-point home victory; and the #1 Cleveland Cavaliers trailed the #8 Detroit Pistons at halftime (and even after three quarters), having to rally back in the fourth quarter to secure an ugly 106-101 home win.
The only team Eastern team that showed it was ready for the playoffs was the #3 Miami Heat, who blew past the #6 Charlotte Hornets for a convincing home win.
This is a stark contrast to the West, where all the top-four seeds not only won their games by double digits, but also covered the huge spreads in the process. Can the East see an improvement in the remaining games of Round 1, or will the murky nature of their playoff contention continue? Read on below to find out what our analysis has to say…