Western Conference Headlines: Anthony Edwards and Luka Doncic are making their cases for best players in the NBA today. With the Denver Nuggets loss, the last 6 NBA Champions have failed to make it past the second round of the playoffs the following year.
Eastern Conference Headlines: The Boston Celtics have been the best team all season and have relatively rolled through the first two rounds of the playoffs. If the win the East, will the easier schedule be a positive or will they be far less battle-tested than the Western Conference winner.

Eastern Conference

(1) Boston Celtics vs (6) Indiana Pacers
The Boston Celtics were not only expected to make the Eastern Conference Finals, but also the NBA Finals. The unexpected team here is the Indiana Pacers. When Indiana traded for Pascal Siakam they made the decision to establish a future contender. I bet even the Pacers’ organization is shocked though to have already made the ECF. Matchups make fights and without Kristaps Porzingis to start the series, the Pacers matchup advantageously against Boston in the front court with Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam. Boston is the better team and will likely prevail, however not without a fight.
Prediction: Boston Celtics 4-2

Western Conference

(3) Minnesota Timberwolves vs (5) Dallas Mavericks
An argument can be made that the two best teams remaining in the playoffs are in the Western Conference. Dallas and Minnesota are both battle tested, with the Timberwolves having knocked off the defending champion Denver Nuggets in a fantastic seven game series. Anthony Edwards is letting the NBA world know he is here to stay and in his Game 7 postgame, he made claim to be guarding Kyrie Irving in this upcoming series. Edwards is surrounded by veteran leadership and an elite defensive team. Luka Doncic is surrounded by a perennial All-Star and NBA Champion in Kyrie Irving as well as a cast of reliable role players. This series cannot start soon enough and I expect it to go the distance.
Prediction: Dallas Mavericks 4-3