The NBA playoff matchups have been set, with the season-long drama of the Los Angeles Lakers finally getting resolved with an exciting overtime win over the Houston Rockets nestling them in the seventh spot.
With the loss, the Houston Rockets dropped to the eighth seed, meaning they will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round. That will reunite James Harden with his former mates, from whom he was traded mere days before the season kicked off. Harden was the league's top sixth man with the Thunder, but he has assumed the leading role in Houston and done nicely.
In seven more minutes per night, Harden's scoring has jumped from 16.8 points per game to 25.2. He will go against the second-leading scorer in the league this season Kevin Durant, who averaged 28.1 points per game and did not win the scoring title for the first time since 2009-2010.
By taking the seventh seed, the Lakers earned a matchup against the vaunted Spurs. Without Kobe Bryant available, this series will become a battle of bigs, with Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol looking to punish defensive savant Tim Duncan and his running mate Tiago Splitter. The health of point guard Tony Parker and shooting guard/sixth man Manu Ginobili could also play a key role in determining Los Angeles' chances.
The Denver Nuggets will face the Golden State Warriors in what promises to be an offensive-minded firefight of a series. Stephen Curry set the NBA record for 3-pointers in a season Wednesday night with 272, and connected from deep 45 percent of the time. The Denver Nuggets run the fastest-paced offense of just about any team in the league, but between Curry and Klay Thompson the Warriors have enough shooting and athleticism to keep up.
The Nuggets have also been bitten by the injury bug. Danilo Gallinari is out with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, while Ty Lawson has been slowed by a sore heel and Kenneth Faried has dealt with an ankle sprain.
In the No. 4 vs. No. 5 matchup, the Los Angeles Clippers will face the Memphis Grizzlies in a re-match of last postseason's series in which the seeds were flipped. The Clippers needed seven games in the 2012 playoffs to dispatch the Grizzlies, and with Memphis being arguably the NBA's best defense this year, it figures to be another slog for the Clippers to beat them again.
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