2021-2022 AROUND the NBA: GSW Champs [ARCHIVED]

[DanSchwartzgan]

So Minnesota lost and Utah was kind enough allowing Pop to become the coach with most wins in NBA history. I guess Dallas is pretty safe from play-in if they win at least one game against Minnesota. 3rd place is too far away, so the battle for positions 4-6 will likely be the story of the last part of the season for us.

I wonder if there will be some jockeying for position among 4, 5 and 6 to try to get a specific matchup.  I could see a team wanting the sixth slot to avoid Phoenix in the second round.  You'd have to be kind of cocky to think this way, but is a Memphis or Golden State matchup in the first round really that much more difficult than Denver?

At the opposite end of the spectrum, if you go all out to get 4th and home court against Utah, there is no guarantee you'll get the Jazz.  They could drop to sixth at the last minute and there we are playing Jokic in the first round.  A healthy Phoenix scares me because they have more guys than our style of D can guard.  Denver and Jokic scares me too as Powell has to have help rather than provide help as he often does against other centers.  I don't see a dramatic difference between Utah, GS and Memphis.  You have to beat someone good no matter who you play in the first round.