The other half of the NBA’s conference semifinal round will begin Tuesday night, when the Cleveland Cavaliers will play in Boston against the Eastern Conference’s top-seeded Celtics, while the Dallas Mavericks will bring the Red River Rivalry to the hardwood when they travel to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder, the West’s No. 1 seed.
For Cleveland, it marks a return to the conference semifinals for the first time since 2018 — and the first time without LeBron James since 1993. Boston, meanwhile, has now reached the second round of the playoffs seven times in the past eight years and is looking to make it back to the conference finals for a sixth time during that span.
Dallas has advanced in the playoffs for a second time in three years after making it to the Western Conference finals two years ago, while Oklahoma City is in the second round for the first time since 2016 — when it lost a classic seven-game conference finals against the 73-win Golden State Warriors.
Here’s a look at three key storylines to watch in each series and which should play a large role in determining who will come out on top:
MORE: Everything to know about the playoffs |
Offseason guides for every team
Jarrett Allen‘s health
The biggest thing to watch coming into this series is whether Cleveland’s starting center will be able to play after missing the final three games of the Cavaliers’ first-round victory over the Orlando Magic with a bruised rib.
Allen is a strong two-way presence in the middle for Cleveland, and with Evan Mobley, they create one of the league’s best defensive units. When they shared the floor during the playoffs, the Cavaliers allowed just 0.78 points per direct drive, according to Second Spectrum tracking.
With Kristaps Porzingis likely to miss the series for Boston due to a calf strain, Cleveland’s size can be a real threat in the paint — presuming Allen sees the court.
There have been some offensive issues with Cleveland playing two non-shooting bigs together. But the more pressing issue for the Cavaliers is that if Allen isn’t available, that will mean running out either Tristan Thompson or Marcus Morris Sr. at center behind Mobley. Against the offensive firepower of the Celtics, the Cavs’ lack of depth inside could become a serious problem as the…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at www.espn.com – NBA…