By Mikey Neusner, Staff Writer
As the NBA In-Season Tournament concludes, it is time to discuss the playoffs. What will the NBA Finals matchup look like? Will the Nuggets face the Heat for the second straight year, or will the Celtics play against the Suns in a new Finals matchup? I predict the 2024 NBA Finals will be the Celtics versus the Suns, and it will be an intense one, too.
In 2024, the Celtics will make it to the NBA finals because they are easily the best team in the Eastern Conference. Joe Mazzulla, the Celtics’ coach, is the best in the NBA and can outcoach any opponent. The Celtics also have one of the best defenses in the league that can stop good offenses like that of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers. They do not just have defense though; they also have a solid offense. They have one of the best scorers in the league in Jayson Tatum, one of the best three-point shooters in the league in Jaylen Brown, and a great duo of defenders in Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. The Celtics’ most formidable obstacles in the Eastern Conference are the Cavaliers and the Bucks. However, they can defeat those two teams. The Cavaliers have been struggling all season and although they still have Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, they will not be enough for them because they cannot control how the rest of his team plays during the playoffs. The Bucks will not make it because they lack the strength to beat the Celtics, even though it might be close. The Celtics will overcome the Eastern Conference and come out as Eastern Conference champions.
This season, the Phoenix Suns have the best chance to win the Western Conference. They have an incredible coach in Frank Vogel, Kevin Durant, an amazing candidate for MVP, and a talented shooting duo in Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. This year, they seem like the hardest team to beat in the West. To enhance their chances of making it out of the Western Conference, they acquired three-time NBA all-star Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards this past summer. He will significantly help them offensively this season. He brings a spark to their offense. Although the Western Conference is a competitive conference including super teams like the Golden State Warriors and the Denver Nuggets, the Phoenix Suns can still triumph. They have proven that, with this team, they have the power to defeat anyone.
Even with all the competition that the Celtics and Suns will face, they will still overcome their competition and face off in the NBA Finals. The games that the two teams have played against one another have been close in the past, so if both teams make it to the finals, you should expect an exciting series.