RD1 Previews: 2018

Chamberlain Conference
#1 Another Bad Creation (15-5-1) vs #4 Sour Snails (10-11)
After taking a first round upset last year, ABC is back with not only the #1 seed in Chamberlain but also a matchup with the new-look defending champs! The last time these two faced off in the playoffs was 2011, when Snails took down ABC by just one rebound, as Chuck Hayes fended off Andrew Bogut and JaVale McGee. Oh right, and Kevin Durant was playing for Another Bad Creation instead of Snails! Plus, Russell Westbrook wasn’t even on the scene yet, as Sour was still led by in scoring that week by um, Jordan Crawford (true story…)?!

With three straight Transformers titles, Oliver has established himself as the class of the division, but will have to lean on Westbrook -- now the ABC's franchise figure instead of Durant -- to power this team to a big win. LaMarcus Aldridge is better in the post than anyone Snails have, and there’s a nice collection of win-now veterans here, with Tyreke Evans, Dirk Nowitzki, and maybe Dwayne Wade. But with Snails looking like they’re going small ball, it could be quite the matchup here.

Crawling into a championship defense with a losing record is pretty interesting, especially when the team is coming off three straight titles. We had given Snails up for dead this year but with two major moves at the transaction deadline, Trieu has opened the door for a proper defense. However, since the time of those trades for Damian Lillard, Julius Randle, and Isaiah Thomas, half of Snails’ core has succumbed to injury. Steph Curry and Kevin Durant are both out, and the Warriors have no incentive to rush them back. Brook Lopez is also suddenly on the injury report. A title defense led by Curry and Durant is looking like it’ll be Dame plus some baby Laker vets in IT4, Lopez, and Randle... If Snails can pull of an upset here, they could be lurking with a return by their big two, which means the champs aren't out of it yet! Don’t let it happen Oliver, finish him!

#2 Fat Jubas (12-9) vs #3 Fob Stars (10-10-1)
Having done his part to put Sour Snails in a hole — by beating Trieu in WK21 — Eric’s goals are now to stay the course and get into another Finals. Adding Jeff Teague and Robert Covington will be a nice boost, and with Chris Paul and Jrue Holiday being arguably the best 1-2 point guard punch in SlamNation, Jubas are looking like a major contender. A frontline of Myles Turner, Jonas Valanciunas, and Pau Gasol pairs with the savvy backcourt, while Joe Ingles and Nicolas Batum provide all around glue guy plays. This is definitely the most balanced team in the conference, so let’s go find out what Coach Eric can do to pilot his team to the top.

After starting off 6-8-1, Fob Stars wasn’t expecting to make any postseason noise this season but I guess when a playoff berth falls into your lap, you take it! Jimmy’s team is heading into the postseason for the third year in a row — mirroring the third year in a row Silverhawks have sent three teams — but this is the first time they won’t have to face Sour Snails in the first round. That means Kemba Walker will finally have the chance to get a playoff win, and he’ll lead a ragtag group of heroes to do it. Tobias Harris has blossomed into a bonafide fantasy star out in Clipperland -- 21.4 PTS, 6.6 REB, 3.2 AST, 2.1 STL/BLK, 2.8 3PT, 49.8 FG% -- alongside center DeAndre Jordan, and the young duo of Jamal Murray and John Collins are also flashing plenty of promise. Even Ricky Rubio has returned to slinging AST, and while there aren’t any brand name stars here, Jimmy’s collection of knock-offs could be ready to knock off a division foe that barely edged them out for the title.

Russell Conference
#1 Chunky Monkeys (20-1) vs #4 Team Thien (13-7-1)
Last we checked in, Monkeys was 14-1 and rolling toward a regular season crown — just like last year. The Monkeys are ranked top two in every category except FT% and TOs, and boast not only dual MVP threats James Harden and LeBron James, but most importantly: health. Monkeys are one of the rare contenders whose stars are looking fully healthy, and the trade deadline addition of Eric Gordon will fill in for Kris Dunn if Dunn’s sprained toe proves bothersome. We won't bother going through all of Evan's accolades from this season as there's only one thing that matters: the ring!

After getting upended by a #4 seed in the first round last year, Monkeys basically will get a bye this week as Thien's team is all injured. Post-trading away two healthy bodies in Damian Lillard and Julius Randle, Thien’s entire keeper core has a big red “O” next to their names: John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Butler, Conley, Gary Harris, and Lauri Markkanen. Carmelo Anthony ain't going to lead this squad to an upset and so Thien will walk away from 2018 knowing that they developed a nice rookie in Markkanen, and will hope for better health next year.

#2 So Buckets (14-6-1) vs #3 Funk Coalition (13-7-1)
After a three year hiatus, So Buckets have regained the Voltron divisional crown, beating Team Thien in the last week of the regular season to do so. Now Josh’s attention can focus on the postseason, knowing they will be unlikely to face the team that eliminated them last season -- Thien’s Young Gunn’s -- if they get past Funk Coalition in the first round. Unfortunately, star Kyrie Irving is looking dinged up and there’s no timetable for his return, opening up the door for an upset. However, Joel Embiid is healthy and he’ll have DeMar DeRozan and CJ McCollum to help him out, along with Rudy Robert, Dario Saric, a still rounding into form Jabari Parker, and also the recently en fuego Jonathon Simmons. Will it be enough to get past the first round? Probably! Can So Buckets then take down Chunky Monkeys again? Behind The Process, anything can happen....

After years of terrible teams that were constantly injured or underperforming, Funk has finally found the formula, notching their first winning record and earning their second playoff appearance (first one was in 2011). Karl-Anthony Towns will face off with Embiid in the middle and likely ROY Ben Simmons will look to dominate with his triple double goodness. However, there doesn’t seem to be quite enough firepower here, even with Khris Middleton coming onboard to replace the just injured Klay Thompson. Funk might have to walk away from this season knowing that at least now have they have some talent to usher them into a new era behind KAT, Simmons, Jayson Tatum and Josh Richardson.