Getty Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum
As the 2019 NBA Playoffs inch closer to the NBA Finals, we’re getting a clear idea of how the two semifinals matchups could look. While the second round matchups in both conferences have made plenty of headlines, we’re going to look ahead at the Eastern Conference Finals.
The East semifinal matchup is set to feature two teams who finished with 49 wins or more, regardless of who makes it. While the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors are the No. 1 and 2 seeds in the East, they’ve gotten all they can handle from the Boston Celtics (four seed) and Philadelphia 76ers (three seed).
We’re going to breakdown what we know about the tentative Eastern Conference Finals schedule and will update as additional information comes to light. Beyond that, we’ll offer a prediction on which team will emerge and head to the 2019 NBA Finals.
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Eastern Conference Finals Schedule
The tentative start dates for the Western Conference Finals have been revealed courtesy of Sports Media Watch, but the Eastern Conference is a bit tougher to gauge. At the very least, we do have an idea of how those dates will look.
For the West, ESPN is listed as covering the games which are slated to start on Tuesday, May 14. The start date for that series could potentially be moved up one or two days, but that depends on how the second round plays out.
While Sports Media Watch points out that TNT is covering the Eastern Conference Finals, the tentative schedule hasn’t been finalized, but it will either begin the day before or the day after the West. Assuming that it starts after, we can look at the West schedule and base the projected schedule around that.
Western Conference Finals Schedule
- Tuesday, May 14: Game 1 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Thursday, May 16: Game 2 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Saturday, May 18: Game 3 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Monday, May 20: Game 4 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- *Wednesday, May 22: Game 5 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- *Friday, May 24: Game 6 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- *Sunday, May 26: Game 7 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
*If necessary
Factoring in the above dates, it would leave Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals likely starting on Wednesday, May 15. This is due to the fact that a possible Game 7 between the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks is slated for Monday, May 13 if it were to go that far.
From there, Game 2 would likely be on Friday, May 17 followed by a Sunday, May 19 matchup for Game 3 and Tuesday, May 21 meeting for Game 4. The Eastern Conference Finals tip times are likely going to be at 8 p.m. ET as opposed to 9 p.m. in the West, but that hasn’t been set yet. Once the official schedule has been posted by TNT, we’ll update the full outlook in the East here.
Eastern Conference Finals Prediction
I’ve stuck with the 76ers to emerge from their matchup with the Raptors all along, and I do believe that’s how one side of the bracket plays out. Philly’s starting lineup of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris and JJ Redick simply has too much firepower for Toronto, barring something drastic changing.
On the other side, both the Bucks and Celtics have more than enough talent and deep enough rosters to not only emerge from their matchup but possibly make the NBA Finals. Giannis Antetokounmpo and company are going to be a tough out, but I think they’ll emerge thanks to a Game 7 which will be on their home floor.
From there, the Sixers are a true wild card against the Bucks, considering their starting lineup was able to play together very sporadically throughout the regular season. They’re continuing to improve and have looked better as the playoffs rolled on, and it’s likely they’ll be a tough out. Originally, I was going to pick the Bucks to emerge from the East, but I love the well-rounded Sixers group and believe they can take Milwaukee down, but it’ll have to happen on their home floor.
Eastern Conference Finals Prediction: 76ers over Bucks in six games
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