Philadelphia 76ers podcast: Breaking down every 2019 first-round series

The first round of the NBA Playoffs has seen a few competitive series but for the most part, they will wrap up in four or five games. On the fourth episode of the TSS Podcast, the guys discuss all the non-Philadelphia 76ers playoff series and give their thoughts on what has gone on thus far and lastly, they give their predictions for the rest of the postseason.

The 2019 NBA Playoffs finally kicked off a few weeks back and there has been some exciting basketball thus far. On this episode of The Sixer Sense Podcast, Jack Duffy, Joe DiProsperos, AJ Iezzi, and Matt Burnham go through each series outside the Philadelphia 76ers-Brooklyn Nets bubble and give their perspective and takes on the first round.

Check out the episode below and continue reading to get insight on what the guys discussed.

Portland Trail Blazers-Oklahoma City Thunder

The guys start by debating the Russell Westbrook–Damian Lillard battle. Russ has struggled so far in this series and Matt brings up if it is even a Russ-Dame battle or is it just Dame vs. the Thunder with Westbrook’s struggles.

Joe brings up the point that no other player’s stock has risen more this playoffs than Dame, who is lighting the Thunder on fire with help from CJ McCollum and Enes Kanter who has also had great series.

They also talk about Paul George‘s shoulder injury and how the Thunder could have first round exits in the first two seasons of the Westbrook-PG era.

Denver Nuggets-San Antonio Spurs

The Nuggets-Spurs currently sit tied at 2-2. AJ gives his thoughts on Derrick White breaking out into the national spotlight with his 36-point outing in Game 3 and dominance in this series on both ends.

The guys discuss the inconsistent backcourt of Jamal Murray and Gary Harris and how if those two can have consistent offensive performance, the Nuggets will be a hard team to beat. Nikola Jokic is also having a solid series being 0.7 APG away from averaging a triple-double through four games.

Golden State Warriors-Los Angeles Clippers

Obviously, if you talk Clippers around TSS guys, there is going to be plenty of Landry Shamet praise, especially given that he hit a game-winning three in Game 2 after the Clippers made a 31-point comeback. Landry Shamet was taken at No. 26 overall in last year’s draft and he is already looking like a steal.

This series will likely close out in five games but it is still fun to talk about ex-Sixer Lou Williams. He and Montrezl Harrell have the best pick-and-roll in the NBA in points per possession.

Houston Rockets-Utah Jazz

Matt Burnham starts off this segment giving his take for why the Houston Rockets will win the 2019 NBA Finals. Listen in if you want to know how Matt thinks they can do it.

The Rockets-Jazz series has been fairly one-sided, with Donovan Mitchell not having any scoring help to compete with the high-flying, high-scoring Rockets offense, led by MVP candidate James Harden. Houston will likely close the series out in five games, especially if Mitchell continues his shooting struggles along with the rest of the team.

Toronto Raptors-Orlando Magic

The Eastern Conference first round has been very uneventful minus the Sixers-Nets series. D.J. Augustine had a breakout Game 1 in which Toronto lost yet another Game 1 in the playoffs but since then it has been all Raptors all the way.

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Michael Carter-Williams got a shout out on the pod for getting playoff minutes, as well as Markelle Fultz, getting his second look at playoff basketball, but from the sideline.

Kawhi Leonard had the flu for Game 3 and it was apparent he was struggling physically, but Pascal Siakam stepped up and had 30 points in the win. Kawhi has reestablished himself as arguably a top-five player in the league. He is rested, healthy, and in full assassin mode.

The guys discuss a scary second-round series against Toronto where the Sixers could face elimination (assuming they don’t drop a 3-1 series lead).  They talk potential matchups and how the Sixers will fair against the Raps.

Boston Celtics-Indiana Pacers

Boston-Indiana has been a series where if you didn’t watch it, you missed nothing. Without Victor Oladipo, the Pacers don’t have the guy on offense to provide the majority of points and that showed with the Pacers having three third quarters where they scored less than 15 points.

Kyrie Irving played well, per usual, and without Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Gordon Hayward and Jayson Tatum have been able to get more playing time. More Brown, Hayward and Tatum minutes helps the Celtics offensively but they still miss the bulldog in Marcus Smart on the other end.

Boston swept easily and will move on to face Milwaukee in the next round.

Milwaukee Bucks-Detroit Pistons

The same can be said about Bucks-Pistons as for the Celtics-Pacers series. It was the easiest first-round sweep, where the Bucks dominated Detroit in every game from start to finish. The Bucks and Celtics both swept their quarterfinals opponents so they will be equally rested for a second-round showdown.

Keep following the podcast for more game recaps, Sixers analysis and draft speculation — among other topics — in the near future.