There’s always a team in the playoffs that ends up shocking a lot of people. Last year, for instance, it was the Miami Heat. Just like last year, the playoffs look a little different with the play-in tournament. This gives more teams the opportunity to not just make it to the postseason, but also make a run for the title.
Let’s take a look at the top 3 teams that could make a surprising playoff push…
3. Washington Wizards
After a rather slow start to the season, the Wizards have figured out how to win games. With Thursday night’s win over Toronto, they’ve won 14 of their last 18 games. They’re now just 5 wins away from the .500 mark. Ever since their rough start, the Wizards have really looked like a playoff team. Let’s not forget Thomas Bryant going down with a season-ending injury at the beginning of the season. After that, the Wizards kind of started playing with a purpose. Washington climbed their way up the standings and went from one of the worst teams in the NBA to one of the most underrated.
Russell Westbrook is 1 triple-double away from tying Oscar Robertson for the most triple-doubles in NBA history. After tonight’s game, Westbrook is the first player in history to record 50 rebounds and 50 assists in a three-game span. If he continues this caliber of play, the sky is the limit for this team. Of course, they’ll likely have to get through the play-in games first. I think if this team does make the playoffs, they can really give a top seed some fits.
2. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors have been one of those teams that has hovered around the middle of the standings all year. Generally speaking, they’ve been in the play-in tournament all season long. It’s tough to really climb the leaderboard when your 2nd best player is out all season. When the Warriors play their best basketball, they really do have the ability to beat high-caliber teams.
Even though Klay Thompson is out, Golden State still has their best shooter in Steph Curry. Curry has been UNSTOPPABLE recently. If Nikola Jokic wasn’t playing so good, Curry would be someone to definitely consider for MVP (some people actually do believe that Curry is the MVP). Currently, the Warriors would match up with Portland in the play-in tournament. I think they can beat them if they keep playing how they are. After that? Who knows how far they can go. Anything is possible with Steph Curry.
1. Dallas Mavericks
Now I understand that Dallas might not be a team many people classify as a “dark horse”. I agree that they are one of the better teams in the league, but I don’t think they are one of the teams people think of when they hear the word “contender”. That’s why I picked them as a dark horse team to make a deep playoff run. This is a team, however, that genuinely could make The Finals.
We all know Luka Doncic as one of the most exciting young players in the league. But he’s more than exciting, he’s dominant. It feels like Luka has the capability to drop 30+ points every night. He’s also been one of those guys that’s top 10 in the MVP race (in my opinion). Even with Porzingis being injured off and on, Dallas has still found ways to win. A dominant Doncic + a healthy Porzingis is a scary duo to face in the playoffs. Watch out for the Mavericks.
