The Play-In Tournament is finally upon us. The most important stretch of the season has arrived, meaning teams will have to — literally — win or go home to get one of the final two postseason berths.
The Western Conference will continue to be a battle to the death between teams with a winning record. Shockingly, most of them would’ve made the playoffs in the Eastern Conference without going through this, but that’s just the way it goes.
The West’s Play-In Tournament will feature two matchups from the ages. And while it’ll be a shame to watch any of these teams get knocked out, just one of each will be able to advance.
With that in mind, we’ll share our thoughts and picks for the first set of games.
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New Orleans Pelicans vs Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers have the New Orleans Pelicans’ number.
They led by more than 30 points in their regular-season finale, and that’s despite the Pelicans finally getting Brandon Ingram back.
Some believe the Lakers should tank this game to avoid the Denver Nuggets — who have beaten them nine straight times — in the first round. Then again, they don’t want to risk losing the following matchup and not making the playoffs at all.
With that in mind, we expect another throwback game from LeBron James.
Anthony Davis’ lower-back injury will obviously be a concern, but the Pelicans have shown that they cannot be trusted at this stage.
Pick: Lakers +1.5
Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors struggled with inconsistency all season long. Now, they’ll have to get past the Sacramento Kings, the very same team they took down in the first round of last season’s playoffs.
The Warriors have fared much better on the road than at home this season, and there should be plenty of Dubs fans in attendance on the other side of Nothern California. The Kings are a tough team, but they’re down two key pieces in Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter.
That’s why we believe Steve Kerr’s team is going to get the best of them again, with Stephen Curry having another masterpiece of a game against their divisional rivals to live another day in their pursuit of a postseason berth.
Pick: Warriors -2.5
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