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10 Matchups We Want To See In The 2017 NBA Playoffs

By Gerald Bourguet

Mar 1, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) is guarded by Boston Celtics point guard Marcus Smart (36) during the first quarter at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 1, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) is guarded by Boston Celtics point guard Marcus Smart (36) during the first quarter at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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2017 NBA Playoffs
Jan 24, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) passes the ball as Boston Celtics center Al Horford (42) and center Kelly Olynyk (41) defend during the first half at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /

6. Eastern Conference Semifinals: No. 2 Boston Celtics vs. No. 3 Washington Wizards

Not only would this be the most entertaining individual second round matchup for both the Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards, but it’d also be a showdown between two very good teams who genuinely do not like each other.

Remember when John Wall started talking s**t to Jae Crowder and the two got into a postgame shoving match? Remember when the Wizards planned to dress in black for a funeral in their next head-to-head meeting and Isaiah Thomas called it “cute“?

Yeah, there would be no love lost between these two in a potential playoff series.

The on-court matchups would be intriguing as well. Two fringe MVP candidates/two of the best point guards in the NBA would be going head-to-head in Isaiah Thomas and John Wall. There’d be a Battle of the Bradleys as Avery Bradley would try to shut down Bradley Beal.

Two of the league’s most undervalued wings in Jae Crowder and Otto Porter Jr. would be matching up. There’d be a battle of the benches as impact players like Marcus Smart and Bojan Bogdanovic would try to outdo each other. Even Al Horford vs. double-double machine Marcin Gortat would be entertaining.

The Wizards have won 27 of their 39 games since the start of 2017, while the Celtics have won 26 of their 38 games in the new year. If the Celtics can’t make up that one-game gap behind the Cavs and stay in the No. 2 spot, and if Washington keeps its spot at No. 3 (one game ahead of Toronto), we’d more than likely see this grudge match unfold.

This series would probably decide who advances to face the Cavaliers in the conference finals, it’d be a tooth-and-nail slugfest between two teams that hate each other and the star-powered matchups would be incredible. What more could you want from the semifinals?