The 2016 NBA playoffs start today, and with it the “real season” begins as some would say. With a world championship on the line down the road, let's take a look at each Western Conference playoff team's biggest weakness, and why they probably won't win the title.
Let's start with the teams most likely to win the title and work our way down.
Golden State Warriors
Their biggest weakness is transition defense. The defending champs were scored on 52.5% of opponents' transition opportunities. Their second biggest weakness is defending pick and roll plays that result in passes rather than drives. It's ironic for this picking team to struggle with that – and struggle is a relative term considering they only lost 9 games the whole regular season – but they did give up the 5th highest average of points in the NBA off those situations.
San Antonio Spurs
Tony Parker is the weak link on defense. His age is getting to him a bit, and he struggled this season in man-to-man and hands-off situations. Other teams can take advantage of this.
Oklahoma City Thunder
OKC has two great offensive players. But the team defense is not as good, as in giving up 105.6 points per 100 possessions when none of the last 10 NBA champions gave up less than 104.7 per 100 possessions.
Los Angeles Clippers
DeAndre Jordan can be a monster on the glass, but the rest of the team doesn't help much. The Clips are third-worst at offensive rebounds.
Portland Trail Blazers
Long range defense is the problem for Dame and company. The Blazers gave up the fourth highest rate of three-pointers this season, which means even if they make it to a matchup with Golden State, they have a big problem.
Dallas Mavericks
Everyone wants to see Dirk Nowitzki have success, but he could be holding them back. In his last 10 games, Dirk only shot 34.2% from the field.
Houston Rockets
James Harden can score in bunches. But he also can turn the ball over in bunches, like he did a league record amount this season. Plus, no one in Houston thinks they'll beat Golden State in round one.
Memphis Grizzlies
Let's not even talk about the stats. Do you know how many different players have played for Memphis this season? A record breaking number. Injuries are their fatal weakness.
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