Kings Gameday: Playoff preview

The western conference looks like it is a total slugfest yet again this year. Los Angeles, despite some injuries, is pretty much close to settling in on a first round opponent. And they should be able to at least put on a good fight. But the top of the conference features some really scary, ultra-deep teams.

Golden State and San Antonio just do not lose games. At least not in stretches. The long range game can bury or catch up to any team, and for someone to win a game like that, they simply need the Warriors to miss a ton of shots. The Spurs aren't so simple, what with their incredibly nuanced structure and depth.

Oklahoma City looks healthy and dangerous as ever, but I have real doubts they can overcome their depth problems. The bottom four teams are much more of a grab bag. Whoever snags the eighth seed will probably get swept, and for the seventh seed I truthfully would expect the same. Maybe Portland and Memphis can swing upsets with the Thunder and Clippers, but it's an uphill battle and Portland especially looks over matched.

Nobody cares about the eastern conference.

Prediction: Clippers come out firing against Washington with the return of Blake Griffin and win 107-99.