If you’ve watched your share of hoops this season – and we know you have – you know the Steph-led Warriors and LeBron-led Lakers are not exactly crushing it in the West this year. Still, our man Shaq thinks both teams still have a shot at playoff success.
If you check the standings as of this posting date – we did for you, so keep reading – the top three out west are (in order) the Oklahoma City Thunder, followed by the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves. For both the Warriors and Lakers, they’re both near the bottom, in the 9th and 10th slots of the division.
Still, that didn’t stop Shaq from making some pretty bold claims on a recent edition of TNT’s Inside the NBA. Of course O’Neal always has something interesting to say, and last Friday night was no exception. Shaq had good things to say about both the Warriors and the Lakers when it comes to their chances of getting past the first round of the upcoming NBA playoffs.
Dubs and Lakers fans, be of good cheer (to borrow the Christmas cliche). O’Neal said he believes the Warriors and Lakers “could” or “can” take down the Oklahoma City Thunder if they match up in the 2024 NBA playoffs.
The BIG Podcast with SHAQ
Checking the standings as of this posting, the Lakers and Warriors will most likely be facing off against each other in one of the play-in matchups to start postseason action. Also out west, the Phoenix Suns will very likely face the Dallas Mavericks. (BTW, did you see Kyrie Irving’s amazing buzzer-beater Sunday in the Mavs game against Denver? Crazy-awesome.)
The winner of the Suns / Mavs play-in will go into the regular playoffs against #2 Denver. The loser of that series will play the winner of the Warriors / Lakers matchup for the right to play the current #1 seed, OKC. O’Neal says he likes the chances for either the Warriors or Lakers over the Thunder, due to the OKC’s young and mostly inexperienced roster.
OKC does have talent, for sure, including 25 year-old guard and NBA MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. But only SGA and Luguentz Dort have any postseason experience at all.
On the other hand, Golden State – of course! – superstars like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and coach Steve Kerr. Down in LA, Lebron isn’t getting any younger, but he’s still a superstar through and through… and partner Anthony Davis ain’t bad, either.
Shaq has already made the point… the Warriors seem to have the upper hand any time they play those “young and promising” teams. Last season, the Dubs beat the then-three seed Sacramento Kings in seven games in the first round. BTW, the Kings are currently seeded #6 in this year’s upcoming tournament.
So… does Golden State have a chance to get deep into the playoffs? Well, remember that they beat high-flying Boston to win the 2022 NBA Finals… when Curry and friends took on pretty much the same Boston lineup as today.
Shaq is right: the Warriors just have a ton more experience and worlds more playoff experience than OKC. Will they have success against the young, up-and-coming Thunder? Hard to say. The regular season isn’t over yet, and both the Dubs and Lakers have some regular season business to handle first.