Let’s break it down! Is the Bulls defeating the Celtics really THAT shocking? Are the Jazz going to be able to hang in their series with the Clippers with an injured Rudy Gobert? Can the Raptors stop Giannis Antetokounmpo? If you are playing DFS NBA Playoffs, here are some of the trends to watch for in each series.

Portland (8) vs. Golden State (1): Golden State up 1-0: This is the least surprising series. The Blazers do not have any weapons inside, especially on the defensive end and Kevin Durant and Draymond Green will continue to have their way on both sides of the ball. The Blazers backcourt will not disappoint and will continue to lead the offensive charge. After C.J. McCollum scores 41 and Damian Lillard scores 34, the Warriors may put a little more pressure on the perimeter and force the ball inside. The Blazers haven’t been a threat thus far; why not expose them for lack of interior presence? Mo Harkless could be seeing a few more open shots from mid-range. Golden State will continue their balanced offensive attack and expect Durant to continue to get fed inside.

Utah (5) vs. Los Angeles (4): Utah up 1-0: Rudy Gobert going down has given the Clippers the window they need to be able to force the ball inside more. The Jazz, being one of the most dominant defensive teams in the NBA responded very well to losing their top defensive weapon. Derrick Favors came to play and filled in nicely at both ends of the court and we can expect Favors to pick up more shots, playing time and rebounds while Gobert heals up. Joe Johnson was also a big help offensively and he will also be needed to fill in for the lack of Gobert inside. With Hayward always on the drive, having Johnson as the bailout option allows George Hill to cut to the basket and get fed right under the rim. The Clippers need to force the ball inside to DeAndre Jordan. He had his way on the glass vs. Gobert all season; imagine how deadly he will be on the glass without him. Blake Griffin needs to also look to force contact calls to get their starters out of the game. Expect Chris Paul to have an easier time getting to the hole.

Oklahoma City (6) vs. Houston (3): Houston up 1-0: The Rockets have way too many weapons on both sides of the ball and they will continue to overwhelm the Thunder. Clint Capela, Nene, Ryan Anderson and even PATRICK BEVERLEY were crushing the Thunder on the glass. Because James Harden is just as dominant as Russell Westbrook on the offensive end, it is up to the rest of their squads to make an impact and the Thunder can’t match Houston. Their guards are multi-dimensional and they attack so quickly and often that slow as hell Taj Gibson, Steven Adams and Enes Kanter cannot keep up with them. The only way Houston loses games in this series is by shooting under 35 percent as a team. Andre Roberson will keep seeing open three’s throughout the series. Victor Oladipo will get his act together and Roberson will be open at the arc all day.

Memphis (7) vs. San Antonio (2): San Antonio up 1-0: Not having Tony Allen out there for Memphis opened up the elbow for the Spurs and Tony Parker took advantage. He was getting free lanes all day and he will certainly look for a repeat performance in game two. If Memphis is going to leave the lane open, why not continue to attack? As much as the shots were falling for Marc Gasol, they weren’t for Mike Conley and expect him to attack more and play for more contact. Memphis needs a bailout option that can hit the knockdown jumper and that player will have to be Vince Carter or JaMychal Green. Without having the bailout option, the Spurs can continue focusing on cutting off the lane. No long-range threat translates to no mercy inside for the Spurs offense. Expect Zach Randolph to have a more impactful game two. The shots were not going in, but when his shot is on, it gives the paint breathing room to attack. He was very much forgotten about in game one and I expect him to make a big game two impact.

Chicago (8) vs. Boston (1): Chicago up 1-0: It says a lot about Isaiah Thomas to play just a day after a tragic family loss. He scored 33 points and his drives to the rim could not be better. He could not be stopped when driving. Thomas is a high-impact player and knows his roll, but if he can’t be there emotionally or mentally, the Celtics may have to give him a game off. The Celtics issues stem from a gaping hole their defense leaves every time in the middle of the paint. If you’ve watched the Celtics all season, it should not come as any shock that Robin Lopez had his way inside and will continue to have his way. Boxing out is virtually non-existent and Jae Crowder cannot handle the inside alone. Al Horford bails on the inside and the Bulls will continue to attack the rim and feed open options inside until the Celtics do something about it. Expect Lopez and Jimmy Butler to continue to produce, but also expect more drives from Rondo. The Celtics continue to ignore certain spots of the paint to defend and Rondo’s quickstep that he’s had for years continues to burn his former team. Continue to watch out for Bobby Portis as he was left open to shoot for virtually the entire game and is being used as a bailout option.

Atlanta (5) vs. Washington (4): Washington up 1-0: John Wall is going to score a lot of points, but his opposition and in this case Dennis Schroder will as well. Normally the Wizards have their way on transition. They are excellent at controlling the tempo. Yesterday was not as much about speed as it was about lack of power from the Hawks. Dwight Howard had spurts in which he was getting worked inside play after play. The Hawks did a poor job focusing on the inside and focused too much matching up offensively. Their poor defense made Marcin Gortat look like a dominant Center and neither Howard nor Paul Millsap did anything about it. Taurean Prince will continue to see open three-pointers throughout the series as more focus will go on Millsap. Millsap will get his when it comes to scoring, but when the Wizards have six players scoring double figures, that shows that the Hawks slow game has been exposed and they need to put more bodies inside to bang around. Let the Wizards stick to shooting, but the Hawks will need to keep Gortat at the elbow in order to win in game two. Kelly Oubre Jr, will continue to keep spreading the floor with the second unit. Oubre is a great low-end guy to look to start as a punt play.

Milwaukee (6) vs. Toronto (3): Milwaukee up 1-0: Greg Monroe looked like a legit Big Man in his first ever Playoff game, securing a double-double in the process. The Bucks utilized cutting and barely had to abandon it. The Greek Freak could not be stopped and the Raptors should look to get a bit more physical with him because he is prone to fouling and once he starts flaring his arms, he will get calls and just like the Wizards would be without John Wall, the Bucks are powerless without Giannis and they need to cut him off and double him as soon as he receives the ball, even if you are leaving one of their wings wide open. The Raptors need to make the Bucks beat them by shooting and not leaving the lane open for Malcolm Brogdon and the other guards to cut all day. Lowry had a bad shooting game and we should expect him to bounceback in game two and he will look to take even more shots. Khris Middleton struggled getting a high point total, but because the lane was very much open, he was playing unselfish and looking more for the cutter hence the nine assists he dished. The Raptors will need to take Jonas Valanciunas out of the paint and let him pop from mid-range to alleviate some of that pressure right inside. By taking him out of the paint, it will allow Ibaka to use his body inside to gain positioning and he was attacking much more in game one, and the Bucks on the ball interior defense is a bit exposed. Ibaka should look to cut inside more, get the pass, and see if Valanciunas loses his defender, if not, create contact plays. If Valanciunas loses his man, hit him for the open jumper and inception the Bucks minds to focus more on mid-range shooting. Middleton will also need to start setting up at the elbow more to set the first screen and then call for the ball for the likely open shots with more focus going on Giannis moving forward. 

Indiana (7) vs. Cleveland (2): Cleveland up 1-0: Indiana stepped up a bit more offensively and a different Pacers team showed up to game one. Lance Stephenson looked like the Lance of a few years ago and he has been attacking and will continue to attack the rim with full force. Paul George and LeBron James both had their way against each other and both made an impact inside and outside. It will never be pretty offensively for Tristan Thompson, but being able to rebound is for forte and he was able to match up nicely against Myles Turner. Thad Young did an excellent job containing Kevin Love and limiting the amount of shots he put up, but more focus will need to go to watching the lane and Kyrie Irving was able to drive on them all game. Look for more driving from Jeff Teague and Monta Ellis in game two, but overall the Pacers played as close to a perfect game as possible, and I think they will run out of steam in game two and the Cavs will pull away to win game two. The Pacers rotated nicely on the perimeter and were able to freeze players out of the offense, but the Cavs will look to set Love up inside to burn Young with his size in the post.