#1 CELTICS VS.

#8 BULLS

Series tied 2-2

Key stats: The Celtics’ Isaiah Thomas led the NBA with 9.8 fourth-quarter points per game. The Bulls had the fourth-best rebounding percentage, while the Celtics had the fourth-worst.

Outlook: The Celtics (53-29) feasted on teams like this, going 31-6 against the East’s Nos. 6-15 teams and 5-10 against Nos. 2-5. The Bulls (41-41) have a rebounding advantage on paper and thrived on second-chance points to beat the Celtics twice, but trading Taj Gibson lessened that hold. Seeking their first playoff series triumph since they had Bulls point guard Rajon Rondo in 2012, the Celtics will ride Thomas’ offense, improving defense and balance. They are better-equipped with Al Horford switching sides after last postseason’s sweep by the Hawks, in which Avery Bradley was hurt and Thomas shot 33 percent. The madly inconsistent Bulls have received superstar play from Jimmy Butler but will need vintage Dwyane Wade too.

Pick: Celtics in six.

#2 CAVALIERS VS.

#7 PACERS

Cavaliers won series 3-1

Key stats: The Cavaliers and Pacers ranked second and fourth in the NBA in 3-point percentage, but the Cavaliers averaged 11 more 3-point attempts per game.

Outlook: The Cavaliers (51-31) were a run-of-the-mill performer in the season’s second half, going 21-20 with injuries to Kevin Love and J.R. Smith a factor. The Cavaliers are vulnerable defensively, ranking 22nd in the NBA, but are as offensively explosive as ever with LeBron James closing the season strong and shooters surrounding him. The Pacers (42-40) emerged from an 8-18 stretch to win their final five games with an energy boost off the bench from Lance Stephenson. Paul George was more offensively efficient than ever this season, has a budding co-star in Myles Turner and enters the playoffs hot after averaging 31 points during the 5-0 finish.

Pick: Cavaliers in five.

#3 RAPTORS VS.

#6 BUCKS

Raptors won series 3-1

Key stats: The Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo became the first NBA player to finish in the league’s top 20 in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. The Raptors rank last in the NBA in assists (18.5 per game).

Outlook: This series ranks low on the broadcast scale with three of the first five games slated for NBA TV, but Antetokounmpo’s playoff debut is enticing, albeit likely not enough to hang with the Raptors (51-31). They took the Cavaliers to six games in last year’s conference finals and now have the experience, and they added depth and toughness with trades for Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker. The Raptors closed the season well and have Kyle Lowry back from wrist surgery and DeMar DeRozan playing at a career-best level to handle the Bucks’ pressure defense. The Raptors have dominated recent series with the Bucks (42-40) and can throw DeMarre Carroll and Tucker at Antetokounmpo.

Pick: Raptors in five.

#4 WIZARDS VS.

#5 HAWKS

Wizards won series 3-1

Key stats: The Wizards ranked 28th in defensive rating after the All-Star break. The Hawks made the third-most turnovers per game (15.4), but that equaled their opponent turnover average (15.4).

Outlook: The Hawks (43-39) were the NBA’s worst offensive team after the All-Star break, but getting Paul Millsap back from injury changed their postseason scope. They beat the Cavaliers twice after Millsap’s return, which also fortified a stout defense. The Hawks survived the departures of Jeff Teague and Al Horford to reach their 10th consecutive postseason but have been slipping as a franchise. The Wizards (49-33) missed last season’s playoffs and started this season 2-8 before offensive firepower and a half-season of defense sparked their best season since 1978-79. John Wall and Bradley Beal found chemistry and posted career years along with Otto Porter Jr. But losing Ian Mahinmi to a calf strain is a blow to the defense.

Pick: Wizards in seven.

#1 WARRIORS VS.

#8 TRAIL BLAZERS

Warriors won series 4-0

Key stats: The Warriors’ average point differential (plus-11.6) was fourth-best in NBA history. The Blazers had the NBA’s fourth-best net rating (plus-5.3) after the All-Star break.

Outlook: This is an odd rematch of the 2016 conference semifinals, considering how different the Warriors (67-15) are with Kevin Durant and how the Blazers (41-41) had to win 17 of their last 23 to get here. The Warriors’ third consecutive .800-plus season gives them the winningest three-year run in NBA history, topping the 1996-98 Bulls. Stocked with two MVPs (Durant and Stephen Curry) and a Defensive Player of the Year front-runner (Draymond Green), the Warriors beat the Blazers four times, but each was before the Blazers acquired Jusuf Nurkic, the tide-turning center who will return from a leg fracture this series. Damian Lillard teams with C.J. McCollum for a high-scoring guard matchup against Curry and Klay Thompson.

Pick: Warriors in four.

#2 SPURS VS.

#7 GRIZZLIES

Series tied 2-2

Key stats: The Spurs (61-21) posted the NBA’s best defensive rating (103.5 points allowed per 100 possessions). The

Grizzlies (43-39) shot a league-worst 43.5 percent from the field.

Outlook: This is old hat to these teams with four playoff meetings in seven years, including a 2-versus-7 series last year in which the Spurs got a blowout-filled sweep. It does not bode much better for the Grizzlies with defensive stalwart Tony Allen shelved by a calf strain. He would guard Kawhi Leonard, the league’s best two-way Most Valuable Player candidate. The Grizzlies

incorporated 3-pointers this season and moved Zach Randolph to the bench but must lean on a grit-and-grind game to upset a team bringing Patty Mills, Manu Ginobili, Jonathan Simmons, David Lee and Pau Gasol off the bench. It will be physical, an interesting facet with the Gasol brothers squaring off.

Pick: Spurs in four.

#3 ROCKETS VS.

#6 THUNDER

Rockets won series 3-1

Key stats: The Thunder’s Russell Westbrook had the first triple-double season average in 55 years, posting 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists per game. The Rockets shattered their NBA record for 3-point attempts, averaging 40.3.

Outlook: The MVP votes have been submitted, but this series will go a long way toward settling it in many minds. The free-firing Rockets (55-27) barely made the playoffs last season but finished with the NBA’s third-best record this season with Mike D’Antoni moving James Harden to point guard. He has more help than Westbrook, as the Rockets showed in head-to-head meetings in which Harden shot only 34.3 percent against Andre Roberson and company. Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, Trevor Ariza and Lou Williams provide scoring depth. The Thunder (47-35) have been the NBA’s best rebounding percentage team (55.0) since the All-Star break.

Pick: Rockets in six.

#4 CLIPPERS VS.

#5 JAZZ

Clippers won series 3-1

Key stats: The Clippers tied the

Nuggets for the NBA’s best offensive rating (112.6 points per 100 possessions) after the All-Star break. The Jazz played the league’s slowest pace (91.6 possessions per 48 minutes).

Outlook: The Jazz (51-31) are on the

rise with their first playoff visit since 2012, the last season the Clippers had this few victories. The Clippers (51-31) are trying not to be a team on a demise with uncertain futures in free agency for Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick; postseason success could clarify the franchise’s stature. The Clippers have home-court advantage because they won the season series against the Jazz, who survived a rash of significant injuries. Center Rudy Gobert sustained the Jazz with his rim protection on the league’s No. 1 scoring defense, but now he faces the league’s field-goal percentage

champion in Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (71.4).

Pick: Clippers in seven.