The next day.
Reports about the Suns and Grizzlies' Game 7, along with full coverage of the entire first-round series, were already everywhere.
With the Suns and Grizzlies' Game 7 coming to an end, the first round of the playoffs officially drew to a close.
But... the playoffs were far from over. The conference semifinals, conference finals, and even the Finals would only get more exciting from here.
The fans' anticipation only kept growing.
At 10 a.m.,
the NBA officially announced the Eastern and Western Conference semifinal matchups right away.
In the East: Bulls vs. Hawks, Heat vs. Celtics.
In the West: Suns vs. Lakers, Spurs vs. Mavericks.
The matchups were more or less what everyone had expected, but once they were officially announced, they still sparked plenty of debate.
More accurately, the debate was about predictions for each series.
"I'll go first, I'll go first."
"The second round is definitely harder to predict than the first. Of course, there are still some relatively simple matchups, like Bulls vs. Hawks in the East.
It feels like a reflection of the small-ball era speeding up.
The Magic getting swept almost seemed inevitable, but that doesn't mean the Hawks are especially strong. Against the top-seeded Bulls in the East,
and against Derrick Rose, the 'Windy City Assassin,' who has reached his peak this year, the Hawks are definitely outmatched. There's even a decent chance they get swept.
But the Bulls are still a single-core team.
So to be conservative, I'll say Bulls take the Hawks 4-1.
As for Heat vs. Celtics, that's a superstar brawl. If you ask me for an exact score, it's honestly hard to predict.
But one thing is certain. The winner will be the Heat.
This villain team may be pretty annoying, but you have to admit that the Big Three can unleash even greater power in the playoffs.
There's no doubt about that.
As for the West,
Spurs vs. Mavericks, based on the past, the Spurs with their Big Three and team-first basketball
should have no problem beating the Mavericks led by lone-core Nowitzki.
But this year, the Mavericks have surprised a lot of people. Nowitzki is in incredible form, and their role players have plenty of firepower too.
The key is that their team defense isn't bad either.
This Mavericks team can play on both ends, and with everyone locked in, even the Spurs can't afford to be careless.
This series will definitely be exciting, but as for the final winner, I think the Spurs will win. After all, this is an odd-numbered year, and that's when the Spurs win championships.
Those who know, know.
As for Suns vs. Lakers, I think there are two possibilities. First, if the Suns can keep up the offensive form they showed in the last four games against the Grizzlies,
then they can fight the Lakers, and might even take the series.
But if it's the second situation, where they need several games to adjust to the Lakers, a new playoff opponent with higher-intensity defense and offense,
then the defending champion, Kobe the 'Black Mamba,' won't give them even the slightest chance. He'll strike the Suns with his venom.
Of course,
after watching them pull off the miracle of coming back from 3-0, I'm willing to believe in the Suns for now.
So, to sum it up,
the teams advancing to the Conference Finals in the East will be the Bulls and Heat. In the West, it'll be the Suns and Spurs."
"Come on, after all that talking, aren't you just saying the top two seeds in each conference will reach the Conference Finals?"
"Exactly. All that flashy analysis, and I thought you had something special."
"No, I actually think the analysis makes a lot of sense."
"Nonsense. The Mavericks are so strong this year, and their form is basically unstoppable. They can obviously beat the Spurs and meet the Suns in the Western Conference Finals."
"Heh. The Suns made a huge splash in the regular season, sure, but don't forget, the low-key Lakers are the defending champions.
This year, they're aiming for a dynasty.
Whether it's experience or roster depth, the Lakers are far ahead of the Suns. The Suns needed a Game 7 just to survive the first round.
What are they supposed to use to beat the Lakers?!"
"Hey, hey, my Celtics also have a 'Big Four.' This is their last year to chase a second championship, their final chance.
If they lose, they'll break apart.
So the 'Big Four' absolutely won't give up. Even if their opponent is the red-hot Miami Heat, they'll definitely beat them."
"Uh... the guy above isn't exactly wrong."
"Damn, now I'm getting confused."
"After hearing all of you, as a fan of the 'Thunder Trio,' I can't really tell how the next series will play out anymore."
"Agreed!"
"I agree too!"
"..."
The Eastern and Western Conference Semifinals would be even more intense, with the teams much closer in strength. That naturally made the debate over who was stronger even fiercer.
But the more it was like this,
the more the fans and media enjoyed talking about it nonstop.
Before the semifinals arrived, the fans were already enjoying the fun of arguing and making predictions.
However, while everyone was discussing the matchups, the NBA also announced the All-Rookie Teams and All-NBA Teams today.
All-Rookie First Team: Blake Su, Cousins, Griffin, Neal, and Wall.
All-Rookie Second Team: Fields, Favors, George, Wesley Johnson, and Monroe.
Fans had no objections to the All-Rookie First and Second Teams. The only thing they wanted to say was that while Blake Su was on the First Team,
he should really be in a T0 tier, standing above every other rookie.
After that came the All-NBA First Team: Blake Su, Howard, LeBron, Kobe, and Rose.
Second Team: Durant, Stoudemire, Pau Gasol, Nowitzki, and Wade.
Third Team: Westbrook, Aldridge, Randolph, Ginobili, and Chris Paul.
Fans did not have many objections to the First, Second, and Third Teams either.
But it was worth mentioning that this year's First Team only had one change from last year. Durant was out, and Blake Su was in.
"Blake Su making the First Team is absolutely deserved, but Durant missing out really is a shame. Durant played so well this year."
"Yeah."
"Haha, falling out of the First Team isn't really a big deal. It's not like you can stay there forever. But... when everyone else repeats,
whoever gets left out looks really awkward."
"Durant: Fine, I dropped out, but why did it have to be so obvious? Why did I have to get pushed out by a rookie like this?"
"Durant cried himself unconscious in the shower!"
"..."
...
Meanwhile, as fans heatedly predicted the semifinals and discussed the newly announced awards and honors, inside Blake Su's apartment,
Blake Su and Yoona,
after resting through the night, finally woke up at noon, when the sun was already high in the sky.