2021 Intro Blog / First Round Preparation Guide

Hi Everyone! The NBA Playoffs are already back again following a pretty crazy season where my hometown Suns almost ended with the best record in the league, but instead they landed at #2 which will likely leave them dead in the water against the Lakers if all goes as I predict it will. Talk about bad luck in having such a great record. Ouch!

As always, I'll be doing my best over this first week to help answer any questions, provide picking advice & ultimately get a consistent posting schedule planned out moving forward.

Firstly, our DTTF google spreadsheet league is now up & running and we're INCLUDING the PLAY-IN tournament pics that start tonight: Google Drive League 

*Simply add your name yourself to the very left column of the Playoff Central tab if it's not currently listed & begin to enter your picks next to your name for the appropriate days. If you're unable to add or access your name on that sheet, please let us know in the comments below what your pic is for today/tomorrow (in advance of that game's lock time) as well as your email address & we'll get you sorted.

Also, here's a link to the public league that Fantasy Postseason hosts for this year's daily pick game so please make sure you all join up right away as there are prizes you can win, etc: Fantasy Postseason League

General Note: DTTF spreadsheet league is PRA (points-rebounds-assists) while Fantasy Postseason counts other stats PRABS as well as some other bonuses & such.

Play-In Tournament Explained: For those unaware, the teams that finished 7th & 8th in each conference are playing in other in the coming days. The winner officially gets the 7 seed in that conference & the loser plays a 2nd game against the winner of the 9th & 10th place game also happening in each conference. So the loser of 7/8 plays the winner of 9/10 & that team officially secures the 8th in each conference & the playoffs then begin as you're normally accustomed to.

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Still piggy-backing off of Tangent's first post from the previous years that describes "Steps to Navigate the First Round" and I've applied it to this year's Play-In & Playoffs in my writing below for the purpose of this introductory blog entry. 

Step 1: Identify teams you expect to lose

In my humble opinion, the most likely "seeding upset" will be the Lakers (if they advance from the Play-In as 7 or 8 seed) against either the Suns or the Jazz. The Jazz matchup better & should stand a better chance against the Lakers than the Suns would, but both would have to essentially be favored to lose to the Lakers IMO. I mean... how often has Lebron been bounced in the first round? And with AD on the team!?! And with two ADs actually!?!?! And they're the defending champs. Yeah, the Jazz or Suns are in trouble & it's probably the Suns that go down early as a result of this :( So the first round may be need to involved Chris Paul & Devin Booker pics.

For time-sake, I'll skip discussing the other series, but definitely look into them in detail via the bracket I've pasted below in this post! 

Step 2: Identify the top players from teams you expect to lose

Obviously identify your "favorite to lose" in all the other series as well & make a mental or even physical list of the key players you'll need to choose from those losing teams. Narrow down your MUST PICKS & tweak them accordingly if any series start going the opposite of what you'd planned.

Step 3: Watch for days with less games than others in the first round

This wasn't applicable last year with 4 games every day throughout the first round, but this years full first round schedule hasn't been released from what I can tell so I'm not sure if this will factor in. If you do see days with only 2 games, then be sure to plan your pics wisely with those "limited" days in mind.

Step 4: Consider saving a few studs for their home games

This point was struck out last year in the bubble, but now teams have begun to allow players back in certain capacities that are increasing as time goes on, so there will at least be SOME aspect of home-court love happening for teams with fans in the stands. Not sure how much of a difference home vs away will make, but just something to keep in mind.

Step 5: Above everything else, trust your gut
If you're like me & believe in "bounce-back" games for talented players that simply didn't produce as well as normal in their previous outing, then that & other player/team specific matchup feelings, etc can make for valuable gut-shot calls that will allow you to differ from the popular pick & separate your picking plan a bit from others you're competing with.

**What are your thoughts on the new "Play-In Tournament" & will you be participating in the DTTF Google Drive League, Fantasy Postseason League or both?**