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The 2021 NBA Playoffs are entering the home stretch with the Conference Finals set to end the first week of July. As the Western and Eastern Conference Finals both come to a close, we’ll finally get to the end of the 2020-21 season with the NBA Finals. Last year, the 2020 Finals were played in the Orlando Bubble after the season was cut short. This year, we had a 72-game regular season followed by the normal playoffs, which included the play-in tournament.
The way the conference finals are shaking out, we could get our first team into the NBA Finals on Monday night with the Phoenix Suns looking to close out the Los Angeles Clippers at home up 3-1 in the West Finals. The East may take a bit but the Milwaukee Bucks could have a shot at closing out the series as soon as Thursday in Game 5 against the Atlanta Hawks. The Bucks went up 2-1 in the series after a convincing win in Game 3 on Sunday night. We’re going to be keeping track of which teams will be fighting for the Larry O’Brien Trophy in July.
Update: The Suns defeated the Clippers 130-103 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals to advance to the third title series in their franchise history. It’s the first time the Suns are in the Finals since 1993, when Charles Barkley and Phoenix fell to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. It is the first NBA Finals appearance for Chris Paul, who scored 41 points in the series-clinching win.
2021 NBA Finals matchup
West Finals: Phoenix Suns defeat Los Angeles Clippers in 6 games
East Finals: Bucks defeat Hawks in 6 games