NSL Insider - CF Preview: Washington V Milwaukee

by JustinG, updated on Tuesday, June 06 2023, 01:12 am EST

The Eastern Conference finals are upon us, and though there were some incredibly hard fought battles through the opening stages of the East Conference playoffs, we arrive here at it�s final stages with no surprise. The 1 seed Wizards will take on the 2 seed Bucks in a star-studded series that pits two very well-balanced teams against each other. In a league with a ton of transactional action, these two teams sit near the top in terms of recorded activity throughout the 2022-2023 NSL season. The Wizards brought in Clint Capela and Paul George along with other rotational pieces to solidify their place atop the East, while Milwaukee brought OG, and Miles Turner in, transforming their team into one with a very solid defense. The question that is being begged in this series, is which of the two young, star guards will elevate their team to take on the leagues past 2 champions. Will SGA cap off a breakout season by leading the Young Bucks to the NSL finals, or will Devin Booker, Joel and Co. stifle the ascension, and send their team to a 7-game series to decide the 2023 NSL Champion?

The Wizards:

As stated in my last write-up, the Wizards have been a hot pick all year to finally lift some hardware in the NSL. Though in recent years, the Eastern Conference finals trophy has been a guaranteed consolation prize, many around the league feel this could be the year where the Eastern Conference gets back on the board. Led by Devin Booker, Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Clint Capela, this team can put up points, defend, and rebound with the best of them. With a little 2k luck, the Wizards could certainly be in the 2023 NSL Champs.

The Bucks:

Of the 3 teams left, some might point to the Bucks as the �weakest squad�. That wouldn�t prompt unfamiliar territory for the Bucks, who�ve battled against the odds all year to be where they are now. Assuming Lebron James isn�t moonlighting as an NSL GM, no one in the league could truly say they expected the Bucks to be playing in this series, when they began the season with SGA(coming off a serious injury) and ageing Demar, and a smaller unproven guard in Jalen Brunson. Now look at them, they�ve added length and defense to a team with SGA(who�s potential seems unlimited at this point), they�ve drafted well, stealing Christian Koloko who�s proven to be one of the better bigs in the class, and they�ve pulled the right strings on the court, seemingly always getting the most out of their contributors. Daz perhaps didn�t have the flashiest season as GM�s go, but if the GM of the Year award isn�t a sizzle content, I�d expect him to garner some votes. Well done!

The Matchups:

Center:

Capela vs Turner

A great matchup to start this one out. Turner gets the edge by way of overall, but Capela is a truly underrated big man, especially when considering the 2k setting. He rebounds, and defends so well, his length will always create problems for the opposing team in trying to get to the rim. Turner is a much more well-rounded 2-way player, who can still defend at a similar clip. An underrated aspect of this matchup will surround the positions in which the matchup takes place. If Milwaukee can utilize the perimeter abilities of Turner to pull Capela out of the paint, it could bode well for the rest of the Bucks contributors, a few of which love to get to the tin. Not to worry though Wizards fans, you�re not in bad hands when you�ve got Embiid still patrolling around the paint. Turner by a thin margin here.

Power Forward:

Embiid vs Mobley

A matchup that will surely be a spectacle for years to come. Both big men are versatile, dominant bigs, who contribute on offense, and stifle in the paint. Mobley is less proven, but more agile, and can be put into spots where I could see him having an advantage in this matchup. Embiid is Embiid though, and he should be able to hold supremacy in this matchup for the next year or so at least. He�s a bigger body, who likely may find the easiest way to the cup, in going right through Mobley, who�s yet to put on ideal weight for defending a player the size of Embiid. As a bottom feeding team, I won�t sit here and act like I should be giving out advice, though, I can�t help but point out, the Bucks may find a switching of Mobley to the 5, and Turner to the 4, may allow them to better capitalize on the weaknesses of their Wizards counterparts.

Small Forward:

Anunoby vs George

There is no shortage of great matchups in this one, and here�s another. Anunoby is the younger, probably more agile, and potentially better defender at this stage in both of their respective careers. Whereas PG can and has been known to take games over throughout the course of his career, and he�s still got a ton left in the tank. It must be nice to be GM Joshua, knowing if Booker off, you can go to PG, if PG�s off, you can go to Embiid, hell, if Embiid�s off, there�s still a ton left to draw from. Anunoby is a fantastic and exciting young forward, who would make any NSL team better with his prescience, but unfortunately, it�s a silver finish for him in this matchup.

Shooting Guard:

Booker vs SGA

This matchup might be the most fun to watch in the series, as there�s potential for these guys to be going directly at each other, going back and forth, trying to will their teams to victory. SGA is about right where Devin Booker was 2 or so years ago, just broken out, with the league not entirely sure what all he can accomplish. Now we know, both guys can lead their teams to the Eastern Conference Finals, and both guys will sport low betting odds to hoist the ECF�s MVP trophy, courtesy of NelsBet. Dare I say, but SGA to me, looks the more complete player at this time. His length and athleticism aid him in being the more complete defender, and overall player. Booker is amazing, and there are only a few guys I would take with the ball in their hands late over Booker(for 1 shot, give me Booker over SGA), but SGA has my edge in this matchup, narrowly.

Point Guard:

Payton vs Caruso

This matchup can perhaps be explained best by the Spiderman seeing Spiderman meme often circulated online these days. There�s just not much that separates these two than a couple of shades of pigment. Both guys are energy players, who�ve quickly emerged as defensive weapons, often pickpocketing opposing guards, or baiting them into mistakes ending in turnovers. Neither player is a huge offensive contributor for their side, and honestly, they don�t need to be. GM�s Joshua and Daz have truly shown the value of a defensive minded, guard, who doubles as a glue guy for their team. I�ve got to give the edge to Spiderman.

Bench Projections:

Gay, Covington, Koloko, Mconnell, Zeller

Jones, Joe, and Green

While the Wizards win the edge in the starting lineups, I believe the Bucks have a sizable edge here in the reserve department. They have a couple of long, veteran defenders in Gay and Covington, to go with serviceable bigs in Zeller and Koloko, and a floor general in Mconnell. The Wizards on the other hand have a few guys who can mix in, play a bit of defense, and chew up some minutes while the Wizards starters get fresh. The Bucks might be able to take some points behind the play of their bench.

Key�s to Victory:

Wizards:

A-Capela- If Clint comes out and plays his A game, stays home in the paint and defends well, the Wizards will find it tough to lose games. When Capela and Embiid are on, dare I say it, they are the best front court in the NSL, and they can, and should cause problems in this matchup.

Spidey Senses- Who�s got the better Glue Guy? Similarly to Capela, Caruso presents one of the spots where the Bucks could look to make up some ground. If Caruso gets the better of GP3 in this matchup, the margin of error becomes ever so slimmed for the Bucks.

Bucks:

Mobilize- Get those bigs moving around, work in some plays that see your big men having the ball in their hands at the top of the key. Both Mobley and Turner have shown flashes of high-level distribution, that has allowed their team to put up big offensive numbers without them carrying the scoring load. An added bonus will be accruing more miles on the tired bodies of Embiid and Capela.

Superstar-Game-Announcement- Yeah this one was a bit of a reach. Let me not mince words, SGA needs to prove from front to back he is one of the NSL�s premiere stars if the Bucks are to win this series. It must be an MVP caliber performance from the young star, if his team to is head to the finals.

Head to Head Prediction:

I would not encourage any NelsBets placed at the backing of my prediction. I did after all, predict the Knicks to take the series vs the Wizards in 5 games. However, perhaps I have learned from my mistakes. I will make this short and sweet. Wizards in 5.

	LAL	56
	DEN	60

	NY	50
	UTAH	47

	CHI	108
	SA	97

	MEM	100
	SAC	113

	POR	92
	UTAH	100

NSL Insider - CF Preview: Washington V Milwaukee

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