Best Storylines to Follow in the NBA Conference Semifinals

Can John Wall lead the Wizards to an upset of Indiana?

Can John Wall Lead the Wizards to an Upset of Indiana? - After arguably the best first-round of the NBA playoffs ever, the league opens up its second round of postseason action Monday night, beginning with the upstart fifth-seed Washington Wizards tipping off against the No. 1 Indiana Pacers. John Wall and the Wizards showed a lot of growth and maturity in handling a physical Chicago Bulls squad in five games during the first round. Does Wall have what it takes to lead his Wizards to an upset of the Eastern Conference top-seed Pacers? It’s just one of the many questions that will be answered during the Conference semifinals of the NBA playoffs. Here, BET.com points out the best storylines to follow in the NBA Conference semifinals. These playoffs are no slam dunk! (Photo: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

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Can John Wall Lead the Wizards to an Upset of Indiana? - After arguably the best first-round of the NBA playoffs ever, the league opens up its second round of postseason action Monday night, beginning with the upstart fifth-seed Washington Wizards tipping off against the No. 1 Indiana Pacers. John Wall and the Wizards showed a lot of growth and maturity in handling a physical Chicago Bulls squad in five games during the first round. Does Wall have what it takes to lead his Wizards to an upset of the Eastern Conference top-seed Pacers? It’s just one of the many questions that will be answered during the Conference semifinals of the NBA playoffs. Here, BET.com points out the best storylines to follow in the NBA Conference semifinals. These playoffs are no slam dunk! (Photo: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Roy Hibbert’s Ability to Play Up to All-Star Standards - The top-seed Pacers survived a scare and avoided an embarrassing early playoff elimination at the hands of the (8) Atlanta Hawks during first-round action. However, there are still plenty of concerns for Indiana, perhaps none greater than the status of Roy Hibbert. The Pacers’ 7-foot-2, 290-pound center averaged a dismal 5.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in the quarterfinal series, logging in only 22 minutes per game, which was down from the 30 he played during the regular season. Will Hibbert be able to play up to his All-Star selection from earlier this year and be the rim protector that the Pacers sorely need against an aggressive Wizards’ team? He'd better. (Photo: Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

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Roy Hibbert’s Ability to Play Up to All-Star Standards - The top-seed Pacers survived a scare and avoided an embarrassing early playoff elimination at the hands of the (8) Atlanta Hawks during first-round action. However, there are still plenty of concerns for Indiana, perhaps none greater than the status of Roy Hibbert. The Pacers’ 7-foot-2, 290-pound center averaged a dismal 5.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in the quarterfinal series, logging in only 22 minutes per game, which was down from the 30 he played during the regular season. Will Hibbert be able to play up to his All-Star selection from earlier this year and be the rim protector that the Pacers sorely need against an aggressive Wizards’ team? He'd better. (Photo: Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

Have Rivers’ Clippers Grown Enough to Defeat Thunder? - The Los Angeles Clippers hired coach Doc Rivers to help take the team to the next level…and here they are. Having already navigated through the news of their owner Donald Sterling making egregious racist remarks and still winning a hard-fought seven-game series against the Golden State Warriors, River’s Clippers face a tough test against projected MVP-winner Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder. There’s no denying that the Clippers grew through adversity during that conflicted first-round series, but OKC with KD and Russell Westbrook pose an entirely different challenge. Have the Clippers grown enough to silence the Thunder? Fans will find out in what looks to be the most intriguing playoff semifinal matchup this year. (Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

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Have Rivers’ Clippers Grown Enough to Defeat Thunder? - The Los Angeles Clippers hired coach Doc Rivers to help take the team to the next level…and here they are. Having already navigated through the news of their owner Donald Sterling making egregious racist remarks and still winning a hard-fought seven-game series against the Golden State Warriors, River’s Clippers face a tough test against projected MVP-winner Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder. There’s no denying that the Clippers grew through adversity during that conflicted first-round series, but OKC with KD and Russell Westbrook pose an entirely different challenge. Have the Clippers grown enough to silence the Thunder? Fans will find out in what looks to be the most intriguing playoff semifinal matchup this year. (Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Clippers Rout Warriors - After being plagued by foul trouble during game one, Blake Griffin bounced back to score 35 points to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 138-98 crushing of the Golden State Warriors in game two of their first-round playoff series. Stephen Curry had 24 points and eight assists for the Warriors. The series is tied 1-1.(Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

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Blake Griffin’s Chance to Prove He’s Tough Enough - Blake Griffin easily had his best season as a pro, averaging a career-high 24 points per game during the regular season and leading the way for the Clippers to defeat the Warriors in seven games to advance to the second round. While Griffin has toughened up considerably, in becoming the Clippers’ “go-to guy,” as Chris Paul said, is the fourth-year power forward tough enough to get LA past Durant and the Thunder? Doing so would definitely elevate BG’s career, not to mention confidence, and leave previous postseason accusations about him being soft in his rear-view mirror. (Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Can Thunder Slow Down Clippers’ No. 1 Offense? - We fully expect Durant, Westbrook and the Thunder to match offensive fireworks with the Clippers, but can OKC slow down LA’s top-ranked offense? Talents like CP3 and Griffin will still get theirs on the offensive end. But perhaps the Thunder’s defense will be aided by their ability to throw big bodies such as Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison at LA’s 6-foot-11, 265-pound center DeAndre Jordan, who feasted on the Warriors for averages of 12 points and 15 rebounds per game during the first round. Curbing his paint production, especially on the boards, will go a long way for the Thunder. Hey Serge, this especially means you. Time to get big! (Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images)

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Can Thunder Slow Down Clippers’ No. 1 Offense? - We fully expect Durant, Westbrook and the Thunder to match offensive fireworks with the Clippers, but can OKC slow down LA’s top-ranked offense? Talents like CP3 and Griffin will still get theirs on the offensive end. But perhaps the Thunder’s defense will be aided by their ability to throw big bodies such as Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison at LA’s 6-foot-11, 265-pound center DeAndre Jordan, who feasted on the Warriors for averages of 12 points and 15 rebounds per game during the first round. Curbing his paint production, especially on the boards, will go a long way for the Thunder. Hey Serge, this especially means you. Time to get big! (Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images)

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Can Brooklyn Continue Its Domination of Miami? - It’s hard to put a finger on it, but whatever it was…the Brooklyn Nets definitely had the Miami Heat’s number this year, sweeping the two-time defending champions 4-0 during their regular-season series. Now, it’s important to point out that Heat star Dwyane Wade missed two of those games due to injury and that anything that transpired during the regular season gets thrown out the window, but what are the chances that the Nets really have something strong over the Heat? We will find out beginning Tuesday night.(Photo: Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

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Can Brooklyn Continue Its Domination of Miami? - It’s hard to put a finger on it, but whatever it was…the Brooklyn Nets definitely had the Miami Heat’s number this year, sweeping the two-time defending champions 4-0 during their regular-season series. Now, it’s important to point out that Heat star Dwyane Wade missed two of those games due to injury and that anything that transpired during the regular season gets thrown out the window, but what are the chances that the Nets really have something strong over the Heat? We will find out beginning Tuesday night.(Photo: Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

No Love Lost: Pierce, Garnett vs. King James - Simply put, there’s bad blood between Nets teammates Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett and Miami Heat’s LeBron James, dating back to 2008, when King James, then with the Cleveland Cavaliers, first faced The Truth and Big Ticket on the Boston Celtics in postseason play. The Celtics wound up defeating James and his Cavs in Game 7 of that Eastern Conference semifinal series and the rivals have butted heads often during the playoffs ever since. In 25 playoff games, James is 13-12 against Pierce, with the Heat having won their 2011 conference semifinals and 2012 conference finals against Pierce’s Celtics. Think King James and company will be seeing Celtics-green on Garnett and Pierce despite their new Brooklyn digs? It’s likely.(Photos from Left: Elsa/Getty Images, Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

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No Love Lost: Pierce, Garnett vs. King James - Simply put, there’s bad blood between Nets teammates Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett and Miami Heat’s LeBron James, dating back to 2008, when King James, then with the Cleveland Cavaliers, first faced The Truth and Big Ticket on the Boston Celtics in postseason play. The Celtics wound up defeating James and his Cavs in Game 7 of that Eastern Conference semifinal series and the rivals have butted heads often during the playoffs ever since. In 25 playoff games, James is 13-12 against Pierce, with the Heat having won their 2011 conference semifinals and 2012 conference finals against Pierce’s Celtics. Think King James and company will be seeing Celtics-green on Garnett and Pierce despite their new Brooklyn digs? It’s likely.(Photos from Left: Elsa/Getty Images, Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

How Much Does KG Have Left? - KG, one of the game’s all-time greats, is surely a future Hall of Famer. However, there were some spells, during the Nets’ first-round series with the younger Toronto Raptors, in which the 37-year-old just didn’t look too sharp. Against the defending champion Heat, it will only get harder. It’s fair game at this point to ponder: Just how much does KG have left? Is this the last postseason that we see The Big Ticket? (Photo: Elsa/Getty Images)

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How Much Does KG Have Left? - KG, one of the game’s all-time greats, is surely a future Hall of Famer. However, there were some spells, during the Nets’ first-round series with the younger Toronto Raptors, in which the 37-year-old just didn’t look too sharp. Against the defending champion Heat, it will only get harder. It’s fair game at this point to ponder: Just how much does KG have left? Is this the last postseason that we see The Big Ticket? (Photo: Elsa/Getty Images)

Aldridge vs. Duncan, Lillard vs. Parker - Sometimes, playoff series feature stars that play different positions. Not this San Antonio Spurs-Portland Trail Blazers Western Conference semifinal. Nope. This series is set to feature Spurs’ point guard Tony Parker and power forward Tim Duncan against Blazers’ point guard Damian Lillard and power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, truly pitting the four best players in the series head-to-head at each of their positions. Should be wildly entertaining, especially considering how Lillard’s star was born with a huge game winner against Houston in that first round.(Photos from Left: Harry How/Getty Images, Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

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Aldridge vs. Duncan, Lillard vs. Parker - Sometimes, playoff series feature stars that play different positions. Not this San Antonio Spurs-Portland Trail Blazers Western Conference semifinal. Nope. This series is set to feature Spurs’ point guard Tony Parker and power forward Tim Duncan against Blazers’ point guard Damian Lillard and power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, truly pitting the four best players in the series head-to-head at each of their positions. Should be wildly entertaining, especially considering how Lillard’s star was born with a huge game winner against Houston in that first round.(Photos from Left: Harry How/Getty Images, Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Passing of the Torch From the Spurs to Blazers? - Kevin Durant is definitely going hard out West, but can this Spurs-Blazers’ series see an unexpected passing of the torch from Duncan and Parker to Aldridge and Lillard if the Blazers are to win? Durant and OKC have been in the finals before. Aldridge and Lillard are just beginning to make their mark together. Watch out, world.(Photos from Left: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images, Bob Levey/Getty Images)

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Passing of the Torch From the Spurs to Blazers? - Kevin Durant is definitely going hard out West, but can this Spurs-Blazers’ series see an unexpected passing of the torch from Duncan and Parker to Aldridge and Lillard if the Blazers are to win? Durant and OKC have been in the finals before. Aldridge and Lillard are just beginning to make their mark together. Watch out, world.(Photos from Left: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images, Bob Levey/Getty Images)