Hurdles the Thunder will have to Overcome in the Playoffs

After the final seed battles being settled last night, the NBA playoff picture is set in stone.  The NBA has released the schedule and we now have the complete picture of what we are in store for in the NBA playoffs.  The Oklahoma City Thunder is a team that a lot of people are watching.

The Thunder of course made it to the NBA Finals last year where they lost to the Miami Heat.  Like predicted, They have done nothing but improve as a team since then.  They are out to secure the NBA Championship this season.  However, it is going to be a long road to the NBA Finals.

One team that does not come to mine that the Thunder do not want to run into in the playoffs is the Memphis Grizzles.  In their three encounters this season the Grizzles came out on top two times.  The Grizzles are the fourth best rebounding team in the NBA are one of the most formidable defenses in the NBA.  If the Thunder run into Memphis in the playoffs they will have to fight for every point.Another team that they are set to have collision course with is the San Antonio Spurs.   The Thunder and Spurs have split their season series at 2-2.  If these two teams do meet it is likely that their playoff series will be similarly split.  The Thunder will step up to the challenge of taking on the Spurs but believe me when I saw that there will be a collective sigh of relief in the OKC locker room if the Lakers manage to upset the Spurs.

The road to a Championship will not get any easier once they get into the finals as they will likely run into the team that ended their Championship hopes last year the Miami Heat.  In the two times the Thunder have faced the Heat this season they have come up short.  The Thunder have improved but the question remain, can they beat the Heat?