As the NBA Playoffs begin on Saturday, April 18, 16 teams will battle it out to see who comes out on top. In multiple best-of-seven series, upsets aren’t as prevalent as in March Madness, but shock eliminations will likely still take place. With that said, here are the teams I believe are most likely to win the championship, organized in tiers.
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NBA Playoffs Preview: A Closer Look at the Top Contenders
April 15, 2026
For the first time this century, the NBA playoffs feature three 60-win teams for the second year in a row.
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About the Contributor
Ashe Hardigg, Assistant Editor
Born in Alaska, senior Ashe Hardigg moved to Portland 14 years ago and has lived there ever since. He went to Franciscan Montessori Earth School for middle school and, along with almost all of his classmates, chose to attend high school at La Salle.
Ashe found a love for running during quarantine and carried this over to participating in track and field for La Salle during the spring. He also plays soccer in the fall for La Salle, in addition to playing club soccer year-round. Although out for the entirety of this year’s soccer season with a broken wrist, Ashe plans to work hard over the off-season to return a better player than ever for his senior season.
Over the summer, Ashe works as a camp coach for Baxter Sports. He has attended this camp as a camper since he was five years old, and has met many friends along the way who have also gone along with him to become coaches.
Ashe plans to work in sports or sports management in the future, and hopes that reporting for The Falconer will help him get an introduction to what this career would look like.


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