NBA playoff power rankings: Which two teams will meet in the Finals?

It's our favorite time of the year, when the NBA takes precedent over all sports, games are thrilling and guys named Jimmy Butler and Jamal Murray transform from mortals into basketball Gods. 

It's playoff time. 

The two teams that I think are on a collision course to meet in the NBA Finals aren't the top seeds in either conference. Rather, I think the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers will be the final teams standing. 

Not only would that matchup be NBA commissioner Adam Silver's dream come true, providing a massive TV boost, but it would pit the two most storied franchises in the league against one another, with the Celtics having won 18 championships and the Lakers 17.

Here's why I think this will happen. 

Things came together for the Celtics at the end of the season, with them winning 16 of their final 18 games. They have the second-best offensive rating and fifth-best defensive rating in the league. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have proven that they can win a championship together. 

Also, this team is deep. 

The Celtics' only wild card is Brown's lingering knee issue, which sidelined him for the final few games of the season, though he's apparently going to be available this postseason. 

Last year, the Celtics sailed through the playoffs, winning 16 of their 19 games. I think their path will be similarly breezy this time around — until the Eastern Conference finals, where they'll likely meet the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and really be tested. 

But, I see them getting past Donovan Mitchell & Co., using their championship experience to smother a team that has really just found its identity this season. 

Really, no other team in the East is a serious threat to the Celtics. 

Now, on to the Lakers.

Luka Dončić