NBA Conference Semifinals: Ranking the Contenders The second round of the NBA playoffs is underway, and eight teams are vying for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Here's a breakdown of each team's chances of coming away with the hardware. All four NBA conference semifinals are underway after a turbulent first round that featured three Game 7s, two massive upsets and some key injuries. With eight teams left vying for the Larry O’Brien Trophy, it’s a perfect opportunity to take stock of the field as it currently stands and rank those contenders on their likelihood to come away with the hardware when the postseason is all said and done. Here’s our take, with the case for and against each of the eight teams as the second round is now one game in across the board. How about championship experience, depth for days, a ferocious defense, the likely two-time MVP and home-court advantage throughout the rest of the playoffs? OKC is the best-positioned team since the Golden State Warriors in 2017-18 to chase a repeat title. The Thunder can play big, with Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein up front.They can play small, with a menacing fleet of guards wreaking havoc in both half-court defense and in transition when they force turnovers. And they have a coach in Mark Daigneault who isn’t afraid to experiment with lineups throughout a playoff series. That 7-foot-4 game-plan wrecker Victor Wembanyama and his teammates down Interstate 35. San Antonio won four of five meetings with OKC this season, showcasing a length and athleticism that can give the Thunder problems.But if OKC can survive a San Antonio matchup -- the potential of a heavyweight West finals took a small hit when the Spurs dropped Game 1 on Monday against the Timberwolves -- nothing outside of catastrophic injury luck should stand in the way of a Thunder repeat. Who says the young Spurs have to fall on their faces before earning success?Wembanyama did just that and bounced back after a game absence, returning with the same terrifying force he showed through the entire season. The Trail Blazers tried physicality on Wembanyama in the first round, but he shook it off and averaged four blocks despite missing most of Game 2 and all of Game 3 because of a concussion. And with Stephon Castle boasting 43.8% shooting from 3 as an emerging third scorer, why can’t the Spurs skip a few steps?Yes, short-handed Minnesota shocked many to steal Monday’s Game 1, but it will take more to move San Antonio from this spot. The champs are the champs until someone knocks them off, and if Thunder guard Jalen Williams is healthy, throw this season’s previous Spurs-Thunder showdowns out the window. But can San Antonio’s shooting hold up?Minnesota’s defense suffocated the Denver Nuggets to the tune of 30% from the 3-point line in the first round, and the Timberwolves held the Spurs to just 28% (10-for-36) from 3 on Monday, with Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox combining for an 0-for-12 night. Oklahoma City allowed just 34% in the first round against the Phoenix Suns. The Spurs don’t rely much on the 3-point shot, but it has become an equalizer that has helped their resurgence through the season.The Knicks played as cohesively as they have all season in the final three wins to eliminate the Atlanta Hawks. And though defending the way they did in Game 6 is unsustainable, the series opener against Philadelphia showed it could carry over.Offensively, if OG Anunoby can keep up this torrid scoring -- he has gone 23-for-30 from the field over his past three games -- and Karl-Anthony Towns is truly unlocked, New York will be in the driver’s seat among the East’s final four teams. Matchups. Could Philadelphia, which adjusted well against Boston after a Game 1 rout, become the Knicks’ kryptonite? Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey could catch fire and shift New York’s defense.If nothing else, the Knicks were built to beat Boston in these playoffs. That major roadblock was removed, but Philadelphia is a bit of a wild card, especially the dynamic Maxey-VJ Edgecombe backcourt. New York won’t be able to hide Jalen Brunson on defense all series long or in a potential East finals showdown with Detroit.Including the Pistons, six of the top eight teams in defensive rating are in the conference semifinals, and only Oklahoma City is better than Detroit. Cade Cunningham finding his All-NBA game in the Orlando series shows he can process quickly, adjust and embrace the moment. Ausar Thompson is also evolving into a generational defender during these playoffs. What if Orlando was the toughest physical matchup Detroit will face?And if this version of Tobias Harris -- the veteran forward averaged 21.6 points in the first round, more than eight better than during the regular season -- sticks around for May and June, Detroit could bully its way through the next six weeks. The Pistons got here, but it’s difficult to forget the first four games against Orlando.Shooting under 30% from 3, with sharpshooter Duncan Robinson being unable to create space for quality looks and also being targeted on defense, was not a pretty sight