Walden: Our first-round NBA playoff series predictions

Last season’s playoffs were intriguing because there was legitimate potential for the Golden State Warriors to be dethroned.The Rockets had won a league-best 67 games. James Harden had taken yet another leap in his production and finally been crowned MVP. And Houston’s defense had improved sufficiently to pose some realistic problems.The Rockets had the Warriors on the brink. And then Chris Paul got injured. And then Houston missed 27 straight 3-point attempts. And that was that. Gol