Josh: And we’re off! The NBA Playoffs have now begun, and each team played its first game over the weekend. In a unique set of outcomes, both of the 1, 2, 3, and 5 seeds won; I’m sure ESPN Stats and Info could tell me how rare an occurrence that is, but they’re too busy arbitrarily deciding which player’s stats to combine for meaningless graphics. Whoops, was that out loud?
Because your time is precious, and Wesley and I aren’t that interesting anyway, we’ll keep it short today. Some quick thoughts on the games, What 2 Watch 4 tonight, and our complete playoff predictions in basic form. I’ll start us off. But first…
That’s out of the way; moment of silence for Arron Baynes, then let’s go!
Thoughts on this weekend’s games:
1: Playoff debuts were all the rage. A handful of All-Stars made their playoff debuts this weekend, including MVP candidate Anthony Davis, Cleveland running-mates Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, Boston 6th Man Extraordinaire Isaiah Thomas, and Elite Point Guard Austin Rivers. [Last one might have been a joke. In fact it was. Go ahead and laugh. Yeah, keep laughing. Now come on, it wasn’t that funny]
Anthony Davis starred in a 4th quarter that say the Pelicans cut a 25-point lead all the way to 4 before losing by 7. Davis dropped 20 points in the 4th on a variety of jumpers, floaters, tip-ins, and thunderous dunks, finishing with 35 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 blocks. He fought for every rebound, pushed through every foul, and erupted with emotion as he put the team on his back. In our playoff preview, I wondered if Davis had this in him, noting that he seemed to be getting it the past few weeks. Well, he got it, and in a big way. Warriors fans, despite the win, are at least a tiny bit more worried. To make them slightly more worried? The only big man to match Davis’ playoff debut of 35 points was a no-name center named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Yeah, this kid is for real.Elsewhere, Kyrie Irving put on an offensive clinic in Cleveland, shrugging off tough defenders in Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley to drop 30 points with 5 three pointers. Kevin Love had 19 points and 12 rebounds, and the duo combined for 7 three pointers. Isaiah Thomas, faced with huge deficits anytime he took the court in the second half, erupted for 22-5-10, stubbornly refusing to give the game up as lost at any point. Beginner’s Luck? We will see. I’m guessing not.
2: Out with the Old, in With the New? Out West, we saw 2 veteran-laden teams (that’s a slightly polite way of saying OLD) fall to younger, more energetic teams. In Houston, the athletic Rockets attacked the Dallas defense over and over, kicking-out to open shooters or drawing fouls (Dallas committed 28, leading to 45 free throws from the Rockets, almost twice their season average). On the Pacific coast, the Los Angeles Clippers out-ran and out-shot the San Antonio Spurs, working the fast-break game to perfection and abusing the combination of Arron Baynes and Boris Diaw that had to guard Blake Griffin in the absence of Tiago Splitter.I picked both “older” teams to advance into the second round to face each other; I’m still ok with my Spurs pick, but the Mavs looked very shaky in their first game. If the veterans on these two teams can keep their energy levels up and use their experience, they have a shot to tie things up heading back to their home court. I like both series to be tied-up 1-1 by the time Game 3 rolls around.
Wes, what did you see this weekend that stuck out to you?
Wes: This was quite the fun compilation of Game 1’s and there was something for everyone here. I think that you could make a case for more of the same with Game 2, but I think some teams have been dealt a very strong body blow that they won’t recover from (I’m looking at you, Toronto). But all that to be said, plenty of things stood out to me about the games I got to watch, and even the ones I didn’t see at all. Here are some of my observations:
1. LeBron can’t win without Kyrie, but he can win without Love’s defense. Like Josh said, Kyrie’s 30 was very much so the talk of the first round. This kid is polished and will only get better with time. James has found the most complimentary player to go with him since Wade, I personally believe there is more upside here than in Miami. They could be a fun team to watch (hate) come the Finals.
And now to Kevin.
Kevin is bad at defense. SO bad. I think there were possessions in the 3rd quarter that reminded me just how bad he really was, especially when a guy named Kelly is taking you to school on the boards. You could say he’s got jitters, you can say he’s never been there before and you’d be right. But, where you’re dead wrong, is him being an elite player. He is not that, nor is he making that obvious.
2. Paul Pierce is the mayor of Toronto.
Go ahead and mail this series in now, because Toronto got beat by a huge trash talker who can still knock out some big shots. You don’t have to like Pierce, but he is definitely the man when it comes to beating Toronto. Every possession he was booed when he touched the ball, and with every shot he made, those fans got quiet. You can say he’s cocky, but he can back it up.
3. That one guy in Chicago is looking good! I won’t mention his name because I want to see him succeed now, but he had himself a game, involved his teammates, and even for one game, Bulls fans had hope again. Yes, this could all fade away in an instant, but I saw the old version of a former MVP candidate Saturday night. Just monitor his minutes, give him some fastbreaks and watch him go to work. That United Center got a treat then and I do believe when everyone is healthy, this is the best bet to take out Cleveland, which could be the series of a lifetime.
4. The Clippers can’t get tired.
Great news! When you win Game 1 of the series, you have over a 60% chance to win this series. Bad news? Your bench has Austin Rivers, a big baby, and a guy with a man bun. You may as well write a sitcom on that and see what comes of it. But in all honesty, Paul and Griffin made sure they left no doubt of what they could do or what they were capable of. Also, Ayron Baynes…… I feel so bad for you. I barely know you, but you sir, had the worst day ever. If Paul is gonna score 32, and Griffin scores 26, you can believe this one is soon to be over. Where the team goes,is truly based off those two. When the Spurs lose game 1, they have a win percentage of .300, which results in a 6-14 record. Don’t get tired, Clips.
Josh: To make sure no games are neglected:
3. Grizzlies are going to win – Portland is too injured, too thin, too small. Memphis is rolling.
4. Atlanta is going to win…probably – Brooklyn put the scare in Atlanta down the stretch yesterday, but I think that’s all they can do, and the Hawks should finish this in 5. But they should be a teenie bit worried…
Now it’s the part you’ve all been waiting for: my full playoff predictions!! Mine were penned before the playoffs, so keep that in mind when I pick Toronto…
Playoff Picks
Round 1 (higher seed in bold):
Warriors over Pelicans in 5
Mavericks over Rockets in 6
Spurs over Clippers in 6
Grizzlies over Blazers in 7
Hawks over Nets in 5
Cavs over Celtics in 5
Bulls over Bucks in 7
Raptors over Wizards in 7
Round 2:
Warriors over Grizzlies in 5
Spurs over Mavericks in 7
Hawks over Raptors in 7
Cavs over Bulls in 6
Round 3:
Warriors over Spurs in 7
Cavs over Hawks in 6
NBA Finals:
Warriors over Cavs in 7
Wesley will reveal his tomorrow! In the meantime, we have two big games on tonight:
What 2 Watch 4:
In the first game of TNT’s double-header, Derrick Rose and the Bulls host Giannis and the Bucks for Game 2. Rose looked great in his first playoff game since 2012; if he can replicate that performance and continue to get comfortable, Chicago might be able to give Cleveland a serious run for their money. On the other side, Giannis had a terrible game 1, and if Milwaukee has any hopes of pulling off an upset they will need him to penetrate and score.
In the late game, two of the most exciting players in the game face off, as Steph Curry and the Warriors host Anthony Davis and the Pelicans at the incredibly loud Oracle arena. Seriously, it was so loud for Game 1 that Monty Williams, coach of the Pelicans, accused Golden State of foul play. New Orleans struggled mightily to keep Golden State from scoring inside, but succeeded in mostly sealing off the three-point line. If they try to protect the basket more, see if that frees up outside shooting for the Warriors and specifically the Splash Brothers. When New Orleans has the ball, they need to continue to feed Anthony Davis, whose monster 4th quarter from Game 1 could carry over into Game 2 and make this another close one. It will be on late, but seeing Curry and Davis duel down the stretch might be too exciting to miss.Check them out tonight. and check out Fried Calipari tomorrow and later in the week for all of your NBA Playoff Coverage. See you then!
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