First Week of NBA Playoff Basketball Recap
By: Joshua Martin
A week’s worth of NBA Playoff basketball is officially in the books and well… This might be the most compelling first round we've ever seen.
From marquee players suffering untimely injuries, to blowouts of the 20 plus point variety, stompings and suspensions, this year’s playoffs have featured a little bit of everything so far.
We all know things can change quickly and so will our opinions on each of these remaining teams. But that's the beauty of postseason basketball: one game, one series can change the narrative around any organization.
Here are some of my observations…
The Knicks are legit and have their sights on a ECF berth.
It's amazing what great point guard play can do for a once moribund franchise. Jalen Bronsun might be the greatest off season acquisition of the past few years. He, along with Josh Hart, Julius Randle, Mitch Robinson and R.J. Barrett has revitalized the New York Knicks and has them in position to pull off the upset in this 4 versus 5 seed matchup. A suffocating New York Knicks defense forced Donavon Mitchell to have one of the worst performances of his playoff career in game 4, going 5 for 18 from the floor, with his teammates also turning in lackluster performances.
“The way we lost sucks. We can’t hang our heads and ultimately give up. We’re not that type of group. Like I said, we’ll be ready for Game 5.” - Donavan Mitchell, Yahoo Sports
“Spida” Mitchell deserves our collective benefit of the doubt but the way the Knicks are playing, it's hard to envision the Cavaliers climbing out of a 3-1 hole.
The Best Series of The first round has been the Warriors vs the Kings.
The Kings are maturing right before our eyes. The coach of the Year Mike Brown and the league’s most clutch player De'aaron Fox are going toe to toe with the defending champs and don't seem to be phased by the bright lights of the postseason at all. Draymond’s stomp on the chest of Kings big man Domantas Sabonis, forced the dubs emotional leader to sit in game 3 but the Warriors protected their home court and head back to Sac-town tied 2-2. Albeit with controversy, with Steph Curry inadvertently calling a timeout without realizing they were out of them after a challenge call didn't go in the Warriors favor moments earlier. Kings Forward Harrison Barnes eventually missed the game winning 3 point shot but the events leading up to the potential buzzer beater left many wondering who was to blame for such a crucial gaffe in such a pivotal moment.
Dub-Nation can collectively take a deep breath as the mishap is only a footnote in what has been an excellent series. The Kings have home court advantage with 2 of the next 3 games in Sacramento and the Warriors have been notoriously awful on the road this season. In order for them to advance they will have to win at least one game on the road.
The Bucks aren’t going anywhere without a healthy Giannis.
A back contusion has forced Giannis Antekounmpo to miss the last two games for the Milwaukee Bucks and they are in serious trouble. “Playoff Jimmy” is a real thing and the resilient with yesterday he scored a Miami Heat playoff record by scoring 56, the battle tested Miami Heat are showing the league how important it is to have your Superstars available during the final stretch of the season. Two blowout victories have the Heat in position to pull off the ultra rare feat of a 8 seed upsetting a 1 seed. The Greek Freak did return for Game 4 but it wasn’t much the Bucks could do to contain Jimmy, but it’s still not over anything is possible.
Are the 76ers for real?
The Philadelphia 76ers were undoubtedly the most impressive team during the first week of games. Not only did they sweep their opponent, the Brooklyn Nets, but they did so without Joel Embiid in game 4 because of injuries. James Harden and Tyrese Maxey blitzed the Nets by constantly attacking the interior and setting up teammates for easy shots. We even got a Tobias Harris sighting, as he is often the forgotten man on a team filled with talent and trustworthy vets. After trading away KD and Kyrie, no one expected the Nets to truly contend with the East’s elite but give the 6ixers credit, they took care of business and now one of the title favorites gets a much needed break as they await the winner of the Hawks versus Celtics series.
RusselL Westbrook quiets critics with impressive play, momentarily.
Russ may be having the greatest stretch ever in his hall of fame career. He has shot 54% from the floor and is currently 8 of 16 from three in this first round series against the Suns. We can expect those numbers to taper off a little but one thing is for sure, Russ never cheats us on effort. The L.A. Clippers have once again been devastatingly hit with the injury bug and all in all honesty should be getting blown out by this Phoenix Suns team littered with allstars and future hall of famers. Currently, as the lone “star” on a team filled with championship aspirations, Russ’s amazing play has the Clippers competitive.
Kevin Durant on Westbrook:
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) April 22, 2023
"When he retires, people are gonna tell the truth about how they feel about his game. Right now, [they] make a joke out of Russ."
Chris Paul:
"I feel like the only people to do that is the people who don't know basketball."pic.twitter.com/7EuCCoVgg2
Strong words from his former teammate Kevin Durant and longtime friend Chris Paul.
Lebron and AD leading Lakers resurgence.
Despite lackluster play from a few of their mid season acquisitions, the Lakers are enjoying a 3-1 series lead after last night thrilling overtime heading in game 4. LeBron had a game for the ages with his 20 point 20 rebound performance last night. Behind the magnificent play of Anthony Davis and the consistency of Lebron James, the Lakers may be the scariest team in the western conference. The on court antics of Dillon Brooks has dominated headlines but no one can deny the legitimacy of their title hopes, especially since the team made drastic changes to their roster a few months ago acquiring the likes of D’Angelo Russel, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasly. The Grizzlies have been snake bitten with major injuries to their frontcourt with Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke not being able to suit up and recently Ja Morant injured his hand after a hard fall in game 1. The basketball gods seem to be favoring the Lakers as much as any team in recent memory. Inconsistent play from the Grizzlies and injuries have the Lakers super confident and they should be. I hope “Dillon the Villain” realizes it's never a good idea to come at the King.
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