While it seems that round one of the Eastern Conference Playoffs is coming to a close, that cannot be said for the Western side of the spectrum.
Just like last week, the first full week of the postseason hasn’t disappointed, but rather supplanted truths that we always come to expect: teams that qualified for the Play-In tournament have all but showed why they’re inferior to their opponents as 9th and 10 seeds to finish off their regular season. And as some of the teams are facing some insurmountable odds with 3-0 and 3-1 deficits like the Knicks, Wizards, and Celtics, other teams in dead heats like the Mavericks, Lakers, and Jazz aren’t out of the woods with slim 2-1 leads and 2-2 tied series they still have to battle in.
And for a full week of games, we’ll break down the advantages of each leading team and each team that has the edge in their series in this week’s eight-team rankings.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. No. 1 Philadelphia 76ers (49-23, 3-0 vs. No. 8 Washington Wizards in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)
Much like last week, Philadelphia has kept Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards largely out of games, with Joel Embiid (28.5 ppg., 10.6 rpg., 2.8 apg., +61 through three games) being indomitable for the entire series. They’ve looked as poised as ever to contend with the likes of the Bucks and Nets as soon as they finish off this series against the struggling frontcourt and inconsistent output of Washington on both ends of the floor now up 3-0 over the Wizards and have all been led by their stars and their rotation of guards off of the bench.
Danny Green is in peak postseason form (no, that’s not a slight – he’s averaging 9.5 points off o 63% shooting from downtown) and in turn, is doing an exceptional job keeping forwards like Rui Hachimura and guards like Ish Smith out of rhythm for long stretches. Seth Curry has also made a difference, both in terms of shot-making and spacing provided for stars like Embiid and Tobias Harris to shine with. They’re getting into a groove, and it’ll be hard to touch these Sixers if they’re playing this efficiently in the playoffs already. Washington should go ahead and look forward to the off-season since it’s unlikely they scrape out a game in this series.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. No. 2 Brooklyn Nets (48-24, 3-1 vs. No. 7 Boston Celtics in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 2)
The name of the game is offense, and the Nets have shown that with pure efficacy in their opening series against the Boston Celtics, who are massively undermanned with the inconsistent statuses of Kemba Walker (knee) and Robert Williams III (Turf Toe). Per their insane 127.6 offensive rating – good enough for the best in the league right now – Kevin Durant is automatic from the field pulling up from virtually anywhere, James Harden is unguardable off the bounce whilst continuously switched onto Evan Fournier *and literally everyone else*, and Kyrie Irving is doing the same with some favorable matchups against Walker and the rest of Boston’s anemic guard rotation.
However, the Nets are defensively underwhelming during this postseason so far, and while that’s likely to change (well, it’ll have to if the Nets want to advance past Milwaukee and Philadelphia) Brooklyn’s defensive rating of 116.5 is a mark of concern, especially since they allowed the only Celtic threat in Jayson Tatum to go off for 50 points in game 3 off 16-for-30 shooting and 40 points two nights later.
Or, maybe not, considering that their big three virtually outscore teams by a pretty wide margin, as they’ve done all year so when all three share the court together. Their series likely comes to an end Tuesday night when they battle the Celtics in Game 5 in Brooklyn, and they’ll have the Milwaukee Bucks to look forward to in what should be an exciting seven-game series.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks (46-26, Won 4-0 vs. No. 6 Miami Heat in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)
Game one of Milwaukee’s series suggested they’d be in another dogfight with Miami for the second-straight year, and redemption from last year’s upset sounded easier said than accomplished, since we all figured that Miami had their number with virtually the same roster from the bubble donning black and red.
That was a lie.
Khris Middleton’s game-winner and a two-point win over Miami would be the closest margin of victory for the Bucks, who seemingly pulled away from the Heat for three-straight games, closing their first-round series out by an average of 26.7 points through their last three games. Milwaukee beat them in the open court, which Miami could not restrict this time around with an underperforming core of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Trevor Ariza, and Duncan Robinson.
And while Miami is likely in the negatives when looking at their cap situation next year, Milwaukee has championship aspirations on their mind. This is a different team with a different focus, and the matchups between (likely) Brooklyn and them are interesting on paper. Jrue Holiday has been a welcome addition to this team from this past off-season, and he’ll have to be big if they’re to contend with Brooklyn for what’s going to be a lengthy series.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. No. 1 Utah Jazz (52-20, 2-1 vs. No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: N/A)
Well, hello Utah. It’s about time you popped up on one of these rankings.
Though just about every game has been a little too close for comfort if you’re a Jazz fan, Utah looks spry and dangerously effective through two straight games with the returning Donovan Mitchell in the lineup. While Credit is due to the young and promising Grizzlies, who look to be on the upward trend in the development of pieces like leader Ja Morant, Dillon Brooks, Grayson Allen, De’Anthony Melton, Desmond Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. along with their incremental building of chemistry with veteran big man Jonas Valanciunas, Mitchell, or “Spida”, if you will, presents an entirely unpreparable dynamic to stop as the slashing shot-creator ar the guard has punished the Grizzlies.
Mitchell’s impact has been felt on the inside with his adept ball-handling skills to get to the rim as well as on the outside with his separation-inducing stepback jumpers from nearly everywhere around the court. Moreover, Mike Conley Jr. has been injurious to Memphis’ aspirations of an upset, and the tandem of Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors has rightly adjusted to, at the least, slow down the high Pick and Roll attack during periods where Grizzlies Head Coach Taylor Jenkins rolls out his most-efficient Brooks – Morant – Kyle Anderson – Valanciunas – Bane starting five.
Now, granted, defensive efficiency hasn’t been a positive metric to them in the starting out of their postseason, as they were the league’s third-best defensive team this season but have given up a nauseating 118.9 points per 100 possessions. With game four on the horizon for Memorial Day, keeping the Grizzly faithful inside FedEx Forum relatively quiet by winning the first quarter commandingly against an eighth-seed has to be a point of emphasis, should they want to prove to the league that this 50+ win team isn’t anything to play with.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. No. 2 Phoenix Suns (51-21, 2-2 vs. No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)
Chris Paul’s shoulder strain and questionable status for Game 4 of this series on Sunday sounded like it all but did the 51-win Suns in before Sunday’s contest, and only gave LeBron James and Anthony Davis’ crew some more confidence and ammunition to knock off the second-seeded Phoenix Suns.
And then just like that, it wasn’t a problem anymore.
He helped the Suns propel past the hobbling Lakers with an efficient 18 points, nine assists, and three steals (one of those came during a momentum-altering Lakers run in the final 3:26 of the fourth quarter, a quarter in which the Lakers invariably won) as they evened the series at 2-2 against the defending champions.
A win that wasn’t just needed for their proving of legitimacy against the league’s most defensively-efficient team at the end of the season, but a win to soothe the nerves of fans and young players on their first tour of the playoffs alike. Los Angeles embarrassed them in Game 3 as LeBron James and Anthony Davis combined for 55 points in a 14-point win in which Devin Booker and Chris Paul combined for a measly 26 points in a must-win ordeal.
Booker looked to be shaken to his core, not just from the innumerable amount of stunts and nail help the Lakers were showing him as he tried to get his shots in the halfcourt while running PnR sets, but due to the magnanimity of the moment, as he shoved Dennis Schroder out of emotion before he and Jae Crowder were ejected from the Staples Center. And so, they earned a hard-fought victory in the third quarter of Game 4, sparking a 14-point swing from a run after Anthony Davis came down hard from crashing the boards, straining his groin in the process.
Davis’ status is unknown for Game 5 in Phoenix, a massive blow for the champs’ hopes of repeating, for there isn’t much on Los Angeles’ end to stop DeAndre Ayton’s dominance on the glass if he is anything but optimal.
And so the chance to strike while the iron is hot is there for the Suns, should they heed the opportunity.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. No. 6 Portland Trail Blazers (42-30, 2-2 vs. No. 3 Denver Nuggets in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)
While this appeared as a back-and-forth kind of series for the Trail Blazers and Denver Nuggets, the truth of “bucket-getters matter at this time of the year” couldn’t be more applicable to any other team than the Blazers right now, who have found a way to tie the series and gain a noticeable advantage over the No. 3-seeded Nuggets. In keeping Nikola Jokic to under 4-for-11 shooting in the first half of Saturday’s Game 4, they kept the clamps on the frontrunner for MVP this season as he put up a playoff-worst 16 points in a 20-point blowout at home in the Moda Center.
And that blowout was significant, mainly because Damian Lillard was atrocious, scoring only one field goal for 10 points, but eight rebounds and 10 assists to boot due to the three-headed monster composed of CJ McCollum and now, surprisingly, Norman Powell – an actual threat as a scoring wing off the bounce in a Terry Stotts offense. The former Raptor acquired before the Trade Deadline led all scorers with 29 points on an afternoon where he couldn’t miss, and in comparison to the Nuggets, who are thin in the guard department with only Jokic there (and maybe Michael Porter Jr.) to generate offense, you have to like Portland’s chances advancing at the end of this series.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. No. 4 Los Angeles Clippers (47-25, 2-2 vs. No. 5 Dallas Mavericks in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: N/A)
Go ahead and toss those Clippers offseason trade scenarios list in the garbage. These Clips are not done just yet.
When things looked as grim and bleak as ever following their head-scratching Game 2 loss at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, the panic button was slammed by Clippers fans from just about everywhere, who were vexed at the simple fact that their franchise was simply “unlucky” with arguably their most balanced and championship-ready roster to date.
Down by more than 22 points at the tail end of the first quarter, it became Kawhi Leonard’s time for the Clippers, who charioted his team to a 10-point victory over a Dallas team that had them in their grasp. And two nights later on Memorial Day Eve, Leonard, who has been averaging around an insane 33 points and 8.5 assists per game off of 47.6 shooting from deep in four postseason games, turned this season that was to abruptly end disbelief and disappointment into a probable second-round meeting with the winner of the Jazz – Grizzlies series, for Luka Doncic’s offensive supernova of an effort, has been all but dimmed and impeded due to the sudden inefficiency of the players (Tim Hardaway, Kristaps Porzingis, Maxi Kleiber, Jalen Brunson, etc.) around him for two-straight games at home. We have a series!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. No. 5 Atlanta Hawks (41-31, 3-1 vs. No. 4 New York Knicks in First Round, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)
So…maybe voicing your displeasure with the brand new villain of Madison Square Garden in Trae Young after Games 1 and 2 wasn’t the best idea, New York fans?
Because, surely, he’s taking it out on your team, who surely cannot figure out any defensive coverage that’ll keep him from exploding for 27 points per game in this series.
This series has exposed a truth not much want to hear, but it has to be said: the Knicks do not have enough talent to box with the prizefighter of an offensively-endowed Hawks lineup and rotation, as the Knicks have succumbed to back-to-back losses by an average of 14 points on the road to fall behind 3-1 in their first playoff series in eight years. And shockingly, the Knicks’ defense – the NBA’s best in terms of points allowed per game and third-best in total defensive rating through 20 weeks of the year – has been suboptimal, letting the Hawks, on average, score 106.5 points in this postseason.
A large component of that has largely been Trae Young being himself and averaging 27.5 points per game off 47/37/95 shooting splits in his first-ever trip to the playoffs at 22 years old, and he’s attacked dropping bigs with automatic floaters and runners, penalized opposing guards with 30+ foot jumpers when they hesitate to switch, high PnR and two-man offensive sets with potential All-NBA member Clint Capela that have unsuspectingly bruised the Knicks in the middle of the paint, and has whizzed down the floor in transition when the Knicks haven’t gotten above the break.
But, the inconvenient inefficiency of the Knicks stars who have gotten them into the postseason in the first place, be that Julius Randle and RJ Barrett, has all but ended their season to their chagrin, as this season will end before the reaching of their desired destination. Granted, the series will return to the Garden for what will be a rousing rally by the team and its rowdy fans in an effort to extend the series on Tuesday, but with the Hawks averaging 109.4 points per 100 possessions this series, it is probably ending tomorrow.
Recent Comments