I think this was an interesting weekend for the NBA Playoffs, and hopefully will make for an exciting playoffs. With the Pacers not being a part of the playoffs in four years, I haven't had as much interest in them. But definitely Saturday morning I was up and ready to go.
The Pacers definitely woke up the Bulls, and played well enough to lead with less than 2 minutes to go. Who knew that the Bulls would end up going on a 16-1 run to finish the game. After the technical foul on Deng, there was a shift in the game, and the Pacers couldn't match the momentum of the Bulls. It does make me nervous for tonight's game because I can see the Bulls coming out and making a statement. But I thought they might do that in game one, and for MOST of the game, the Pacers had something going. But it's how you finish, and the Pacers didn't finish. I still think this series could go six games, and let's see if the Pacers can help me out. Side note, I hate listening to the announcers on ESPN, but that's a whole other conversation.
The Sixers and the Heat had a good game going. With the Heat taking control and the Sixers trying to storm back, but they couldn't get any closer than 9 at the end. It looked like the Sixers might be able to get a game up as they lead some of the way, and help Lebron down in the first quarter. He came on in the rest of the game even with the Sixers up by 14 at one point. Just like the Pacers Bulls game the more talented team pulled ahead and won the game. The Heat can play like they want, and should be able to control this series.
Even Superman couldn't help the Magic get past the Hawks in their game one. I was watching it, and couldn't believe how Dwight Howard was scoring at will, and he ended up with 46 points and 19 rebounds, but it wasn't enough. The Hawks just seemed in control of the whole game, and Joe Johnson had 25 points to lead the Hawk. Jamal Crawford hit some big shots that kept the lead going, and it was the Hawks day. This should be an interesting series to watch if Howard can keep putting up these big numbers.
The final game of Saturday was the Blazers and the Mavs. Dirk was Dirk in this game, and we're not talking Dirk Diggler here. Nowitzki scored 18 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter, and Jason Kidd hit some big shots along the way. He continues to show that he can be a great if not elite point guard at 38 years old, and will hit a big shot if you need it. The Blazers had a six point lead in the fourth quarter, but the Mavs took the lead with 4:49 left when Nowitzki hit two free throws. And the Mavs were able to keep control in that fourth quarter and take game one. The Blazers were a sexy pick to make the upset here, but I think the Mavs might be too much for them. Side note, when did Rick Carlisle shave his head? Was he in a hair for hair bet?
Sunday definitely provided two big surprises. The Hornets and the Grizzlies took game one in both of their series.
The Grizzlies in my opinion were the bigger surprise. They hadn't won ONE playoff game ever. Got swept in all their postseason appearances, so to think they would come out fighting in game one against the Spurs, and win it on the Spurs home floor is pretty amazing. We know the way the Spurs started out this season with that ridiculous start where it took a while before they got their tenth loss. They looked unstoppable, but not so much in the second half of the season. This game definitely featured some good play by Zach Randolph and the other Gasol, Marc, not Pau. Randolph lead the way with 25 points and 14 rebounds. The Spurs were playing without Manu Ginobili, who sat out the game, but may end up playing in game two. There's no definite word on it, but the Spurs probably want him back sooner rather than later. As for the Grizzlies, there's no pressure on them to win this series, and they played like that. Shane Battier hit a big three with less than a minute to play, and Richard Jefferson missed a three pointer at the end that would have sent the game into OT. Who knows what would happen then? But congrats to the Memphis Grizzlies on their first post season win, and who knows how many more will come?
The Hornets played spoiler as well in their game one. I didn't think that the Hornets had much of a shot against the Lakers. But Chris Paul looked like Chris Paul, finishing up with a line of 33 pts, 7 rebs, 14 assists, 4 steals. Not a bad night of work at all. The Hornets had a great defensive approach, and an even better offensive game, leading to ONLY three turnovers by them. A great feat in itself. Kobe Bryant put up his points, but it wasn't enough. Artest came through with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Pau Gasol got outplayed by his brother on this day, only having 8 points and 6 rebounds. Maybe the Hornets can keep the big MO going and somehow take this series. Side note, Steve Blake had to sit out because of chicken pox, and three other Lakers haven't had chicken pox before, Andrew Bynum, Ron Artest, and.......Kobe. Can you imagine how different this series might be without those three guys??
I was out for Rock of Ages, which will be talked about in my music blog....shameless plug, so I didn't get to watch the Knicks and Celtics, which was a game I was looking forward to. From what I've heard and read, it sounds like the Knicks actually played some defense. But the Celtics still overcame it, and won the game by 2 points on a miss by Carmelo Anthony at the end. Chauncey Billups left the game with 51 seconds to go, and it is still undecided on game 2 status. That could be a bit of a blow for the Knicks. Ray Allen proved he's always ready to hit the game winning shot or go ahead three and did that again in this game. I still think the Knicks have this series, and it will probably be a fun seven game one. But the Celtics have shown they can handle young guns with their old dogs.
The final game one of the night was the Nuggets and the Thunder. Got home in time to catch most of the second half of this game. It was fun to watch Kevin Durant play since I've never sat down to watch a Thunder game. His shot just looks so smooth, it's awesome. I bet he could score on every play if he wanted to. He's that good, and can just get his shot whenever he wants. The rest of the Thunder stepped up and got some big scores as well. Russell Westbrook helped along side Durant, and gave 31 points. Durant ended up with 41 so they had 72 points of the Thunder's 107 points. Good day at the office for those guys. This game was definitely up and down most of the way. It was hard to tell which team would take control. The Thunder, just feels weird saying that, are another sexy pick to win and go all the way to the finals. The Nuggets came on after the Melo trade, and showed they can play just as well. This will be a fun one to watch, and looking forward to the rest of this series.
Overall, not a bad day one and two of the NBA playoffs. The intensity that was talked about before is definitely there in all the series. I think people weren't giving enough credit to the lower seeds, and how they could turn it on for the playoffs. Hope the rest of the playoffs can be close, and give us some fun games. That's what the NBA is all about.
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