Denver Nuggets v Utah Jazz
The first game of the NBA playoffs did not disappoint as the Nuggets and Jazz battled in an overtime classic. The Jazz had the best player on the court, G Donavan Mitchell (19-33FG 6-15 3PT 13-13FT 57PTS 9REB 7AST 1STL 5TO 43MIN), and he did everything he could steal game one from the Nuggets. He ended up short as the Jazz fell 125-135.
The Nuggets held a seven-point lead at the half (59-52), but it should have been more. Mitchell was playing his tail off to keep the Jazz in the game. And the Jazz came out pumped up in the 3rd quarter, taking advantage of the Nuggets’ lapse in focus. The Nuggets blew their lead, heading into what turned into a wild and crazy fourth quarter.
Jamal Murray (13-20FG 6-9 3PT 4-4FT 36PTS 5REB 9AST 1STL 3TO 40MIN) was up to the task of matching Mitchell shot for shot in the fourth. Murray’s work was the reason the Nuggets were able to come back and force overtime with the score tied at 115-115. The Jazz looked gassed once the OT started, and the Nuggets outscored them 20-10 to take game one.
If the Jazz want to win game two, they will need Mitchell to play with the same intensity and determination he displayed on the way to his career-high in points. Mitchell also became the youngest player(23 years old) to score 50+in a playoff game since a 23-year-old Michael Jordan’s 63 point explosion against the Boston Celtics in 1986.
The Jazz are going to need every player to step up their game seeing how Mitchell’s career game was not enough to win, so he needs some help from the rest of the Jazz if they want to take down the Nuggets. The Nuggets will need Michael Porter Jr (5-13FG 3-7 3PT 13PTS 8REB 1AST 1BLK 1TO 31MIN) to shake off his playoff debut and play much better. Otherwise, this series will be a seven-game slugfest.
Toronto Raptors v Brooklyn Nets
The second playoff game of the day was pretty much what people thought. The Nets were out of the game before it even started, and the Raptors were able to deliver their franchise’s highest halftime lead in a playoff game, 73-51.
The rest of this series will practically be reruns of this game. The Raptors are playing at such a level that even if the Nets had all their players, it would not make a difference. The Nets can be excited that they stayed in the playoff mix, but this series will be a massacre.
For a moment in the third quarter, the Nets came out with purpose. They played some solid defense and Caris Levert, Joe Harris, and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarro played some good offense. It was short-lived though. Toronto woke back up in the 4th quarter and crushed any hopes of an upset.
The 4th quarter started with the Raptors up 95-86, but that was as close as it would get. The Raptors closed the game by outscoring the Nets by an easy 24 points, 134-110. The Raptors were led by G Fred Van Fleet (11-15FG 8-10 3PT 0-1FT 30PTS 2REB 11AST 2STL 1BLK 1TO 39MIN), who had the first 30 points 10 assist game in Raptors history.
The Nets do not have a chance in this series, but if Van Fleet is going to play at this level, there will not be any close games in this series. The Nets did have one highlight, Caris Levert dished out a career-high 15 assists in that fantastic 3rd quarter they had, are a couple of things to build off of going into the second game. I hope the Nets can at least be competitive in some games, but with how the Raptors are playing, this looks like a total sweep in the making.
Boston Celtics v Philadelphia 76ers
This was the series I wanted to see before Ben Simmons went out for the playoffs, and Joel Embiid came in battered and bruised. And, the Boston Celtics are healthy and ready to take advantage. Despite their deficit, the 76ers played exceptionally well in the first half and held the Celtics to 55 points, down six at the half.
Boston made the critical mistake of allowing an injured 76er’s team to stick with them. The longer you let a team hang around, the harder they become to take down. That is almost what happened, and the 76ers were oh so close at pulling off the huge upset but ended up falling to the Celtics 109-101.
Joel Embiid (8-15FG 1-4 3PT 9-12FT 26PTS 16REB 1AST 2STL 1BLK 5TO 37MIN) was a man possessed, his injuries did not seem to phase him. He played 37 minutes, which should only ramp up now that game 1 is out of the way. Facing a healthy and motivated Embiid is going to be a huge issue for the Celtics. If Embiid’s teammates step up next game, they will have a chance to turn this blowout series into a dog fight.
The Celtics won this game but they cannot be too happy with how close it was. Jaylen Brown (9-16FG 5-8 3PT 6-6FT 29PTS 6REB 4AST 3STL 2TO 39MIN) and Jayson Tatum (10-21FG 2-5 3PT 10-11FT 32PTS 13REB 1AST 3BLK 1TO 41MIN) were a dynamic a duo as they were in the regular season, but the rest of the Celtics left a lot to be desired.
I still believe the depth of players the Celtics have will be too much for the 76ers, but this game proved that it is not going to be a cakewalk. This 76ers team is going to fight and make this a series that the Celtics have to earn.
Los Angeles Clippers v Dallas Mavericks
The primetime matchup of the night lived up to all the hype with every superstar on either team made their mark in this game. The Clippers dominated the Mavericks in the regular season 3-0, but the Mavericks offense is looking better than he did in the regular season.
The Mavericks offense came out hot as a pistol and scored 38 points in the first quarter, giving the Mavericks a four-point lead heading into the second quarter. The Mavs were able to score 31 in the second quarter, but the Clippers chipped away at the lead by scoring 32 in the second quarter, which put the halftime score at 69-66 with the Mavericks surprisingly holding onto their slim lead.
After the half, Doc Rivers must have pushed the defense intensity and shutting the Mavericks down because the Clippers clamped down and clamped down hard on the Mavericks, only allowing them to score 13 points in the whole quarter. This is why I believe the Clippers are going to win the NBA title this year because this defense, when it gets going, can lock down any player any team in the whole league.
After the third period, the Clippers had regained the lead with a score of 87-82, and star F Kristaps Porzingas was tossed from the game after he picked up his second technical foul in the third quarter. The Mavericks did have the lead when Porzingas got tossed from the game, but it still raised the pressure on Doncic and led to a bad third quarter for the Mavericks.
Doncic was able to compose himself and rally his team to make it a great game till the last minute. The Mavericks ultimately fell to the Clippers 118-110 but got their attention. Luka Doncic (13-21FG 2-6 3PT 14-15FT 42PTS 7REB 9AST 3STL 11TO 38MIN) did not shy away from his first playoff game and set a record for most points for a player in his first playoff game.
Doncic does need to cut down on those turnovers because the Clippers, as a team, feed off turnovers. Secondly, every other Maverick player has to step up in game two. The Clippers two superstars Kawhi Leonard (11-21FG 1-7 3PT 6-6FT 29PTS 12REB 6AST 3STL 3TO 38MIN), and Paul George (10-22FG 4-11 3PT 3-3FT 2REB 3AST 2STL 3TO 37MIN), were up to the task of matching Luka and caused as much havoc as they could.
The Clippers will need to shore some things up if they want to take a commanding 2-0 lead. They need better three-point shooting, better free throw shooting, and they need to get to the line. This series is going to be a lot of fun to watch. and looks like this series might be closer than most people thought it was going to be.