Enjoy Basketball: Playoff basketball is SO back

Welcome back to another edition of Enjoy Basketball!

Playoff basketball is back and better than ever. After an eventful Saturday of hoops, Sunday made sure to bring the fireworks as well. It’s been a joy to watch teams battle it out, and after just one game of each series, it’s easy to see that this year’s postseason is going to be amazing.

Imagine not loving basketball? Couldn’t be me.

Yesterday gave us a whole array of games. (Almost) every single game was interesting at one point or another, and that’s all we can ask for as a hoops fan. Although, there was one game that stood out among the rest. Let’s just get into it already.

Robinson leads Heat to blowout win over Hawks

I tweeted this before the season started:

Yes, I know. Not my finest prediction. But games like the one Duncan Robinson had yesterday are the reason I believed this. When he’s put in a position to succeed and is shooting the way everyone knows he can, Robinson is fully capable of scoring 20 points a night. His 27 points were enough to lead the game in scoring as the Miami Heat blew the doors off the Atlanta Hawks.

Trae Young was not good. He ended the game with eight points. The last time Young scored eight points in an NBA game (regular season or postseason) was on January 15, 2021, when he scored four points in a loss against the Utah Jazz. Throughout Young’s entire career, he had only scored eight points or less nine different times before yesterday. Six of them were in his rookie season. The Hawks are 1-8 in those games.

Yesterday, Miami showed why they finished the regular season as the best team in the Eastern Conference. Simultaneously, the Hawks showed why they were a Play-In team. If they want any shot at making noise against the Heat, Young needs to be better. And if the Heat shut him down consistently, Atlanta is cooked.

Tatum helps Celtics beat Nets at the buzzer

What. A. Game.

If you didn’t get a chance to watch this game live, go find it. Watch YouTube highlights. Find clips on TikTok or Instagram. This game is what the NBA Playoffs are all about. Obviously, I’m a bit biased being a Boston Celtics fan, but no matter what team you support, this one was the game of the day. (Except for Nets fans. Y’all probably did not have as much fun as I did.)

Kyrie Irving put on a Master Class, but it didn’t matter. He flipped off the Boston crowd multiple times, but it didn’t matter. Goran Dragic lit up the Celtics in the first half, but it didn’t matter. Boston found a way to win this one despite putting in a less-than-stellar defensive performance.

One year ago, Marcus Smart would have taken that final shot at the end of the game. This time around, he dished it to Jayson Tatum for an easy layup. And people aren’t even talking about the defensive possession the Celtics had before the game-winner. It was a gorgeous sequence of events. 

Please. PLEASE. Make every playoff game like this.

(I would say I want six more games of this series, but I don’t. Go Celtics!)

Bucks stave off Bulls’ late-game push

Oh, Nikola Vucevic. You had it. It was there. But then it was gone.

After the first quarter, it seemed as if the Milwaukee Bucks were going to run away with this one just like most people expected them to. In a weird turn of events, the Bulls were facing death by Brook Lopez. Not exactly how they were projected to lose, but hey, it seemed to be working quite well.

But Chicago battled back. And ironically enough, Vucevic’s massive third quarter played a huge part in their comeback. In the final minutes, the Bulls were within striking distance. They just fell short. Vucevic had a chance to bring them within one with under a minute to go, but one missed layup later, and the Bucks are up 1-0.

However, let’s not beat around the bush here - the Bulls were in it. This series may still be a sweep, but Chicago showed that they can fight. Not only that, but they can fight even when their best player plays horribly. That being said. Milwaukee’s second and third stars both played poorly, too. The point is, this series could be more fun than most people expect.

Suns fight off scare, take down Pelicans

The first-half New Orleans Pelicans might be the worst team in the NBA. Or maybe it’s just that the first-half Phoenix Suns are elite. Either way, the first half of this game was ridiculous. Based on that half of basketball alone, the Suns were set to win in three games. And that’s not even a thing. That’s how dominant Phoenix was.

New Orleans wasn’t going to go down without a fight, though. At one point, Phoenix was up by 23 points, but with 9:02 left in the fourth, that margin was down to seven. Eight different players scored in the third quarter for the Pelicans, as they beat the Suns 37-26 in that quarter. It just wasn’t enough, though.

The reason? Chris Paul. It just seemed like Paul was scoring at will in the fourth. He dropped 19 points in the final quarter, willing the Suns to victory after New Orleans tried to make it interesting. The Pelicans could make things interesting, or at least a little bit fun, but the Suns did their job. And that’s all they have to do.

Luka Doncic unlikely to play in Game 2

While the Dallas Mavericks may have lost Game 1 to the Utah Jazz, the fact that they were able to keep things close without Luka Doncic was impressive. However, based on a recent report from ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Doncic “remains unlikely to play” in Game 2.

As MacMahon outlined in the article, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd isn’t dwelling on the issue. He stated that “injuries come at the wrong time,” but also that they have to just keep pushing forward. Dallas takes on Utah in Game 2 tonight.

Lakers coaching job viewed as unappealing

The Lakers fired Frank Vogel in the most disrespectful way ever - via Woj Bomb. During his press conference after LA’s last game of the season, Vogel said that he hadn’t heard anything about being fired. However, just a few minutes prior, Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted the news. Vogel said that he had seen the tweet before entering the press room.

And now that the Lakers are on the hunt for their next head coach, it doesn’t seem like people are jumping at the idea to sign on for the job. According to Dan Woike and Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, LA’s reputation isn’t great at the moment:

"Those with knowledge of coaching situations around the league say the Lakers’ reputation isn’t good — concerns about meddling, too many voices, suspect contracts and obvious roster problems creating an equation that has them working from behind."

It could be hard to find an elite replacement, especially if the Lakers expect a coach to leave their current team for them. (Sorry LA, Nick Nurse isn’t going anywhere.)

The Biggest X-Factor for Every 2022 NBA Playoff Team - Dan Favale, Bleacher Report

Recognizing the Cavs for who they were, could've been and may soon be - Mark Schindler, BasketballNews.com

Welcome to Tyrese Maxey’s star turn - Paul Hudrick, Liberty Ballers

Reviewing the NBA’s playoff slogans, Sean Keane, Golden State of Mind

Isaiah Jackson provides Pacers ready-made Myles Turner replacement - Evan Sidery, BasketballNews.com

We’ve got three games on the docket today and all of them have the potential to be great. Let’s take a look.

Toronto Raptors @ Philadelphia 76ers

The Sixers dominated Game 1. To be frank, it was probably the most boring playoff game of the year so far. (Even though there have only been two days of action.) Regardless, one would expect Nurse and his guys to respond well. But with an injury to Scottie Barnes hanging over their heads, Philly might have their number. Go with the 76ers in Game 2.

Utah Jazz @ Dallas Mavericks

With Doncic unlikely to play, the Jazz should be able to take care of business. The keyword in that sentence was should. Not will. Should. Call it a gut feeling, but I expect this game to be close again. And as crazy as it sounds, I think the Mavericks get a win. I don’t think they lose at home twice in a row.

Denver Nuggets @ Golden State Warriors

I lied about the Sixers/Raptors game. This was the most boring Game 1 of them all. The Warriors showed their dominance, and in all honesty, that’s probably how the rest of the series is going to go as well.

Live. Love. Playoff basketball. There’s not much else to say besides that. Let’s hope we get even more entertaining games over the course of Round 1 and beyond. At this point, anybody could win any series. (Well, maybe that’s a stretch, but you get the point.) Every single game is going to be intense, and that’s just the way it should be.

I’m headed off to Ireland in a couple of days after a pit stop in Florida for a wedding, so the next time you hear from me I’ll be five hours ahead of (most of) you. If only that meant I could see into the future and place all my bets in advance. Unfortunately, that’s not how time zones work.

That'll be it for me. Thanks for reading. See y'all next time.

- Jack Simone

Last Trivia Answer: I was stuck between two players when thinking about Spencer’s question last week, and one of them was right. The answer was Wally Szczerbiak. (And yes, I had to copy/paste his last name.) KG notched 1,049 playoff points in Minnesota. Wally? 369.

Trivia Question: LeBron James has accumulated the most playoff wins in NBA history with 174. Who is second on that list? Hint: Tim Duncan is third with 157.