POWERED BY

If someone is “living under a rock”, that’s usually a bad thing. But did anyone ever consider whether or not you’re allowed to watch playoff basketball under the rock? Because if so… we might be down.

And in case you thought it was too late to join our NBA Bracket Challenge, think again! Join our group with the password HOO75HX3 and make your picks of who’s gonna win each series before the deadline passes!

Today’s Lineup

Full-Court Coverage

• What’s more “NBA playoffs” than the best players in the world giving 100% on both ends? That was crystal clear in OKC-New Orleans, where the Thunder squeezed out a 94-92 win after allowing just one basket in the final 3 ½ minutes. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (28 PTS, 6 AST) pretty much won the game for OKC with this clutch and-one in the final minute:

• Getting a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Finals in the first round was always gonna be a treat, but Game 1 of Nuggets-Lakers proved just how sweet that treat will be. In another ultra-competitive game, Denver took advantage of a big third quarter run and secured the eleven-point dub by way of clutch plays like this huge slam from the Joker.

• Philly switched into a zone defense in the second half of Sixers-Knicks and in doing so, dared New York to connect on their looks from deep. Let’s just say… the Knicks made them pay for it. Despite an ugly shooting performance from Jalen Brunson (8-26), NY gutted out a 111-104 victory over Philly thanks in part to 22 points and some clutch shooting from Josh Hart. We live for playoff hoops at The Garden!

• Sometimes, young players gracefully receive the torch from older generations. Other times, they just take it. Anthony Edwards got his on Saturday, when he dropped 33 to lead Minnesota to a HUGE Game 1 dub over Phoenix. He also made sure to let his all-time favorite player know he was cooking… the future is NOW, old man!

• Dame Time came early in Milwaukee, as Damian Lillard dropped 35 points in the first half (!) on Sunday to help the Bucks to a fifteen-point win over Indiana. No other player in Bucks HISTORY had ever scored more points in a half—don’t let this man stay hot, Indy.

• Boston became the first team in playoff history to have every player who logged game minutes hit a three-pointer. Those lucky strokes led to a double-digit C’s win over the Heat—is a title run in store for BeanTown?

• Death, taxes, and Donovan Mitchell scoring 30 in the playoffs. Spida led the Cavs to a 97-83 win over Orlando with his 21st 30-point playoff game. The only two players in the last 40 years with more of those games? Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson. Yeah. Exactly what we were thinking.

• And after all that excitement about PG13 and Kawhi going up against Luka and Kyrie, the entire hoops world let out a sigh of disappointment when we learned Kawhi wouldn’t play yesterday. LA didn’t seem to care, however, as they cruised to a 109-97 victory that was way more lopsided than the final score would lead you to believe. What do we mean by that? Dallas only put up 30 in the first half.

Looking Ahead… 👀

With each series having played one game, some squads are ready to keep rolling while others are in for a difficult week. Let’s take a look at some of the matchups that we think could go the distance:

76ers - Knicks (1-0 NYK)

If Joel Embiid can stay healthy, we could be in for a classic playoff battle between two East coast giants. Both Philly and New York play tough defense, have great coaches, and feature superstars at the helm—and this is a first round matchup? Unbelievable. New York took Game 1 thanks to some late clutch shooting, but don’t expect the Sixers to go away easily. Philly went 31-9 with JoJo in the regular season, so it’s only a matter of time until they bounce back.

Clippers - Mavericks (1-0 LAC)

In their fourth playoff matchup in five years, LA outran Dallas thanks to a combined 48 points from James Harden and Ivica Zubac. It was a rough night for Mavericks not named Luka or Kyrie, who combined for 64 of Dallas’s 97 points. The Mavs were a hot pick to make a deep run in this year’s playoffs thanks to the dominance of their lead guards, but that only works if the rest of the team holds up their end of the bargain. Expect a better day for Dallas in Game 2, and stay tuned for the rest of the series.

Suns - Timberwolves (1-0 MIN)

While Game 1 was a blowout win for Minnesota, a team with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker won’t stay down for long. Phoenix was favored before the series, and they remain in contention despite a big day from the Ant-Man. If KD keeps up his great play and the Suns can get more production from their bench unit, they’ll be able to pull even in the coming games. And if we get to see more superstars jawing at one another… well that’s just a welcome side effect.

Speaking of superstars, Anthony Edwards got some high praise from another Minnesota legend on Saturday…

Three in the Key

Signing Off

And we out! It’s obviously great that we get playoff basketball this time of year, but don’t forget to look around for the other wonderful things in life. In a way, every time of the year has its own exciting peaks, and it’s just our job to appreciate them. Talk soon.

-Walker Carnathan