The NBA postseason commenced April 14th as the NBA Play-In kicked off early action between seeds 7-10. Seeds 7 and 8 faced off to determine which team would hold the seventh playoff slot, and seeds 9 and 10 faced off to determine who would face the loser of the 7 vs 8 contest. The winner of that matchup would go on to earn the final spot in the NBA Playoffs.
Night one featured the Phoenix Suns who hosted the Portland Trail Blazers in a fight for the 7-seed in the Western Conference Playoffs, and the Charlotte Hornets who hosted the Miami Heat in the battle of 9-seed vs 10-seed to earn a second game in which they could potentially steal a playoff spot . Both games proved to be late-night thrillers as the Blazers stunned the Suns with a late 4th quarter comeback after trailing by 11 to score a 114-110 victory. The Blazers earned a spot as the official 7-seed where they would head to San Antonio to face the red hot, 2-seeded Spurs. The Hornets and Heat showcased an excellent performance on both sides of the court, and the late-night shootout in Charlotte ended with a clutch block at the buzzer by Miles Bridges, cementing the Hornets a second chance to snatch the final spot in the playoffs.
Night two featured the 7 vs 8 battle of the Eastern Conference where the Orlando Magic travelled to Philadelphia to take on the 76ers. The game was fairly close throughout until the 76ers began to pull away late in the final quarter of action and achieve a 109-97 victory. With the win, the Sixers booked themselves a ticket to Boston where they would face the Celtics. Despite the loss, the Magic were given a lifeline as they had one more opportunity to claim a spot in the playoffs against the Hornets. In the 9 vs 10 battle of the West, the Golden State pulled off a great come-from-behind victory against the LA Clippers at the Intuit Dome—the Clippers’ home arena—126-121. Steph Curry dropped 35 points and the Warriors scored 43 points in the 4th quarter alone, eliminating the Clippers from playoff contention and setting up a do-or-die matchup with the Phoenix Suns.
In the final matchups of the Play-In Tournament, the Suns and Magic dominated both of their respective games and earned the final spots of the official postseason. The Suns would face the 1-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference first round, and the Magic would face the 1-seeded Detroit Pistons in the Eastern-Conference first round.
Saturday, April 18, marked the beginning of the actual NBA Playoffs. Day one featured the Cavaliers vs. Raptors, Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, Hawks vs. Knicks, and Rockets vs. Lakers.
The 4-seeded Cavaliers scored a double-digit win over the 5-seeded Raptors, 126-113 in dominant fashion as they led by 21 at the end of the third quarter. Despite a valiant effort by Anthony Edwards, the 3-seeded Nuggets triumphed over the 6-seeded Timberwolves 116-105 as Nikola Jokic recorded another triple-double with 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists. A Karl-Anthony Towns-led Knicks claimed a 113-102 victory over the Hawks, and the Lakers scored a commanding victory over the Rockets, 107-98, to round off day one of NBA postseason action.
Day two proved to be the day of bloodbaths as the Thunder and Celtics massacred their rivals in their respective opening games. The Thunder absolutely blitzed the Suns 119-84 as Phoenix shot at only 35% from the field. The Celtics earned a 32-point victory over the 76ers in a brilliant start to their series, 123-91. The Spurs defeated the Trail Blazers in late-night action, 111-98, as Victor Wembanyama recorded 35 points in his postseason debut. The only shocker of the opening games was a 112-101 upset pulled off by the 8-seeded Magic against the 1-seeded Pistons. The postseason home drought continues for the Pistons who have not won a playoff game in Detroit since 2008.
Opening early-round action proved to do everything but disappoint as many teams showcased a great performance to set the tone in their series. It will be interesting to see how each team bounces back as day three of the NBA Playoffs kicks off tonight.
