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The Weekside: Chris Paul and Blake Griffin Save the Playoffs Opening Weekend

Apr 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs guard Cory Joseph (5) during the first quarter in game one of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs guard Cory Joseph (5) during the first quarter in game one of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Opening Remarks

While watching all the games during the opening weekend of the playoffs, I chatted with Shane Young of HoopsHabit. Here are some of our thoughts as we watched the league’s best teams (and the Nets) face off. Read more work by Young at HoopsHabit and follow him on Twitter.

Jared Wade: So the first day of this year’s first round certainly didn’t live up to the lofty standards of last year. It seemed like every game of every series was must-see TV in the 2014 first round, but we were given only stinkers on day one this year.

The one close game — the overtime affair between the Wizards and Raptors — was mostly a disorganized snoozefest where neither team looked great. It was nice to see Paul Pierce play so well at least, especially after all the talking he has done in the media of late.

Was that the best performance of the day? Or would you got with Derrick Rose’s impressive return to the playoffs? Or maybe Anthony Davis having a monster fourth quarter that turned a laugher into a game with some meaningful possessions down the stretch?

Shane Young: I would actually roll with Anthony Davis’ mind-blowing second half as the performance of the day, mainly because he snapped out of the laid-back, standoffish style from his first half. Considering Davis attempted just 9 shots in the first half, he didn’t look as if he was ready to explode or take the game into his hands. But his second half was twice as impressive as his first, as he scored 24 points and reverted back to his aggressive, regular-season ways. That’s what we wanted to see from the opening tip-off.

It really made me realize what a shame it is that this MVP-candidate battle between Curry and Davis will likely only last four or five games. If New Orleans was just able to play solid defense consistently, we know the team’s offense could create trouble for anyone. I think that’s what made Davis’ performance the best, by far: the fact that he’s continuing his destruction — even against the No. 1 defense in the world. Golden State had few answers defensively whenever Davis got rolling in the fourth, and we’re not accustomed to saying that about the Warriors.

What did Rose prove to you yesterday, albeit against a .500 Bucks unit?

Wade: Seeing Derrick Rose thrive was such a pleasure. It was delightful to watch him get to the rim so often, putting up reverse layups around lurching defenders, dunking in transition, and exploding by the opposition off the dribble. And though I don’t think he can consistently shoot like he did in that third quarter, I think ongoing improvement in that area means he could potentially be an All-Star again. I wasn’t sure he would look that good all postseason, and we got to see his full arsenal in Game 1. I’m excited — and the Bulls’ chances for beating the Cavs or Hawks increase considerably if he is attacking like this all month.

Speaking of Cleveland, all three of their stars scored 19 or better. Obviously, the way Love produces in the playoffs will have a lot to say about how far this team goes, as will the way LeBron and Kyrie share the ball late in close games. We didn’t get to see the latter — and probably won’t against Boston — but Love was engaged. Since March, he had only put up 14 or more shots in three out of 18 games, but he got that many in Game 1 and that has to help his confidence.

Was this a committed effort by the team to get him involved or just how it worked out in the flow of the game? Can we take much away from the Cavs’ first win?

Young: Oh, I definitely believe it was a team effort to get Love’s morale in the right direction. When LeBron was asked about Love’s involvement before Game 1, he publicly acknowledged that Cleveland wouldn’t be able to make it past any West team in the Finals if Love isn’t a factor. I’m telling you now, you can’t expect to succeed against a top-tier team if Love isn’t logging crucial fourth-quarter minutes. Do you remember the game in San Antonio, where Love barely touched the floor in the fourth and OT due to defensive reasons?

It can’t happen if that was a Finals preview. Popovich is too experienced and adept at making changes throughout a seven-game series. You need to have your best talent on the floor in crunch-time minutes. I think this may be something unprecedented. When is the last time you saw a guy about to receive a $100 million (or higher) contract struggle to fit into an offensive system? That’s been Love all year. It was exciting to see him thrive today (although I don’t have Cleveland winning the East).

The Celtics didn’t look like a seven seed today, as they only seem to compete harder as the weeks go by. Cleveland’s opening win means a lot, though, since it kind of proves they can still own a team at home while playing sub-par. And they own home court through everyone except Atlanta in the East.

Wade: The Cavs definitely need consistent production throughout the postseason from Love. Some people don’t seem to realize just how vital it has become to have plenty of potent weapons and lots of depth. The best players — LeBron, Curry, CP3, Harden, Kawhi — still make the biggest difference. Of course. But the other starters, and even the first few guys off the bench, can no longer be dead weight. A decade ago, championship teams could get away with that at times, but I just don’t think it’s possible anymore.

I mean, we saw just how big fringe players can be when a guy like Beno Udrih goes off. Compare that to what happens to a team like Portland when it is missing a few key players and doesn’t have enough bodies. Even with a banged-up Mike Conley and Tony Allen, this Memphis squad just has a lot of professional, dependable players to run out there all game long. Portland just can’t match up, and defenses across the league are just too good these days for an offense to consistently score when there are non-shooters and non-threats out there trying to put up points essentially playing 4-on-5. Udrih won’t do this again all postseason, but his outburst just goes to show that teams really do need more than just an All-Star or two if they wanna make a deep run. Getting a game or two like that from an unexpected source is almost a prerequisite for advancing in a conference as loaded as the West is this year.

And the lack of realization about this team-wide focus is why I think the Atlanta is consistently being overlooked. They were the second-best team over 82 games, and while Cleveland did look more dangerous late in the year, we’re probably overvaluing that stretch of the season since it fits the story of LeBron coming back from vacation and turning the team around.

While they weren’t firing on all cylinders, the Hawks did look unguardable for stretches of today’s game — and that was without even shooting well. Yes, they are playing the dreadful Nets, and they may have coughed up that game to a team that actually deserves to be in the playoffs. But there is no reason Atlanta can’t pick apart defenses for the next two months.

Young: Couldn’t agree more about the makeup of a team, since you need a handful of players — outside of your core two or three — to step in and make a positive difference. If Udrih hadn’t been able to score over 20 points and do so efficiently, Memphis could’ve easily been in a little trouble.

Since we know how strong Portland’s home crowd is during the playoffs, giving them a road game is something you never want to do. Houston didn’t realize that last April, and they paid a price for it. Udrih has only scored 20+ points once this whole season, before Sunday. It’s amazing how the playoffs can deviate away from the regular season norms most of the time.

Brooklyn disgusted me at the end, not being able to take advantage of the unimpressive Hawks shooting today. There were many instances where Brooklyn could’ve cut the lead to within two or three, and came up with ugly possessions in must-score situations. But, I guess that’s why they’re the eight seed!

I did want to ask your quick take about this: Would the 38-44 Pacers give Atlanta all they could handle if they made the postseason? Or would it be downright egregious to think it could go to 6 or 7 games?

Wade: Nah. The Pacers would have put up a decent, albeit futile fight, against the Cavs. And they could have hung with the Bulls, Wizards, or Raptors, but the Hawks are just a terrible matchup for them with all their shooters. Even last year, they just spread the floor and turned Roy Hibbert into a complete liability.

But while thinking about teams like Indiana and Brooklyn in the playoffs is just depressing, there was one uplifting moment this weekend.

How about those Clippers? Man. That was Greatest Show on Earth stuff. The final score looks lopsided, but that game made up for all the other lackluster affairs this weekend. Chris Paul played about as well as anyone can, and Blake Griffin may be the most entertaining big man in the league. Those dunks? Nutso.

How much does this performance make you think the Spurs are in real trouble? They missed a lot of shots, and Los Angeles put on an absolute clinic in the second half. And the bench remains a huuuuuge concern for Doc’s squad, but if the starters play this well does it even matter?

Young: Man, I don’t think people understand the magnitude or intensity of this series. Like, I know how the internet is: Folks tend to overstate things to a larger degree than they actually are, and things get exaggerated. But, I’m seriously wanting people to see that this Clippers/Spurs series happening in the first round is illegal. Since I’ve been alive, there hasn’t been an opening series between two leviathans like this, where your attention is just captured with every play.

Part of me believes San Antonio has a terrific shot to take Game 2 on Wednesday, because this team isn’t one that replicates a 36.6% shooting performance. Popovich usually just beats the bejesus out of his players after a bad performance, and they respond well in the next game. 14 turnovers is also unlike them. Too many rare occurrences happened Sunday that maybe won’t carry over, you know?

Doc Rivers needs to find some middle ground with this starters vs. bench issue. The Clippers’ starters played 187 combined minutes, compared to the Spurs’ 124. As a result, the Clippers’ bench logged 54 combined minutes, to the Spurs’ 116. I’m not saying Los Angeles’ stars will get tired in the early games of this series, but it will be massive problem if this gets to Games 6 and 7.

Wade: Agreed on all points. The Spurs won’t shoot this poorly again, and it’s not like this was a runaway victory for the Clippers. The Spurs cut it to single digits late before Paul went superhero and shut the door. It’s amazing how the 3-point shot and teams staying competent even when it’s a three- or four-possession game has changed the idea of what a comeback can be. I don’t think anyone thought the Spurs were out of it even down 12 in the fourth quarter. They are simply that good, and can execute on both ends that well.

Regardless of what happens on Wednesday, I think we’re all just rooting for this to go seven games. It’s early days yet, but it looks like it could go down as a classic series.

And even if one team takes control unexpectedly, let’s just hope it lasts longer than Wizards/Raptors at least. I don’t think I can watch even five games of that.

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