NBA Playoffs: How much does a good bench matter?

As the 2015 NBA playoffs get underway, how much does a good bench matter in the post-season?

Every year we see the same superstars start and finish games in the NBA playoffs. The face of each team gets all the recognition from the media, is under constant scrutiny, and is typically credited with the win or loss of a series. But every basketball fan knows that there isn’t just one guy out there who will win or lose you a game. Of course there are players like LeBron James, who can single handedly alter the outcome of every game no matter who is on his team. Even when James is on the team, there has to be those guys on the bench who come in and provide significant minutes for the starters.

In the playoffs, teams are usually criticized for how they finish games. It’s almost as if the other 46 minutes disappear in each post game analysis. A portion of that time is usually when the guys on the bench come in and produce those quality (or not so quality) minutes. Often they are forgotten, but how important is a good bench in the NBA playoffs?

Simply put, it is immensely important. There hasn’t been a championship winning team in recent memory where a bench squad hasn’t saved at least one game in the many a team plays throughout the playoffs. We saw it last year, where no Spurs players averaged over 30 minutes a game. Even two years prior, LeBron James wouldn’t have won his first title if it hadn’t been for Mike Miller and Shane Battier producing good minutes off the bench.

How much does it matter though, and why is it so important to have a good bench in the playoffs?

Here are the four reasons to evaluate exactly how much a good bench is important no matter how top heavy your team is.

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