The regular season is over, and the NBA Playoffs begin this weekend. In the meantime, we’ll have to sort through the Play-In Tournament and all the mess of the eliminated teams’ end-of-season.
We’re sure to have coach firings and trash talk this week. Here’s a look at the biggest storylines coming your way as the NBA’s second season gets going.
1 nasty NBA Playoffs series coming your way
Regardless of who wins Tuesday’s Western Conference No. 7 vs No. 8 Play-In game, they are walking into the most exhausting, drama-filled series of the first round.
Many expect Houston to get knocked out in the first round based on their lack of a No.1 option and their inexperience. But Houston has bad blood with both division rival Memphis and the Warriors. If Golden State wins, in particular, that’s going to be a series where someone gets ejected, and someone likely gets suspended.
That’s the good stuff. We need a little more bad blood in these playoffs.
Concrete Jungle, where dreams are made of
Get ready for the Cade Cunningham Show, coming to a New York Theater near you. This week will be Cade Cunningham’s step onto the national stage, with media appearances and more press than he’s ever seen headed into Saturday’s Game 1 vs. the Knicks.
As impressive as the Pistons are, and as much of a trendy upset pick as they are, it’s important to remember the inexperience on this squad. This team lost 28 in a row last year. Jalen Duren, Cunningham, rookie Ron Holland, Ausar Thompson, these guys are stepping into a whole new world of attention.
Can they handle it? Will they shine under that kind of spotlight? Or will it show just how youthful they still are?
Battle for the face of the league
Wolves-Lakers is an odd matchup between two teams built very differently with very different identities. But it’s also a battle of the two players most likely to be the Face of the League, at least until Victor Wembanyama takes over.
Anthony Edwards burst onto the scene last year and looked primed to become the new smiling superstar in magazines. But somehow, Luka Dončić is a Laker now, and that changes the equation. Doncic got the best of Edwards last season.
If he does so again this year, that’s going to represent a bit of a pattern and could be the first major step in Dončić transcending basketball and becoming a true celebrity as most Lakers stars are.
Coaching carousel
The Blazers rewarded Chauncey Billups with a new contract Sunday after a plucky season where Portland didn’t win a lot but impressed a lot of opponents with their defensive strength and discipline.
The Blazers are still without a legit No.1 option that they hope to add in the draft, but at least they had standout defensive seasons from Toumani Camera and Shaedon Sharpe. They have some veterans to move in the offseason and some options on how to move forward.
I’m not entirely convinced that Billups is a great coach; this was the first season under him that Portland looked like an NBA team. But it’s a feel-good story, and Billups clearly had the locker room in a place where it bought in.
Meanwhile, most league observers had expected Billups to wind up in Phoenix as the Suns are widely expected to evaluate Mike Budenholzer and potentially make their third coaching change in three years.
Might I offer an idea? If Monty Williams, Frank Vogel, and Mike Budenholzer all didn’t work, perhaps the coach is not the problem?
There are conflicting reports about Willie Green in New Orleans. Some suggest he’s safe, and others believe the Pelicans could clean house after another disastrous injury-plagued campaign.
Will the Wizards keep Brian Keefe? Will Doug Christie stick around in Sactown? Who gets the Denver job? Lot of questions in coaching circles in a league where, now more than ever, no one is really safe in their jobs.
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NBA news and notes
- Anthony Edwards made seven 3s in the Wolves’ playoff-clinching win over the Jazz, the exact amount Edwards needed to surpass Malik Beasley for most made 3s in a season. Edwards’ transformation into a volume 3-point shooter shows how quickly and dramatically he can evolve his game, even if his mid-range still needs work.
- The Washington Wizards surrendered the top spot in the lottery to the Utah Jazz on a Bub Carrington game-winner vs. Miami. I personally think the basketball gods should reward them for this ethical behavior in a tanking season with a good lotto result. The Wizards have some sneaky good young talent headed into next year, including Colby Jones, Kyshawn George, and
Tristan Vukčević.
- The Rockets elected to play all their starters and normal rotation in the first half vs. Denver on Sunday after resting guys for most of the week after clinching the No. 2 seed. Despite the seeming intention for a serious effort, a desperate Denver team blew the doors off the Rockets immediately, and Houston seemed to be OK with that despite being signed up for the full shift Sunday. The loss ensured Houston won’t face Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets in the first round, as Denver clinched the No. 4 seed with the win.
5 random NBA Playoffs thoughts
- There will be tons of talk about Aaron Gordon vs. Kawhi Leonard and Ivica Zubac vs. Nikola Jokić. But don’t be surprised if Nuggets guard Christian Braun steals the show. The Clippers will have to hide one of Norman Powell or James Harden on Braun, and Braun is a ferocious and smart cutter who has been one of the best finishers in the league. He’s going to have a massive series.
- Last year, I loved the Pacers in their matchup vs. the Bucks, even if Giannis had been healthy. This year, I’m leaning toward the Bucks. Milwaukee seems to have found something over the last few weeks by going back to 2019 and just surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo with four defenders who can shoot. The Pacers don’t have the kind of physicality you need to slow down Giannis, and the Bucks have the 3-point shooting to outpace (no pun intended) Indiana’s low 3-point rate offense.
- The Celtics will win handily in the first round, but it is interesting that their choices are a Hawks team that has weirdly been able to give them trouble through the years unexpectedly and a Magic team that has held them to two of their bottom-five games in 3-point volume.
- I’ve done the film and stats work, and I’m ready to tell you: Cade Cunningham is in fact going to have a massive series. He’s going to hunt Jalen Brunson relentless on switches and in actions where the Knicks try and go under the screen to prevent the switch, he drives into space. When they double him, he’s got shooters in the corners. It’s going to be tough for New York.
- I will continue to yell that making it so that the No. 1seed doesn’t find out their matchup until the Friday before Game 1 Sunday is a disadvantage to the No. 1 seeds and No. 1 seeds should never be at a disadvantage. I don’t know how to fix it, but it’s an issue.