NBA Playoffs Articles - Page 203

Jalen Brunson put the Dallas Mavericks on his shoulders in Tuesday’s 110-104 Game 2 victory over the Utah Jazz to tie the series at 1-1. With the Luka Doncic-less Mavs facing the prospect of falling 2-0 down in the series, Brunson stepped it up for his team in a major way. The 25-year-old exploded for […]

Just like the rest of the Dallas Mavericks’ fanbase, Dirk Nowitzki was hyped after seeing Jalen Brunson and the Mavs take down the Utah Jazz in Game 2 of their playoff series. Playing without the injured Luka Doncic for the second straight contest, there were legitimate concerns about the Mavs’ ability to beat the Jazz. […]

Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet is blaming no one but himself after the Philadelphia 76ers handed them another blowout defeat on Monday. After losing Game 1 by 20 points, there were high hopes that the Raptors can make some adjustments to make life hard for Joel Embiid and win against the Sixers in Game 2. […]

Doc Rivers made history on Monday night as he led Joel Embiid and the Sixers to a 112-97 win over the Toronto Raptors to take a commanding 2-0 lead in this first-round series. Rivers is now just the fifth coach in the history of the NBA to reach the century mark in playoff wins. Tuesday’s […]

During the closing seconds of Game 2 between the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers, Joel Embiid was seen exchanging some words with Nick Nurse. Of course things appeared a bit heated, with Nurse seemingly explaining something to Embiid. It doesn’t look like they were exchanging pleasantries, too, based on their reactions. Joel Embiid and Nick […]

The Sixers scored a huge 112-97 win on Monday as they took a commanding 2-0 lead over the Toronto Raptors in their opening-round series. 76ers superstar Joel Embiid suffered a bit of an injury scare during the game, though, but it looks like there is no cause for concern. Embiid, who was also seen limping […]

No one would have thought Jordan Poole would be this good at this point in time, including the Golden State Warriors. Just a few years ago, the young guard would be limited to a reserve role and play out his minutes for a struggling Dubs team that didn’t have Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson in […]

Awards season is officially underway in the NBA and we have our first winner. Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year Monday, becoming the first guard since Gary Payton in 1995-96 to win the award. The second-place finisher in award voting was the Phoenix Suns’ own, Mikal […]

It was reported on Monday that Ben Simmons could make his highly-awaited Brooklyn Nets debut in the coming days. With Kevin Durant and the Nets falling 1-0 in their opening-round series against the Boston Celtics, it sounds like Brooklyn is about to get a much-needed boost in the form of the former Rookie of the […]

Boston Celtics vet Marcus Smart showed his respect to Phoenix Suns youngster Mikal Bridges, who gave him tough competition for the Defensive Player of the Year award. Smart won the DPOY honor on Monday, with Bridges finishing second in the voting. The Celtics’ defensive guru accumulated a total of 257 points behind 37 first place […]

A couple of years back, it would almost be unimaginable to think that the balance of power in the NBA would shift from the Western Conference to the East. Right now, though, this has become a reality. Miami Heat star Tyler Herro has spoken out about this transition and it doesn’t sound like the 22-year-old […]

The Philadelphia 76ers walked into the locker room with a 67-52 lead over the Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of their 2022 NBA Playoffs matchup. Led by star center Joel Embiid, who had a game-high 19 points at the half, the Sixers appeared to be in control of the contest, just as they were during […]

After winning the 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year award, Boston Celtics star Marcus Smart didn’t forget to thank one crucial group that has really pushed him to become better: his haters. Smart admitted that having those doubters and haters really “inspired” him to improve himself and prove them wrong. Now, he has the DPOY […]

Former NBA head coach George Karl didn’t hold back in his response to DeMarcus Cousins after the Denver Nuggets big man went on an emotional rant about the Sacramento Kings. In a recent interview with Marc J. Spears for Andscape, Cousins fired some scathing remarks about the Kings and his time there. Aside from proclaiming […]

The Dallas Mavericks have officially ruled out Luka Doncic for Game 2 of their playoffs series with the Utah Jazz. Doncic is still recovering from the left calf strain he sustained in the final game of the regular season. He already missed Game 1 because of the issue, though there were some hope he could […]

Marcus Smart won the 2021-22 NBA Defensive Player of the Year award, and so the Boston Celtics made sure to reveal it to him in the best way possible: through Gary Payton. But why did the Celtics choose The Glove? Well, before Smart, Payton was the last guard to win the DPOY back in the […]

Steve Kerr doesn’t see Nikola Jokic struggling in Game 2 as much as he did in Game 1 of the Golden State Warriors’ playoff series with the Denver Nuggets, and he made sure to remind that to his team. Jokic scored 25 points, albeit on 25 shot attempts, in the first game of the Round […]

Toronto Raptors’ head coach Nick Nurse sent a strong message to the referees prior to Game 2 vs. the 76ers. Speaking just hours before tip-off, Nurse further voiced his discontent with the refereeing in Game 1, which Philadelphia won 131-111. 76ers’ reporter Kyle Neubeck tweeted that Nurse continued his criticism of the Game 1 refereeing […]

The Milwaukee Bucks took Game 1 of their first-round series against the Chicago Bulls with a hard-fought 93-86 win on Sunday. The Bulls put up a good fight but in the end, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Co. proved to be too strong in the opener of this seven-game series. After the contest, former Bucks star Brandon […]

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards is not one bit bothered by the pre-playoffs predictions favoring the Memphis Grizzlies to go past them in the first round. After all, he knows how many people are surprised they are even in the postseason. Despite those talks, though, Edwards assured one thing: they are going to fight no […]

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and former Laker Kyle Kuzma are both sitting at home during the 2022 NBA Playoffs, with the Lakers going through one of the most disappointing seasons in history and Kuzma’s Washington Wizards failing to reach the postseason after Bradley Beal’s injury. However, this doesn’t mean they’re tuning out of […]

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and the Brooklyn Nets suffered a heartbreaking defeat to the Boston Celtics on Sunday. As Kevin Durant admitted after the game, no matter how many tough L’s he’s taken in his career, losing that way still stings. But it’s not impossible we could see them add an All-Star caliber player mid-series. […]

The Miami Heat were victorious in Game 1 of their 2022 NBA Playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks, securing a comfortable, 115-91 win. With Game 2 scheduled for Tuesday night, the eyes of the NBA will be on FTX Arena as Miami looks to take a firm, two-games-to-none lead over Atlanta. Ahead of the Heat-Hawks […]

The NBA MVP votes have already been placed with the regular season finally over. While we all must await the award announcement, basketball never stops. The playoffs are now in full swing with all three MVP candidates putting their fingerprints on their team’s success. It was quite clear that Giannis Antetokounmpo did exactly this in […]

There cannot be enough said about how impressive the Phoenix Suns have been this season. Running away with the best record in the NBA during the regular season, the Suns improved on their great season last year. The 2021 championship runner-ups are the title favorites this postseason and for good reason.   In game one […]

The Dallas Mavericks put up an impressive fight against the Utah Jazz in Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series. In the end, Utah still won the game. However, they only defeated the Mavericks 99-93 even with Dallas playing without Luka Doncic. One has to imagine that the Mavericks would have been in the […]

The Golden State Warriors got off to an ideal start to the 2022 NBA Playoffs. The Warriors secured a series lead in a convincing 123-107 Game 1 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.   With their second straight game at home, the Warriors have an excellent chance to go up 2-0 in the series. […]

The New Orleans Pelicans will meet the Phoenix Suns for Game 2 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals on Tuesday night. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series with a Pelicans-Suns prediction and pick. The Suns defeated the Pelicans 110-99 to take a 1-0 series lead in the first round. Now, Phoenix aims to build […]

The Denver Nuggets have an incredibly difficult matchup at hand with the Golden State Warriors. The Bay Area natives check just about every box you look for in a championship contender and proved this in Game 1. Led by Jordan Poole, the Warriors shot the lights out. This effective shooting helped the Warriors secure a […]

The eighth-seeded New Orleans Pelicans managed to put up a fight in Game 1 against the top-seeded Phoenix Suns. Despite their gallant stand, the efforts of the underdogs still fell short as they succumbed to a 110-99 loss.   Chris Paul’s heroics in the fourth quarter were a huge factor in lifting the Suns to […]

There is no question Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are the main two reasons the Brooklyn Nets will reach their championship goals in the 2022 NBA Playoffs. But according to Charles Barkley, they’ll also be the downfall of the Nets because the team is far too reliant on them. Via NBA on TNT: Chuck says […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies will meet for Game 2 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals on Tuesday night. It’s time to continue our NBA betting odds series with a Timberwolves-Grizzlies prediction and pick. The Timberwolves went into Memphis and stole Game 1 from the Grizzlies with a 130-117 victory. Now, Minnesota hopes to snag Game […]

The Toronto Raptors will head into Game 2 of their first-round series with the Philadelphia 76ers down a very key player in Scottie Barnes, who is doubtful due to an ankle sprain that he sustained in Game 1 when Joel Embiid stepped on him. This is undoubtedly a massive blow for the Raptors because the […]

There was a bit of drama late in the Phoenix Suns’ Game 1 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. As Deandre Ayton was running up the floor in the fourth quarter, Pelicans rookie Herb Jones awkwardly crossed paths with Ayton and hit him in the jaw with his shoulder. Here’s the play: TNT’s Reggie Miller […]

The Atlanta Hawks and the Miami Heat will meet in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals on Tuesday night. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series with a Hawks-Heat prediction and pick.   The Heat obliterated the Hawks 115-94 to take a 1-0 series lead. Now, Miami hopes to take a commanding 2-0 […]

Jayson Tatum’s legend in Beantown continues to grow. Still just 24, Tatum has already given Boston Celtics fans plenty of good memories, perhaps none better than the game-winning layup he hit at the buzzer in Game 1 of their first-round series matchup against Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and the  Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. TD Garden’s […]

The Toronto Raptors’ first-round matchup with the 76ers is expected to be one of the tightest opening series across the entire NBA. The hard-nosed defense of Toronto appeared ready for the challenge against a Sixers team that has not met expectations in the second half of the season. Despite this, the Sixers cruised to a […]

Following an Atlanta Hawks Game 1 loss to the Heat, many will be tuning in to see if the Hawks can turn it around. Ahead of the Hawks-Heat game, we’ll be making our Hawks Game 2 predictions. Trae Young and the Hawks won both of their play-in games to make it to this first-round series, […]

The Milwaukee Bucks gutted out a narrow 93-86 victory over the Chicago Bulls in Game 1 to take the upper hand in this opening-round matchup. It might not have been a pretty win, but Mike Budenholzer and his men were able to do just enough to put themselves ahead in this series.   After losing […]