Well, I wasn't too far of on the Hollywood comparison as the opening weekend was filled with tons of action, drama and unpredictable outcomes. Having watched the second half of six of eight games, and parts of all the games, I'm willing to go as far as saying the opening weekend of the NBA playoffs was the best I have ever watched.
What makes something "the best"? In this case: Upsets, close games, and star performances.
The facts:
-With exception of the Hawks beating the Magic by 10, all seven other games were won by single digits
-Of those seven games, six were won in the final minute.
-The average margin of victory in the eight opening round games was six points. Most of those games ended with the winning team padding their lead with a few late free throws.
-The lower seed won three of the eight match ups, highlighted by losses to the top-seeded Spurs and seconded-seeded Lakers.
-In five of the eight games, the losing time either led, or had a chance to tie, in the closing two minutes of the game.
-Chris Paul went for 33 points and 14 assists against the Lakers. Kevin Durant dropped 41 on the Nuggets and Derrick Rose went for 39. Kobe Bryant even had 34 in a losing effort.
Should I keep going?
Imagine seeing eight summer blockbusters and all eight live up to the hype! The stars were everywhere, delivering one clutch performance after another.
Watching these games was like watching Twilight and not being sure if I should root for Edward or Jacob.
When David West went down a few weeks ago, few gave the Hornets a shot in these playoffs. Apparently Chris Paul forgot he was the underdog because he ran around the court like HIS team was the favorite. The Lakers were supposed to be waiting for the playoffs to start to hit the on switch, right?. The Hornets were supposed to forfeit this series because they had no chance, right?
Honestly, Kobe is my boy and the Lakers are my team (after dirty Clay Bennett stole, yes I said 'stole', the Sonics from Seattle) but even I didn't watch much of this game, thinking LA had it in the bag. I'll be tuned in for game two.
Oh, by the way, I ended up rooting for Edward.
And how about Indiana, the only playoff team with a losing record? I gave them ZERO chance of winning this series and said they'd lucky to avoid being swept. They may still end up being swept, but raise your hand, if you live outside of Indiana, and had them holding a 10 point lead at any point of the second half of a game, let alone in the fourth quarter of the opener in Chicago. Anyone?
Fortunately the Pacers DID have a big lead late, which gave us a chance to see why Derrick Rose is the league's newest superstar. You just knew Rose was gonna take over... And he did.
Orlando swept Atlanta in last year's playoffs and won those four games by over 100 points! This year the Hawks beat the Magic by 10 in a game the Magic were never really in.
New York held a late lead in Boston, and looked like they were gonna steal a game one victory, until Carmelo Anthony forgot about Amare Stoudemire, who had been manhandling the Celtics bigs for most of the fourth quarter. 'Melo went 1-11 in the second half and kept shooting to the final buzzer. I haven't seen a star go that cold since poor Jack Dawson went down with the Titanic to save Rose. In the end, another clutch shot from Ray Allen gave the Celtics the win.
Kevin Durant may think Jimmer Fredette is the best scorer in the world but not on this night, as he went for 41 points in a four point victory over the Nuggets. Durant and teammate Russell Westbrook combined for 72 of the Thunder's 107 points. Durant and Westbrook took over in the closing minutes to give the Thunder the 1-0 series lead.
We are talking about one of the deeper playoffs in recent years with eight teams staking legitimate claims to making a run to the finals.
This was an epic first weekend for the NBA playoffs. A great opening to what should be an exciting first half of the summer, as far as basketball goes.
Now if I can just get the same results from this summer's blockbuster movies.
Don't let me down Hollywood.
Orlando swept Atlanta in last year's playoffs and won those four games by over 100 points! This year the Hawks beat the Magic by 10 in a game the Magic were never really in.
New York held a late lead in Boston, and looked like they were gonna steal a game one victory, until Carmelo Anthony forgot about Amare Stoudemire, who had been manhandling the Celtics bigs for most of the fourth quarter. 'Melo went 1-11 in the second half and kept shooting to the final buzzer. I haven't seen a star go that cold since poor Jack Dawson went down with the Titanic to save Rose. In the end, another clutch shot from Ray Allen gave the Celtics the win.
Kevin Durant may think Jimmer Fredette is the best scorer in the world but not on this night, as he went for 41 points in a four point victory over the Nuggets. Durant and teammate Russell Westbrook combined for 72 of the Thunder's 107 points. Durant and Westbrook took over in the closing minutes to give the Thunder the 1-0 series lead.
We are talking about one of the deeper playoffs in recent years with eight teams staking legitimate claims to making a run to the finals.
This was an epic first weekend for the NBA playoffs. A great opening to what should be an exciting first half of the summer, as far as basketball goes.
Now if I can just get the same results from this summer's blockbuster movies.
Don't let me down Hollywood.
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