Once you get past the initial round, things definitely start to become more real.
For others, it presents an opportunity to finally get over the hump.
That’s what Round 2 does.
It separates the pretenders from the contenders.
Just think of what is on the line this round.
There’s a world where the MVP of the league doesn’t even make the Conference Finals.
There’s another where the overall favorite fails to even make the final four.
A multiple MVP winner or a modern-day superteam isn’t going to make it.
One of the greatest postseason forces we’re ever seen could very well fall short.
Think about that for a second.
It’s going to be glorious to watch.
This matchup is shaping up to be every bit the bloodbath you could want.
Sure the basketball might get gross at times, but who cares.
Give me a playoff war and I’m happy.
For example, using Bam as an offense initiator/ball handler to help create more space around the rim.
One of the big reasons the Heat were able to pull off their upset came down to two things.
Their three point shooting
2).
Their insane midrange shooting
This is where the chess match is going to be so much fun to watch.
This is not the Bucks who grant you wide open 3PA whenever you want.
This team gets into your space and takes that shit away.
Their ball pressure defensively is way different than whatever the hell Jrue Holiday tried to do in that series.
From the midrange zone, they are allowing opponents to shoot just 39.1%.
That’s the 4th best mark of any remaining team.
But it gets better if you’re a Knicks fan.
Well, guess who ranks in the 100th percentile at guarding off screens?
They allowed just 0.47 points per possession and 16% shooting off screens in their first series.
Maybe you’re thinking OK, to counter this perhaps MIA just goes with some Butler/Bam P&R.
To that I would say….good luck.
Guess who ranks in the 100th percentile at guarding the P&R ball handler?
They allowed just 0.74 points per possession and 36% shooting in P&R in their first series.
Given their prior guards were Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, that is extremely impressive.
Guess who runs P&R with the ball handler the most in these playoffs?
Once you get into this time of year, it’s about clutch execution and defensive stops.
They are not afraid of shit and you’re free to tell by how they play.
That’s not going to cut it against the Celts high powered offense (121.2 points per game).
Outside of the Embiid health/production, the other concern is whatever the hell is happening with James Harden.
But from the floor?
When you look closer you see why there’s cause for concern.
In the restricted area so far in these playoffs, Harden is shooting just 23.5%.
From the paint, he shot just 23.1%.
The Sixers offense cannot simply rely on Harden doing nothing but hitting stepback threes.
He has to find ways to consistently finish around the rim.
If he can’t do that and also has issues on the defensive end there could be problems.
Which is why someone like Tyrese Maxey is so important.
If you remember his series against the Nets, Maxey killed that team in a few different ways.
Attacking scrambles with dribble drives off Embiid doubles, catch & shoot 3s off doubles, and in transition.
I’m not kidding about that catch & shoot stuff.
Maxey shot 68.8% on catch & shoot 3PA in the first round, off 4.0 3PA a night.
That is incredible production and what makes it hard to double Embiid.
As with every Sixers postseason, the question of how they manage to survive the non-Embiid minutes is everything.
In the playoffs, everything is about matchups.
When facing the Celtics, if you don’t get elite perimeter/wing defense, you stand no chance.
Just look at what the Hawks just lived through defensively.
you could attack them.
Post-KD trade, these two teams played twice with the Suns winning both (100-93 and 119-115).
So the question becomes, is that a good sign for the Nuggets?
The Suns have the #1 playoff offense because ya know, they have KD/Booker/CP3.
That’s not surprising.
What the hell are they going to do to stop that set?
It’s hard to decide who has more pressure in this series.
For the Suns, I mean, they made the KD trade to win the title.
When you have this much talent, the expectation is to win the whole thing.
I know their depth is shaky and they haven’t played a ton together yet, but so what.
That is no excuse when you have Kevin freaking Durant.
This series might ultimately come down to who can handle the other team’s best players/skill sets.
Let’s also not forget that the Nuggets own the NBA’s best record at home at 34-7.
Where they struggle is on the road (19-22), but that altitude is no joke.
It can swing a series for sure, especially with CP3/KD being a little older.
We know what LeBron is going to bring, he’s a basketball cyborg.
He’s the question mark.
One night he looks like a top 5 guy, the other he looks like a role player.
When he’s fully engaged on both ends though it just takes this team to a whole new level.
Offensively, they’ve been OK.
Nothing crazy, nothing terrible.
If the Lakers are going to have a downfall, that’s going to be the reason why.
Since the deadline, the Lakers were 15th in the league in 3P%.
Both the Warriors and Kings can absolutely light it up.
That is true regardless of who wins the GS/SAC Game 7.
Nuggets vs Suns are up first, so here’s to hoping it lives up to the hype.
