Things happen fast in the NBA playoffs, so to help you stay on top of everything from now until at least the end of the second round, we’ll have nightly results from the postseason action.
Can No. 8 Miami beat No. 1 Boston again?
Last season, Miami was pushed into the play-in playoffs, beat the Bulls to advance as the No. 8 seed, and ultimately defeated the Boston Celtics on their way to the NBA Finals.
This season, Miami was pushed into the play-in, beat the Bulls and advanced as 8th place, and the one waiting for them is the Boston Celtics, with game 1 on Sunday.
Can history repeat itself?
No. For two main reasons.
The first and most important is Jimmy Butler’s knee. Last season, Playoff Jimmy averaged 24.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists in a game against Boston in the playoffs and was the best player in that series. This season, Butler probably won’t take the court. His knee was injured against the 76ers when Kelly Oubre fell on him, and Butler didn’t play against the Bulls (they didn’t need him to beat Chicago). Miami said Butler was out with a left collateral ligament sprain. As Jeff Stotts noted in In Street ClothesEven a mild MCL sprain takes on average about three weeks of recovery time, and this series will take a long time.
Second reason? These Celtics are better. Kristaps Prozingis at middle opens up a variety of options, Jrue Holiday at point brings championship experience and elite defense to the position, and Joe Mazzulla has found his footing as head coach and pushes the right buttons now.
Miami is Miami. It won’t be an easy series for Boston, but this season won’t be a repeat of last year.
Will this embarrassment be enough to force change in Chicago?
For the second consecutive season, a sub-.500 Bulls team did not make it out of the play-in. This is after 15 months of ownership and team president Arturas Karnisovas has chosen to move forward with this lineup. On Friday night, the Bulls shot 38% against a short-handed Miami team and tied their season-low in points with 91. It was an ugly performance.
Chicago is riding the treadmill of NBA mediocrity, stuck in the middle with a “meh” roster that will finish between the 6-11 seed every season. That could be good for ownership, because the Bulls were fifth in the NBA in attendance (down from first the last two seasons, but the building is still full), and that means they’re making a lot of money.
You can hear the excuses now: This team has more than $60 million in impaired payroll. It was a bad game. This team is more like the one that went 9-5 in December or the one that beat Atlanta. There are good players in this squad and they have great chemistry.
No. This loss needs to be a wake-up call that being stuck in the middle is not enough. It’s time to change.
These moves likely start with trading Zach LaVine — which isn’t easy, there isn’t much of a market for him — and having a difficult conversation about whether DeMar DeRozan is part of the long-term future. Is Nikola Vucevic part of this? I’m not saying tear it down and rebuild it, but quickly retooling could make this team younger, more athletic and have a path forward. The Bulls’ roster isn’t going to suddenly start winning at a top-four pace, even if Lonzo Ball returns (and let’s hope he does, for his sake). Bulls fans deserve better and should have little hope.
Can the Pelicans overcome the upset and knock off the No. 1 Thunder?
This headline could be phrased more accurately: “Will Zion Williamson play against the Thunder?”
Oklahoma City is the top seed for good reason – this is a top 10 offensive and defensive team, led by a legitimate MVP candidate in Gilgeous-Alexander, a number two player in Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren changed his Edge defense plus can space the floor, and there are solid players around him like Josh Giddey and Lu Dort. However, the Thunder are a physical team that can push them, and they are inexperienced in the playoffs as a group.
If Zion takes the court, it will change the dynamic of this series – his physical downhill play would be difficult for the Thunder to deal with and would open things up for Brandon Ingram and others. The Pelicans have defenders with guys like Herb Jones to slow down OKC. With Zion, one can see a path forward for New Orleans to take over the series.
However, it all starts with Zion, who is injured due to a strained left hamstring. This usually means a few weeks off and cannot be rushed because of fear of re-aggravation. The ESPN report said Zion would be re-evaluated in two weeks, which suggests he could be out longer. Either way, it seems unlikely he will play against the Thunder at any point.
If Ingram continues to play like he did against the Kings on Friday night and we get a CJ McCollum game, the Pelicans could put some pressure on the Thunder – this is still a 49-win New Orleans team. But if they don’t get Zion back, it could also be a short series.
