There were 5 Game 7s in the first round of the National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs this weekend. This was the most ever in any round of an NBA playoffs. The home team won 4 of the games, and in the other game, the road team won by 1 point.
On Sunday, the Brooklyn Nets withstood a furious comeback by the Toronto Raptors in Toronto 104-103. Paul Pierce of the Nets blocked the Raptors’ last shot, by Kyle Lowry to preserve the win. Lowry led the game with 28 points, but he needed that last shot for the Raptors to move on to the 2nd round of the playoffs. Joe Johnson led the Nets with 26 points.
In the other Game 7 on Sunday, the top seeded San Antonio Spurs put away the Dallas Mavericks early, to win 119-96. Tony Parker led the way for the Spurs with 32 points, and Manu Ginobili added 20 points. The Spurs had a 68-46 halftime lead, and cruised the rest of the way. Sunday was a good day for the old guys. Parker, Ginobili and Tim Duncan on the Spurs, along with Pierce and Kevin Garnett for the Nets.
The first 3 Game 7s of the first round all happened on Saturday. The Indiana Pacers, who were the top seeded team in the Eastern Conference survived their series with the only losing team in the playoffs, the Atlanta Hawks, winning the final game 92-80. Paul George took over the game for the Pacers, pouring in 30 points, and grabbing 11 rebounds. Their center Roy Hibbert finally had a productive game too, with 13 points and 7 rebounds.
The Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a slow start to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 120-109 to take the series. Kevin Durant led his team like usual with 33 points, but Russell Westbrook had a huge game with 27 points, 10 rebounds, and 16 assists for the Thunder. The suspension to Zach Randolph was too much for the Grizzlies to overcome in this game.
The Los Angeles Clippers ended a tumultuous week plus with a dramatic 126-121 win over the Golden State Warriors at home. The Clippers had 6 players in double figures, while the Warriors had 7 scoring at least 10 points. Every series should be as entertaining as this one. It’s too bad either team had to lose. Stephen Curry led all scorers with 33 points, but it wasn’t enough, as the Clippers had too much for them on Saturday, even after weathering the storm of controversy involving their owner Donald Sterling.
The next round of the NBA playoffs is the conference semifinals, which will start with the Washington Wizards at the Indiana Pacers, and the Clippers at the Thunder on Monday. On Tuesday the Nets will visit the 2-time defending champion Miami Heat, and the Portland Trail Blazers will go to play the San Antonio Spurs. These should all be good series, with the new teams added into the mix this year. The Wizards and the Trail Blazers are having much better seasons than expected. The Nets are a surprising 4-0 against the Heat this year, which should add to the animosity in that series.
I’m picking the Wizards over the Pacers, because I don’t think the Pacers have worked out all their offensive woes yet. I think the Thunder will eventually get past the Clippers in a long series. The Spurs will have trouble with the young Trail Blazers, but I think they will prevail. Even with the success the Nets had against the Heat in the regular season, the Heat will wear them down and move on to the conference finals.
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Sports With Frank Thomas
