In case you weren't paying attention to the first week of the NBA playoffs (though it's unclear why you wouldn't have been), you've missed some of the best first-round action in recent memory. But to catch up, here are three of the top storylines so far:
1. Close games and series all around:
Almost every game thus far has been a back-and-forth affair, with only three of 16 games being decided by more than 10 points (as of Thursday afternoon). And in the first weekend alone, the Lakers, Spurs and Magic all lost home games to opponents mostly everyone expected them to beat. But apart from the higher seeds losing, even some of the favorites' victories, like those of the Bulls and Celtics, have been much closer than expected. Indiana has given Chicago fits with its speed, energy and unexpected defensive intensity. The Pacers have held a lead in the fourth quarter of both games and have lost by a combined 11 points. As for the Knicks, they put in a valiant Stoudemire-and-Billups-less performance in Game 2 against Boston, with Carmelo Anthony doing everything humanly possible (42 points, 17 rebounds, six assists) to keep New York alive in an eventual 96-93 loss.
2. One-man wrecking crews:
Anthony isn't the only individual giving a Herculean effort to bring his team to victory. Likely-MVP-winner Derrick Rose has been the difference in both close wins against Indiana. Rose has averaged 37.5 points, seven rebounds and six assists in two games against the Pacers. And as he has done all season long, Rose has made a number of impossible-for-anyone-except-Rose-and-maybe-LeBron shots that have left the three Pacer defenders that were covering him at the time scratching their heads.
But if anyone has played even better and more dominant basketball, it's Orlando's Dwight Howard, who is averaging 39.5 points and 19 rebounds on 71 percent shooting from the field in the playoffs. Read those over again. He has had to pick up the slack for a Magic supporting cast that has been underwhelming even for regular-season standards.
In the West, New Orleans' Chris Paul carries just as much weight as Howard, and though the diminutive Paul has considerably smaller shoulders then the Orlando center, he has handled the pressure admirably. Facing the task of upsetting the Lakers without his fellow All-Star and team-leading scorer David West, Paul has done just about everything for the Hornets, averaging 26.5 points, 11.5 assists, five rebounds and two steals while playing 42 minutes and shooting 55 percent from the field (and an incredible 57 percent from three-point range). Playing at such a high level, Paul led the Hornets to a Game 1 upset in L.A. that no one saw coming.
3. Heat and Mavericks silencing critics:
Before the playoffs started, experts across the country were picking Portland, the sixth seed, to take care of the third-seeded Mavericks in round one. They said the Trailblazers were too athletic, too deep and too hungry for Dallas to handle. They said that Dallas didn't have enough supporting offense for Dirk Nowitzki to play well in the fourth quarter.
Through two games, those experts have been dead wrong. Dallas has held Portland to an average of just 85 points per game, and the Mavericks have scored 28 points in the fourth quarter of each game. And in Game 2, mid-season acquisition Peja Stojakovic — who many around the league had cast off as washed up — torched the Blazers for 21 points, including five 3-pointers, to keep those critics quiet and maintain home-court advantage.
While not many people thought the 76ers could actually win the series against the Heat, many were skeptical about how the Heat would play in the playoffs. Would some of the regular season issues — the reluctance of Dwyane Wade and LeBron James to simply take over games, the inability of Chris Bosh to accept his role and the ineptitude of the bench — rear their ugly head at an inopportune time? Would Andre Iguodala, perhaps the regular season's best wing defender, be able to slow down James? Would Miami coach Erik Spoelstra's deficiencies become apparent for the world to see?
So far the answer to all three questions has been a resounding no. In a Game 2 throttling of the 76ers, the Heat showed just how dominant they can be. Bosh dominated the low block, scoring 21 points and gobbling up 11 rebounds, while LeBron did LeBron-like things, scoring 29 points and adding seven rebounds and six assists. But the Heat really shined on the defensive end, limiting Philadelphia to just 73 points on 34 percent shooting. Of all the playoff series, the Miami-Philadelphia one looks most destined for a sweep.
These NBA playoffs have seen nail-biters, upsets, buzzer-beaters and prime-time performances. And that's after only one week. Who wants seconds?
