The NBA playoffs have arrived, and with it comes high level basketball every single day. From teams fighting for a playoff spot in the play-in tournament, to game winning buzzer beats, there are many interesting series this year to look at.
The first interesting series is the New York Knicks vs the Philadelphia 76ers. If someone hasn’t watched the NBA this year, they would be surprised to see the 76ers at a seven seed. But star player Joel Embiid has battled injuries all year which has dropped them to a 47-35 record and the seven seed.
Embiid missed lots of the year with a knee injury, only participating in 34 games this year. Nevertheless, Embiid posted 34.7 points per game and 11 rebounds per game. He also chipped in 5.6 assists per game and 1.7 blocks per game.
The 76ers opponent, the Knicks, were actually only three games ahead of the 76ers. However, they ended up with the two seed.
The Knicks’ season was filled with a fair amount of injuries as well, with star player Julius Randle playing a total of 46 games, and being ruled out the entire playoffs. This is a huge blow for the Knicks, as Randle was averaging 24 points per game and 9.2 rebounds per game.
However, the Knicks still have star guard Jalen Brunson, who averaged the fourth most points per game this year with 28.7 points per game. The hope for the Knicks is that they can make a good run with the current team, who is still a top tier team in the league.
On the other side of the bracket, most of the series is not expected to be very close. The Los Angeles Clippers vs the Dallas Mavericks series could be close, as they are four and five seeds. The Clippers’ star forward Kawhai Leonard has been injured for the past two months, and they very well could be the deciding factor in the series.
Leonard has been dealing with a knee problem since late March, and it has carried into the playoffs. It’s easy to notice how it affects when in the games he does play, as his movements are slower, and he is less agile. Leonard averaged 23.7 points per game this year.
More recently, the NBA playoffs have seen less first round blowouts, and more competitive games. The new play in the tournament has seen seven seeds not make the playoffs, and nine seeds with momentum put up a fight against higher seeds. This makes the games more fun to watch, and many people can agree the NBA playoffs are just as exciting as ever.
