Boston made a statement in the series opener against Philadelphia, coasting to a 123-91 win. It was breezy from the beginning for Boston, as they built a 16-3 run early on to take a 22-9 lead and Philly were seldom able to get within single digits from then on, as Boston dominated on both ends. Their defence was perhaps the most impressive aspect, finishing the night with a 96.4 defensive rating, as the hosts made it very hard for Philly to get anything in the interior, giving up just a 54.5% FG% at the rim. On the other end it was the Jay show, with Jaylen Brown top-scoring with 26 points, while Jayson Tatum put up 25 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and two steals in an elite night out. Sam Hauser hit four threes to make his 12 points while Derrick White and Payton Pritchard both played their roles, despite shooting poorly, with six assists apiece.
Philadelphia will be scrambling for answers heading into Game 2, with all of the signs on Monday indicating that this could be a very short series. Philly couldn’t come up with the answers on either end, and awful offensive nights from Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe had them looking lost on that end of the floor. The two combined to go 14/36 from the field, with Maxey posting 21 points, eight assists and three turnovers, while Edgecombe had 13 points. Paul George looked much more sturdy, with a tidy 17 points, but he was the only one to bring his game, in a flat performance from Philly.
The visitors will be better on Wednesday, but it was very clear that they have no defensive answers for Boston. Tatum and Brown are going to run riot again but I also expect a much better offensive performance from Philly. The likes of Maxey, George and Quentin Grimes have what it takes to be efficient postseason scorers and, with their improvement and the rampant Boston offence taken into consideration, the over is the bet.
San Antonio took care of business in Game 1 on Monday, recording a 111-98 victory at home. There were some tense moments, especially early in the third quarter when Portland got within a couple of points of the hosts, but a hot scoring night from Victor Wembanyama proved to be the difference, as he turned it on in the fourth for 14 points in nine minutes to steer San Antonio home. The big man finished with 35 points on 75.4% TS% and two blocks in his playoff debut, while De’Aaron Fox was poised, showing all of his experience with 17 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Luke Kornet was also a huge factor, winning his minutes with Wemby off the floor, posting 10 points and six rebounds to be a +9, and Julian Champagnie showed his defensive value with three steals and a block.
Portland will be somewhat encouraged by how they performed on Monday, at least on the defensive end, but they still came up well short in Game 1. There were some avenues to success for Thiago Splitter’s men, as Deni Avdija had his mid-ranger going for 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Scoot Henderson’s explosiveness gave SA something to think about, as he went 7/11 from the floor for 18 points and three assists. Jrue Holiday shot poorly but had 11 assists and had some good defensive moments, as did Robert Williams III, but the likes of Toumani Camara, Donovan Clingan and Jerami Grant looked out of their depth in this matchup.
It felt like San Antonio were only scraping the surface in Game 1, with a generally messy performance, and that spells trouble for Portland. I don’t expect them to get at all close on the road in this series and with the line barely having moved since Game 1, San Antonio are again the bet.
The Lakers made it a winning start to their series against Houston on Sunday, picking up a 107-98 victory. As Kevin Durant (knee) was ruled out late, the line shortened to make Houston just 2.5-point favourites, and the Lakers took full advantage of KD’s absence, holding the visitors to just a 106.5 offensive rating. Deandre Ayton was energetic on that end and had few blunders in what was an important performance from the big man, while LeBron James looked far younger than his 41 years of age, posting 19 points, eight rebounds, 13 assists, two steals and one block for a sound two-way game. Luke Kennard was the scoring leader, with 27 points on an 86.3% TS%, with nine of which, in the form of three three-pointers, coming in the fourth. It was a huge showing from Kennard without Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves, while Marcus Smart had his moments in his 15 points and eight assists. Rui Hachimura’s 14 points, three steals and two blocks were also important, as LA’s energy and size looked to give Houston some real headaches.
There is still uncertainty around Durant’s availability for Game 2, having been listed as questionable in the injury report with a knee contusion. Reports indicate that he is unlikely to play, which would be a huge blow to Houston’s chances after the offensive performance that they produced on Sunday. They struggled to generate good looks anywhere on the floor and finished with a lowly 43.5% eFG%, with a good chunk of their offence coming via offensive rebounds and put-backs, generating 23 second chance points. Tari Eason impressed in that regard, with three O-boards in 24 minutes, producing 16 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and three steals, while Amen Thompson showed some positive moments with 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Alperen Şengün top-scored with 19 points but it came on 6/19 shooting in what ended up being a disappointing offensive evening for the big man, and the team.
Assuming Durant is out on Wednesday, I struggle to see how Houston generate their offence. Reed Sheppard looked out of his depth as point guard and with Şengün out of form, it’s not going to be pretty. Their defence will be better prepared, which will limit LA’s offensive success, especially with Dončić and Reaves still out and, with that, the under is the bet here.