I will be the first to admit that last year’s NBA playoffs were not the most fun viewing experience.
The Celtics overpowered the rest of the Eastern conference on their way to their first championship since 2008. The Eastern conference playoffs were practically devoid of any drama whatsoever.
The Western Conference was only slightly better. The West finals between the Timberwolves and Mavericks were probably the most entertaining series of the entire playoffs. The Mavericks prevailed only to be completely overpowered by the Celtics in the Finals. The 2024 Finals was the least entertaining finals since the 2007 finals between the Cavaliers and the Spurs. That was the series where a baby faced Lebron and a horrible Cavs roster got bent over by Tim Duncan and the Spurs.
Some people would say the 2018 Finals between the Warriors and Cavaliers was the least entertaining. I strongly disagree. My reasoning is quite simple. Those Warriors teams were so historically great that any series that they played in was a must watch in my book.
Now that I have finished reminiscing about NBA playoffs past, let’s get back to discussing this year’s playoffs. To be honest with you, this has been one of the most entertaining first rounds of NBA playoff basketball that I can remember.
My personal favorite series is the recently concluded Timberwolves and Lakers series. I am on the right side of history in that I accurately predicted that Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves would persevere over the much smaller and far less athletic Los Angeles Lakers. I chose to bet on the Timberwolves I personally believe that Anthony Edwards is a superior player to Luka Doncic. After the result of this series, it is kind of difficult to argue that this not the case.
Another major takeaway from this series is the fact that having a large, strong, intense rebounder on your team is still a good thing. Even in today’s NBA that is so perimeter oriented. The much-maligned Rudy Gobert absolutely dominated the much smaller Lakers in this series. His performance in game five where he had 27 points and 24 rebounds was something to behold. Rudy honestly looked like a high school varsity player who was scrimmaging with the middle school team. That sounds harsh but the Lakers should be embarrassed by their lack of ability to stop Gobert.
The Lakers should also feel like absolute fools for backing out of the Mark Williams trade earlier this season. You know who would have helped you on the boards and in the paint against Gobert’s giant French ass? Seven-foot one Mark fucking Williams who is one of the best interior defenders in the league.
The Eastern conference counterpart to the Timberwolves Lakers series is the closely contested matchup between the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks. As a long time Michigan resident, the Pistons hold a soft spot in my heart. If it was not for one of my best friends getting married this past week, I would have been at game four. I am desperately hoping that the Pistons will prevail so that I can attend a second-round contest. Unfortunately for me and the Detroit Pistons, it appears that the NBA has ordered the referees to make sure that it is the Knicks who come out victorious from this series.
I am one who tries to avoid complaining about the referees in basketball at all costs. My mindset is that bad calls will happen from time to time, and it is unavoidable. The hope is that the bad calls will even out throughout the duration of the series. That being said the missed foul call at the end of game four, as Tim Hardaway attempted a three pointer, is a stain on the NBA’s integrity. In real time it was painfully obvious that Hardaway was fouled.
With the amount of replay reviews the NBA has these days it is hard to fathom them not being able to review this final play and assess a foul. They should consider the NFL model of replay assist where a third party watching the game from the NFL’s headquarters can buzz down to the referees and make a correction. This is only used when there is a clear and obvious mistake made by the officiating. That would have been the case Sunday afternoon.
The officiating aside, it has been very interesting to watch Jalen Brunson go from being one of the most beloved players in the NBA, to one of the most hated. Jalen Brunson falls into the category of players who I personally do not enjoy watching play basketball. At times it feels like that Brunson is playing a game of deception with the referees more than he is actually playing basketball.
His play style is very similar to other players that I do not enjoy such as James Harden and Luka Doncic. These players are notorious amongst basketball circles for their determination to try to foul bait players and even initiate contact with defenders. I hate this style of play so much. The worst part is that if they do not get the foul calls that they unjustly believe they should be receiving, these players will complain to the referees insistently. The amount of bitching and whining that Brunson has done this series has firmly put Brunson on Detroit Basketball fan’s shitlist for the rest of his career.
I have people at work who don’t give a flying fuck about basketball coming up to me and telling me how much they hate Jalen Brunson. I still respect him as a player. As a huge college basketball fan I will always fondly remember his accomplishments at Villanova. He was one of the greatest college guards I have ever seen. I do not say that lightly. Hopefully he turns it around and behaves better for the rest of the series.
The Pistons have outplayed the Knicks for a majority of this series. Unfortunately, for the inexperienced Pistons all that matters is the final score at the conclusion of each game. A lack of execution down the stretch, and the egregious referring at the game four, have cost them dearly in this series. If they are able to step up and win game six tonight in Detroit, I will be clenching my butt cheeks together with excitement for the impending game seven.
DETROITTTTT BASKETTTTBALLLLL!!!!
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