Monday Night Game Two's

Day three of the NBA playoffs provides a couple of game two match-ups, with the home teams both looking to take commanding 2-0 leads. The first game is in Chicago, where the Bulls host the Bucks, and will look for their point guard to replicate his game one performance. Derrick Rose had 23 points and 7 assists in his first playoff game since 2012, and even more impressively attacked the basket with no fear. Rose was also able to knock down three shots from downtown, and was getting great lift on his jump shot, and good arc. Rose's three point shot has looked flat all year, almost like a line drive, but on Saturday night, Rose's stroke looked great. Jimmy Butler had a great game as well, scoring 25 points and dishing out six assists. It was great to see him have a strong game, because this is his first playoff game since becoming more of a scorer this season. The Bucks will have to shut down Chicago tonight if they want a chacne at stealing a game on the road. Giannis Antetokounmpo will have a stronger night offensively, I wouldn't be surprised if he goes for 20 points tonight after scoring 12 in game 1.
The second game of the night will be a game 2 in Oracle Arena, where the crowd apparently was so loud on Saturday afternoon that Pelicans coach Monty Williams challenged whether or not it was "legal". Sounds like someone is searching for an excuse to help his team out, but I don't think he'll get what he wants. The best crowd in the NBA will be at it again tonight, and I have a feeling they will cheering non-stop in game two. Stephen Curry and the Warriors were in control much of game one, despite Anthony Davis making it interesting down the stretch. I don't think Golden State will allow the Pelicans to score as much in the second half as they did on Saturday, and will win comfortably to take a 2-0 lead to New Orleans.

Last Night in the League

The last day of the regular season is upon us, and there is still much to be determined in the playoff picture. Four teams are battling for the last two playoff spots tonight (Indiana, Brooklyn, New Orleans and Oklahoma City), and even more teams still have games to be played for seeding. The game most people will have their eyes on is between the San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Pelicans. If the Pelicans win, they're in, but if they lose and the Thunder beat the Timberwolves (what are the chances....) then they're out. The Spurs have something to play for as well. If they win then they will get the number two seed in the west, and if they lose could fall in the standings and not even get home court advantage in the first round. In all honesty I hope the Pelicans do win tonight, because I don't want to see the Thunder play the Warriors. Sure it would be nice to see Russell Westbrook play four more games, but what's the point? The Thunder defense is horrible, especially without Serge Ibaka in the lineup. I don't know if I really want to watch Golden State outscore the Thunder 140-100 every game.
Indiana and Brooklyn are battling for the last spot in the east, and a match-up with the Atlanta Hawks. Indiana is a game ahead, but the Nets own the tiebreaker and the Pacers have a tough game tonight at Memphis. I personally would much rather see the Pacers in the playoffs, because I think a match-up with the Hawks would be a very intriguing one. A rematch of last years first round battle, in which the then top seeded Indiana Pacers escaped in a seven game series. The Pacers could challenge the Hawks in the opposite position this year, especially with the return of Paul George. George has been playing limited minutes the past week, but has looked solid and has been productive in those minutes.
In the west Houston, Memphis, Los Angeles (Clippers) and San Antonio are all battling for the second seed in the western conference and home court advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
A lot of fun hoops to watch tonight, and playoff basketball starting Saturday.

Kevin Durant Might Be Back

The Oklahoma City Thunder won in Denver last night with the help of Kevin Durant's 40 points. The win combined with a New Orleans loss to Utah without Anthony Davis, and the teams are now tied for ninth in the Western conference. Durant now seems to be back from his injury and ready to go on an MVP type run. Look for this next month, including the all-star, to be Durant's best so far this season. I wouldn't be surprised if the team gets back in the playoff picture and Durant averages 30 over the stretch. Russell Westbrook will still be dominant at the point guard but much like last night, he will look to feed the beast that is Kevin Durant more often, especially now that his legs seem to be back.

New NBA Playoff Systems

Adam Silver this past week expressed that the league could look at changing the playoff system in the future. One idea I have heard of is taking all of the division winners and have those teams automatically earn a top six seed. Then, the ten remaining teams would be seeded in order of the best records. This would eliminate the bottom teams in the east from making the playoffs, and allow teams like the New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder to make the playoffs despite being in the loaded Western Conference.