As the NBA play-ins come to an end, the crazy NBA Playoffs are beginning.
The NBA Playoffs started on Saturday, April 19; the top teams are the Thunder, Pistons, and Spurs. The NBA Playoffs is the highly anticipated postseason for professional basketball. There are many great matchups, with lots of teams having good turnarounds from last year and players coming back from injuries.
The championship starts on June 3 and can last until June 19. The series contains the best team from the Eastern Conference and the best team from the Western Conference. Last year, the Oklahoma City Thunder won the finals; they are expected to win again this year with an overall one seed at 64-18, but San Antonio is close behind with 62-20 and the Pistons with 60-22.
The Playoffs started in 1947 in the ABA; only a few teams qualified games were shorter series, sometimes best of three. More teams were added in 1984 to reach 16, and in 2022 they added play-in tournaments allowing teams ranked 7th through 10th to compete. In 2003, they expanded to a seven-game series to increase revenue from TV deals and ticket sales.
Ayo Adenyi, a postgrad from Columbia, Md., believes the Hornets are a team that’s being overlooked.
“They’re actually playing the Miami Heat right now, but the Charlotte Hornets I think they are a sneaky team that’s going to win some games in the playoffs,” he said. “They have a great young team and they just look sound.”
The Hornets have been trending lately for their young core, with their star LaMelo Ball; leader in assists, Brandon Miller; top scorer, Coby White, whose recently been traded there; Miles Bridges; and Kon Knueppel, who set the NBA record for most three-pointers by a rookie. This team is known for their three-point presence, and that they are a rising young team.
Evan Sood, a postgrad from Canterbury, Conn., believes the OKC Thunder will repeat.
“OKC making that run last year really asserted their dominance over the league,” he said. “I mean they really do have the best roster when you think about it, they are well coached. Shai, he’s a great player.”
The Thunder have the best record in the NBA, and they are the overall one seed in the whole NBA. They have the best defensive rating in the NBA, and they are seventh in offense. They are led by many great players, but the one that stands out is what Evan referred to, Shai Gilgeous Alexander. Alexander, who won MVP last season, is averaging 31 points, 6.6 assists, and 4.3 rebounds, and shoots 55% from the field.
