Ni in a bad nightmare to commissioner Adam Silver it would have crossed his mind to have a playoffs without the Lakers and the Netsbut it has long been a real possibility. Angelenos are 11th in the Western Conference and, with five games to go, they will be out of the play-in. Brooklynites are tenth in the East. Unthinkable situations when at the beginning of the season the two teams were favorites for the ring and the NBA licks his lips with a possible final between them. Now a debacle hangs over her.
Because even though the regular season has shown that there are great teams, much better than those mentionedwith its stars, few have the media interest of the Lakers and the Netslocated in cities with huge markets, built based on talent accumulation and with two of the best players in historywho have signed sensational seasons… at the individual level. LeBron Jameswith his 37 years, is the top scorer in the NBA (average 30.3 points) and Kevin Durant will be second (30.1, igualado con Giannis Antetokounmpo) if he had played the necessary matches to compute in the statistics.
The Lakers have five games to try to get into the play-in. With a record of 31-46, they are one game behind the Spurs, tenth. Already with Lebron and the recovered Anthony Davis, ensure that it is possible to win them all. It won’t be easy for them. They have to be measured twice with the Nuggetswho are trying to access the playoffs directly, and another with the Warriors, fighting for third place. They must also be measured at Sunswho have the guaranteed leadership, and to the Thunderalready evicted.
Results of the day
- Sixers 144-114 Hornets
- Knicks 101-119 Cavaliers
- Hawks 122-115 Nets
- Bulls 109-127 Heat
- Warriors 111-107 Jazz
The drama for the Nets may come later. They have a sure place in the play-in, but they will have to win at least one game to be able to play the playoffs. They are tenth and would have to climb to seventh (almost impossible) or eighth place now occupied by the Hawks to play only one ‘final’. If they win it, they’ll be in. If they finish ninth or tenth, they will have to win two matches before reaching the ring knockouts. And after just one game, it has already been shown that anything can happen.
In a couple of weeks, the NBA can drop two of the most media teams, two of which, at the beginning of the season, everyone imagined fighting for the title in finals with large audiences. The injuries and adaptation problems of the stars have meant that the course of both has gone in other directions. Now they look into the abyss.
The Warriors They clinched a playoff spot. they don’t have to Stephen Curry, whom they wait for the series for the title. But they have Jordan Poolewhose jump this season has been extraordinary until becoming, in the absence of the point guard, the new pair of Klay Thompson in the ‘Splash Brothers’. He has passed 20 points in the last 16 games, in which he averaged 26.6 with 45.0% in triples. In the win over the Jazz (111-107) Thompson finished with 36 points and eight 3-pointers. Poole scored 31 with six hits from the arc. The two were protagonists in a decisive 18-0 run… with six triples in a row that sank the Jazz. those of Utah have lost leads of at least 20 points in two straight games.
The Heat they seem to have gotten over the rough patch a week ago, when they suffered four straight losses and there was a tough time-out confrontation between coach Erik Spoelstra and the star of the team Jimmy Butler. It is not easy to forget such an event, but in Miami they have done it or at least they are hiding it. They have three consecutive victories, the last against the Bulls (109-127), and they are close to securing the lead in the Eastern Conference. Butler scored 22 points and Kyle Lowry He reached 19 and 10 assists.
To be the best you have to beat the best and that is precisely what the best are not doing. Bullswhose balance with the eight best classified is 2-19. In the visit of Heat they weakened again despite the 33 points of Zach LaVinethe 26 of DeMar DeRozan and the double-double (12+10) of Nikola Vucevic.
Juancho Hernangmez has become strong in the rotation of the Jazz. The Spanish forward took advantage a couple of weeks ago of Bojan Bogdanović to earn minutes and even be a starter in seven games. He now has 10 games in a row playing. before the Warriors I played 16 minutes and finished with five points, three rebounds, one assist and one recovery.
