2012 NBA Playoffs: Grading Every NBA Playoff Team After the First Weekend
The odds during this year’s NBA playoffs aren’t simply moving and shaking, but nearly on the brink of turning over.
It’s not just because superstar point guard Derek Rose torn his ACL and will miss the rest of the playoffs.
It’s even less because New York Knicks’ Iman Shumpert will miss the rest of this season too with the same injury.
And it’s not because the Lakers, Spurs and Heat all won in impressive fashion during Game 1 performances over the weekend.
It’s because it’s only been 48 hours, leaving plenty of this year’s script to be written.
However, if you want to take anything from away from what’s happened so far (or lack thereof), here’s how I grade each playoff team after the first weekend of playoff action:
Eastern Conference
Miami Heat: A
LeBron James showed again on Saturday during the Heat’s 100-67 Game 1 victory why he deserves to win this season’s Most Valuable Player award, which would be his third in only his ninth NBA season.
James’s 32 points didn’t just ignite the fans in AmericanAirlines Arena Saturday, but he also showed some toughness, giving fans a reason to keep the faith after last year’s finals meltdown.
James suffered a blow to the head and back after colliding with New York’s Tyson Chandler, after Chandler attempted to land a hard pick on James during the second quarter, forcing the superstar forward to the ground in agony.
James proceeded to score the game’s next eight points to end the half, propelling Miami to a 32-2 run to put the second half, and the game, on ice.
As well as the Heat have played without guard Dwayne Wade, who scored 14 points in his return, nearly three weeks after suffering an injury to his right index finger, the Heat need him to play at the high-caliber level he’s accustomed to playing at.
With Rose out, expect Miami to keep on the tracks towards another finals appearance.
Chicago Bulls : B+
The 12-point victory over the Philadelphia 76ers is completely soured after the loss of last year’s NBA MVP, Derrick Rose.
Rose crumpled to the floor and clutched his left knee after attempting to drive the lane. He went up for the layup and decided to dish the ball off but came up limping after landing awkwardly. Rose is already confirmed to have a torn ACL and will miss the rest of the playoffs, leaving the Bulls without their best player.
Chicago was 18-9 without Rose during the regular season, though that same group knew that their leader would return for the playoffs.
Without him, the Bulls are in for a heap of trouble, despite still projecting to get past the 76ers in first-round play.
Orlando Magic: B-
With a Dwight Howard-less lineup, the Orlando Magic’s 81-77 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday was won in admirable fashion.
The Magic, despite a seven-point halftime lead, found themselves down by seven late in the fourth and held the Pacers scoreless for the final 4:05 to come up with the win.
Despite jumping out to a 1-0 series lead, Orlando is not expected to steal a second game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The Magic will eventually be exposed on the boards on both ends of the floor without Howard, and the Pacer’s depth will ultimately outduel a thin Orlando bench.
The bottom line: Don’t expect a first-round upset by the Magic.
Atlanta Hawks: B-
Despite scoring 31 points in the opening quarter during the Hawks’ 83-74 victory over the Boston Celtics on Sunday, Atlanta failed to close the game out in winning fashion.
The Hawks lack closers and control of the boards late in games, their 18 points in the final quarter proving that they will have difficulty against Boston if they don’t knock down jumpers in crunch time.
Atlanta relies on its athleticism to win, but the Celtics’ defense may be too much in the end for the Hawks. Expect Atlanta to fight and claw, but for Boston to move on in six or seven games.
Boston Celtics: C
Losing your composure is tough, but it’s an even tougher pill to swallow when it costs your team a chance to win.
Sunday, the Celtics' 83-74 loss to the Atlanta Hawks was capped by guard Rajon Rondo’s ejection with 41 seconds remaining after bumping into an official. Rondo fumed after a foul was called on Boston with players on the floor scuffling for a loose ball.
The worst part about the loss for the Celtics: They may not have their All-Start point-guard for Game 2, after report suggest that Rondo’s actions are under review by league officials.
Boston rallied late to cut the lead to single digits, but the Celtics will need to muster up more offensive energy late against the athletic Hawks.
Despite the opening-game loss, look for Boston to make this series a competitive one.
Philadelphia 76ers: C+
Once again, the 76ers find ways to fail in crunch time.
In Saturday’s loss against the Bulls, Philadelphia’s inability to score from outside the three-point line—going 1-9 from beyond the arc—inevitably doomed them. The 76ers have relied on the three-pointer as part of their crunch-time play. None of the group of Evan Turner, Elton Brand or Andre Iguodala has taken the team on his back in fourth quarter for a season’s worth of games.
Despite the absence of Derrick Rose for the remainder of the series, it’s still hard to believe that the 76ers will outmatch a Chicago defense that ranks as one of the best in the league.
With plenty of depth, expect the series to go back to Chicago, but for the Bulls to advance forward.
Indiana Pacers: B
Similar to Philadelphia, the Pacers face the reality of not having a superstar that can finish games in crunch time.
Indiana went scoreless in the last 4:05 of Saturday’s 81-77 loss, and a breakdown in defense allowed the Orlando Magic to overcome a seven-point deficit.
However, unlike Orlando, the Pacers have more guys that can contribute in last moments of contests, as Darren Collison, Roy Hibbert, Geroge Hill and Devin George have all taken steps forward in their development this season.
The Magic may have stolen the early lead, but expect Indiana to take control of the series before ultimately moving on to the next round.
New York Knicks: C-
Carmelo Anthony shot 3-of-15 from the field, Tyson Chandler committed four fouls in the first half and Jeremy Lin sat out again.
That pretty much sums up the Knicks’ 100-67 loss to the Miami Heat on Saturday, in which the Heat’s 32-2 run during the second half drowned the Knicks.
To compound the situation, New York will be without guard Iman Shumpert for the rest of the playoffs after sustaining a torn ACL during Satuday’s Game 1 loss.
The Knicks will most likely be without Lin, who is still recovering from knee surgery last month. Without Shumpert, New York may turn to veteran Baron Davis to step in and start, with J.R. Smith giving time at the point guard position.
However, the Heat are the favorite in the East after the injury to Rose. Even if Lin returns in some role and Anthony finds his spots on the floor, don’t expect the Knicks to catch fire against the most explosive team in the league.
Western Conference
Kevin Durant showed again on Saturday why he’s one of the best in the game
Durant nailed the winning bucket from the foul line with 1.5 seconds remaining, sending Chesapeake Energy Arena into a frenzy as the Thunder stole a 99-98 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
Russell Westbrook scored 28 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the field, playing stout defense at the end of the game, despite the Maverick’s Dirk Nowitzki knocking down two clutch free throws preceding Durant’s winner.
The Thunder are the threat to reach the finals in the West, and Durant proved to be able to carry them in crunch time. Expect the lack of depth from Dallas to keep them from advancing past the powerful OKC attack.
Going into the playoffs, the Spurs had gone four years without winning the first game in a playoff series.
Sunday, they put the streak to bed.
Tony Parker, who scored 28 points and dished the ball for eight assists in the Spurs’ 106-91 victory over the Utah Jazz Sunday, is putting together one of his best playoffs starts in years.
The MVP candidate is just one of a cast of characters on the Spurs’ roster that is built for a serious run at a title. Tim Duncan, who scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Spurs’ win on Sunday, is playing some of his best basketball so late into his stellar career.
Expect the Spurs to advance past the Jazz, who will make it a competitive series.
All season long, the Lakers have dealt with countless issues—new coach, injuries and absences—limiting their potential for a run deep into the playoffs.
Sunday, Los Angeles proved to be the caliber of team that can make a run, if everyone stays healthy.
Despite Kobe Bryant’s 31 points, it was Andrew Bynum that stole the show. The 7-footer’s NBA-record-tying 10 blocked shots propelled the Lakers over the Denver Nuggets, 103-88, to take an early 1-0 series lead.
Bynum’s playoff triple-double marked the first for Los Angeles in 21 years, and the seven-year pro is driving the vehicle for the Lakers’ offense down in the paint.
As Bynum goes, so goes LA’s post game, and Bynum is clicking on all cylinders at both ends of the floor.
Expect the Lakers to move past Denver and into the next round.
The Grizzlies are one of the few serious contenders on the short list to win the finals.
They sure didn’t show it Sunday, losing a 27-point lead en route to a 99-98 fourth-quarter collapse against the Clippers in the first round.
A complete lapse of defense by Memphis’s defense allowed Los Angeles to go on a 28-3 run to finish the game.
Despite the loss, the Grizzlies played just well enough to nearly pull out the game. With only 30 seconds left, Los Angeles pulled ahead by one and the Clippers didn’t obtain their first lead in the game until a minute left.
However, Memphis is loaded at all positions on floor, so don’t expect this collapse to affect the outcome of the series. The Grizzlies will find a way to get past this loss and continue their push towards the Western Conference Finals and beyond.
LA Clippers: C-
Despite one of the worst playoff performance on Sunday, the Clippers ended up pulling off one of the greatest playoff comebacks in NBA history.
Los Angeles overcame a 27-point fourth-quarter deficit in a 99-98 thriller over Memphis Sunday, capped off by Chris Paul’s two makes at the free-throw line with 23 seconds remaining in the game to give the team only its second lead of the game.
Blake Griffin buried two pivotal free throws to cut the Grizzlies’ lead to one at 96-95 with 1:30 remaining, putting to rest his reputation of not being a finisher in the process.
Although Los Angeles pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in NBA playoff history, don’t expect the Clippers to get past a loaded Memphis team.
Denver Nuggets: C+
The Nuggets lack are like many of the teams in this year’s playoffs: they lack someone to carry them to the finish line.
Despite the fact that Denver doesn’t have a finisher at the end of games, that wasn’t the reason why the team suffered a 103-88 loss on Sunday.
Streaking shooting in the first half and a 28-percent team three-point effort in the loss spelled the slow start for the Nuggets in the series.
Denver must rely on its depth if it wants to reach the next round. Ty Lawson, Danillo Gallinari and Arron Affalo are all expected to carry the load offensively, with Kenneth Faried and and Al Harrington locking down the paint on defense.
However, the Lakers have too much firepower for the Nuggets to contain, so expect them to be bounced in the first round.
Utah Jazz: B
Of all the teams that lost over the weekend, it was the Jazz that showed that they would be the toughest out among the lower-seeded teams in this season’s playoffs.
The Jazz, who outrebounded the Spurs by a 45-to-39 total, also shot 30.8-percent from the field in the 106-91 loss.
Gordon Heyward, only in his second season, showed signs of having the ability to take control of games. Heyward scored 17 points, including going 12-for-12 from the free-throw line.
However, Utah lacks the talent to score on the fast break as concisely as the Spurs, who are led by the quick Tony Parker.
The Jazz will be a tough out, but the Spurs have just enough to move past them into the next round.
Dallas Mavericks: B-
Dirk Nowitzki put the Mavericks in position to take an early-series lead against the Oklahoma City Thunder Saturday night.
Despite a 99-98 loss on the back of the Thunder’s Kevin Durant, who scored the last-second jumper to ice the game for OKC, Dallas is in position to sneak up and make the series a competitive one.
The key for the Mavericks will be their low-post defense. Without Tyson Chandler manning the middle for Dallas, who helped the franchise capture its first championship last year before departing for the New York Knicks via free agency, the Mavericks lack the depth down low to contend with likes of Durant and Russell Westbrook, who love to get in the paint to score.
Expect the lack of interior big men to expose Dallas as the series continues and for the Thunder to advance.
