NBA Playoff Schedule 2016: TV Coverage, Saturday Live Stream Guide and Picks
Now that the pesky Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies are out of the way, it’s time for two of the NBA’s biggest kahunas to square off in Round 2.
Things got chippy, but the Oklahoma City Thunder were never in danger against the rickety Mavs in Round 1. Kevin Durant and Co. won the series 4-1.
Even more dominant was San Antonio’s dismantling of Dave Joerger’s decimated Grizzlies. It was a clean sweep.
The cupcake games are over, though—for both sides. The Thunder and Spurs are both dying to get a crack at the reigning champion Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, and Game 1 of this heavyweight semifinals series tips off on Saturday.
Key Info
| April 30 | 8:30 p.m. ET | AT&T Center (Texas) | TNT |
The game can be streamed through Watch TNT here.
Player to Watch: Steven Adams
Yeah, Durant and Russell Westbrook will do their thing. So will LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard.
But OKC big man Steven Adams is a real wild card in this matchup. The bruising 7-footer from New Zealand helped the Thunder close out Dallas with a pair of extremely impressive box scores: 14 points and eight rebounds in Game 4, and 15 points and 10 boards in Game 5.
Adams only averaged eight points and 6.7 rebounds during the regular season, but he started 80 games (tied with Westbrook for the team-high) and ranked third in Box Plus/Minus, according to Basketball-Reference.com.
You can guess who owned the top two spots.
Adams is actually more important to Westbrook than he probably gets credit for. Over 15 percent of Russ’ assists went to the big fella during the regular season (via NBA Stats), and their rapport has carried over into the postseason.
Adams will have his hands full with San Antonio’s big men, but he’s definitely a wiser player than he was before.
Here’s what he told reporters about an early encounter with Tim Duncan, per Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman:
Expect big numbers, nasty scowls and cold-blooded shots from KD and Westbrook. That’s a given. But if Adams can get going in the pick-and-roll while also containing the Spurs’ army of big men, OKC will be in tremendous shape.
Game 1 pick: Thunder
The Spurs are good.
Really, really good.
But the Thunder seem…angry.
Look at how Westbrook and Durant handled their postgame press conference after knocking the Mavericks out. They took shots at Dallas owner Mark Cuban, who made the mistake of saying the reigning two-time All-Star Game MVP is “not a superstar.” They lit up Charlie Villanueva, who had a mini-spat with No. 0 over an interrupted pregame dance routine.
They weren’t smiling or celebrating. And that’s fine—the Thunder have bigger aspirations than defeating a beat-up team of veterans in Round 1.
But Oklahoma City’s biggest stars have been playing with something to prove, and their demeanor after the win furthered that narrative.
Perhaps the Spurs don’t need to have that pit bull mentality. This is the Spurs we’re talking about, after all.
Still, while San Antonio is the heavy favorite (via Odds Shark), don’t count the ticked-off Thunder out, especially in Game 1 on the road.
They might just be mad and determined enough to pull it off.
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