NBA Playoff Schedule 2017: Dates, Game Times and TV Info for Conference Finals
The NBA's version of its Final Four is set as the Boston Celtics held off the Washington Wizards in an unforgettable Game 7 victory Monday night in Boston.
It's a quick turnaround for the top-seeded Celtics as they will only have one day between their Game 7 win and Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, who haven't played since May 7 when they completed a four-game sweep over the Toronto Raptors.
The Western Conference Finals are already underway and is already chalk full of drama, stemming from Kawhi Leonard's rolled ankle during the third quarter on Sunday. After coming back from a 23-point deficit in Game 1 at Oracle Arena, the Golden Warriors will look for a better start Tuesday in Game 2 as the San Antonio Spurs will look for answers on both sides of the ball if Leonard isn't ready to return from injury anytime soon.
Let's take a look at the complete Conference Finals schedule in the East and West including TV and live-stream options:
| Tuesday, May 16 | ||||
| San Antonio at Golden State | 2 | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Wednesday, May 17 | ||||
| Cleveland at Boston | 1 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
| Friday, May 19 | ||||
| Cleveland at Boston | 2 | ( p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Saturday, May 20 | ||||
| Golden State at San Antonio | 3 | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Sunday, May 21 | ||||
| Boston at Cleveland | 3 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
| Monday, May 22 | ||||
| Golden State at San Antonio | 4 | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Tuesday, May 24 | ||||
| Boston at Cleveland | 4 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
| Wednesday, May 24 | ||||
| San Antonio at Golden State | 5* | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Thursday, May 25 | ||||
| Cleveland at Boston | 5* | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
| Friday, May 26 | ||||
| Golden State at San Antonio | 6* | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Saturday, May 27 | ||||
| Boston at Cleveland | 6* | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
| Sunday, May 28 | ||||
| San Antonio at Golden State | 7* | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Monday, May 29 | ||||
| Boston at Cleveland | 7* | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | TNTOvertime |
Players to Watch
East: Kelly Olynyk, Celtics
I know what you're thinking: This is an overreaction. And this may be a knee-jerk reaction coming off his masterful Game 7 off the bench where he scored 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting (including 14 fourth-quarter points) but Olynyk provided Boston with a real spark when the team wasn't getting it from its usual suspects against the Wizards.
It's no secret that Olynyk has the ability to stretch the floor and take big men off the dribble when he puts the ball on the floor, but inconsistency has marred his potential to make any real impact for the Celtics—until now.
Going up against Cleveland, the Celtics are going to need Olynyk to deliver in this series. And no, he doesn't have to score 26 points every game, but if he is able to keep the Cavaliers defense honest by scoring from the perimeter and averaging around 13 points per game, that will open lanes for Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley to attack the paint off screens and get easy points at the rim.
Olynyk may not crack the starting rotation for the Celtics, but he has certainly earned starter's minutes. Amir Johnson started Game 7 for the Celtics on Monday but played only nine minutes. He totaled zero points and one rebound while committing two turnovers and three personal fouls with a minus-two plus/minus rating during his time on the floor.
The power forward slot for the Celtics is a glaring weakness that needs to be addressed against Cleveland with the likes of Kevin Love on the opposing side of the ball.
Even though Olynyk was only plus-three in the plus/minus category in Game 7, his contributions on offense were clear to anyone who watched the game, per ESPN Stats & Info.
After all, Thomas can't do it all on his own.
Thomas scored 29 points but only received nine points from Bradley, 14 from Jae Crowder and 15 from Al Horford. Now while those figures for the latter two are around their per-game averages, that's not nearly enough to outscore a team like Cleveland.
Love doesn't have great athleticism, but he can stretch the floor and rebound with the best of them. Olynyk won't be able to contain Love on the defensive end, but he could make Love work on the other side of the ball and become a real contributor from here on out if his shots continue to fall.
West: Pau Gasol, Spurs
It's a bit odd to label a player with Pau Gasol's background as an All-Star and NBA champion as a role player nowadays, but he was a non-factor in Game 1 against the Warriors due to foul trouble and lackluster play.
Gasol isn't a shell of himself by any means, but anyone who has watched the NBA over the years can see that he has a lost a step or two. But even at 36 years of age, Gasol can still contribute on both ends of the floor, and the Spurs will need him to, especially since Leonard is out injured.
In 16 minutes of action in Game 1, Gasol scored five points, 2-of-5 shooting, collected two rebounds while picking up five fouls. It's hard to imagine that Gasol will fall into that type of foul trouble in Game 2, but he needs to pick up his production. When Leonard went down, the Spurs offense went with him.
Manu Ginobili and Patty Mills did their best Tony Parker impressions for the duration of the second half but couldn't come up with anything effective besides dumping the ball off to LaMarcus Aldridge in the post, who had some moderate success (28 points on 11-of-24 shooting) while also turned the ball over six times.
But all is not lost for the Spurs if Leonard cannot play. After all, they defeated the Houston Rockets in Game 6 of the second round without Leonard in a 39-point blowout. But they need Gasol to step up and be the veteran voice of the offense.
Setting Gasol in a high pick-and-roll a the top of the paint will put the ball in his hands where he can either shoot the mid-range jumper, use his above-average passing skills to find Aldridge in the post or dump it off to a teammate on the perimeter.
This is just one example of how Gregg Popovich can use Gasol, but the point is that he needs to get more touches now that a major piece of the offense is missing.
All stats are courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted.
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