The Pacers, ranked first in the Eastern Conference, took 7 games to eliminate the Hawks, ranked eighth, which many people did not expect.
Of course, many people did not expect that the Spurs, who were second in the Western Conference, and the Mavericks, who were seventh in the Western Conference, had 7 games.
This fully illustrates one point, that is, the playoffs are completely different from the regular season. A strong team in the regular season may not necessarily be able to go smoothly in the playoffs.
The regular season is usually a multi-person rotation, and everyone plays encounters. But in the playoffs, when it comes to life and death, the head coach will usually make short rotations, desperately squeezing the main players, and at the same time, he will make targeted arrangements to target your weaknesses.
Hit the weak point very hard!
If you still want to go smoothly, then there is only one situation, that is, you are far stronger than your opponent.
For example, the Warriors and Clippers, or the Heat and Bobcats in the Eastern Conference.
After the Heat won the first game at home without any suspense 99:88, the Heat encountered a little resistance in the second game.
With 12 seconds left in the game, Kemba Walker hit a three-pointer, and the score between the two teams became 97:98, with only one point difference.
However, time was running out, and the Bobcats could only foul. LeBron James made two free throws steadily, and then Wade stole the opponent. The Bobcats completely lost the chance to equalize.
In this game, four members of the Bobcats team scored in double figures, and their three-point shooting percentage reached 42.9%. Even so, they were not enough to win the next game.
The Heat's best performer was James. He made 11 of 17 shots and 9 of 12 free throws. He was extremely efficient, scoring 32 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds.
The third game was played at the Bobcats' home court, but they didn't have many chances. Although they beat the Heat 27:23 in the first quarter, the Heat immediately beat the Bobcats 35:19 in the second quarter!
In the third quarter, the Heat continued their efforts and beat the Bobcats 28:19, and the game lost its suspense.
In the end, the Heat won the game without any suspense 98:85, and the score between the two teams became 3:0.
The score in the first two quarters of Game 4 was 26:27, and the Heat trailed by two points at halftime. However, in the third quarter, the Heat beat the Bobcats 32:17, and the game suddenly lost suspense.
In the end, the Heat won the game 109:98, sweeping the Bobcats 4:0 and taking the lead in advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The second-placed team in the East swept the seventh-placed team in the East, but just like the matchup between the 3rd-placed and 7th-placed team in the West, the 3rd-placed Raptors in the East were not so comfortable.
In the first game, the Nets stole a victory at the Raptors' home court with a score of 94:87. In the second game, the Raptors regained face and pulled one back at home with a score of 100:95. The big score of the series became
1:1.
Game 3 was held at the Nets' home court, and the two teams started fighting.
The Raptors led by 4 points in the first quarter, and the Nets scored 8 more points in the second quarter. At the end of the half, the Nets entered the locker room with a 4-point lead.
In the 3rd quarter of the game, the Nets widened the point difference to 7 points. In the 4th quarter, the Raptors tried to catch up, but the point difference was too large, and they unfortunately lost the game 98:102.
In this game, four players from both teams scored in double figures. DeRozan scored the most for the Raptors, with 30 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
The Nets' top scorer was Joe Johnson, who made 11 of 17 shots and 3 of 4 3-pointers, scoring 29 points.
Garnett, who had high hopes, only played 16 minutes in the game, making 1 of 3 shots and scoring only two points.
Fortunately, the Nets were mostly veterans with rich experience, and they finally won the game without any danger.
In Game 4, the Raptors learned from their shame and took the initiative right from the start. They beat the Nets 35:22 in the first quarter, which set the tone of the game.
Then the Raptors strengthened their defense. Although the Nets once took the lead, the Raptors defended the Nets and only scored 12 points in the critical 4th quarter. In the end, they also won the away game 87:79.
Game 5 is the Battle of Tianwangshan, played at the Raptors' home court.
In this game, the two teams started a battle. Five members of the Raptors team scored in double figures. Lowry scored the most. He made 11 of 19 shots, 6 of 9 three-pointers, and 8 of 10 free throws.
He scored a game-high 36 points and had 6 assists.
DeRozan was also very efficient. He made 5 of 12 shots and 12 of 13 free throws. He scored 23 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
The Nets also had 5 players score in double figures, with the highest scorer being Joe Johnson, who scored 32 points.
Both teams did very well on the offensive end. The Raptors made 12 of 26 three-pointers and their field goal percentage was as high as 46.2%. The Nets made 11 of 23 three-pointers and their field goal percentage was as high as 47.8%.
In the end, the Raptors narrowly defeated the Nets at home 115:113 and won the battle at Tianwang Mountain.
The Raptors won mainly because they were more aggressive and made 7 more free throws.
Game 6 was played at the home court of the Blue Nets. The young Raptors were not very aware of the crisis, so they were beaten 34:19 by the Nets and were completely passive.
The Nets, who had a dominant position, did not relax. They maintained their advantage until the end, and finally won the game without any suspense at 97:83.
In this game, four Nets players scored in double figures, while only two players from the Raptors, DeRozan and Lowry, scored in double figures, and Lowry only scored 11 points.
The Game 7 battle was held at the Raptors' home court. The two teams were fighting hand-to-hand throughout the game. The Raptors trailed by 8 points entering the 4th quarter, but they quickly evened the difference.
With 17 seconds left in the game, Lowry hit two key points, and the score became 101:102, with the Raptors trailing by one point.
Since time was running out, the Raptors had to resort to foul tactics. Livingston made two steady free throws, and the score became 104:101.
After Terrence Ross hit two points, the score became 103:104.
Then Livingston made a mistake, Terrence Ross successfully stole the ball, and the Raptors got the last chance to attack.
Lowry missed a mid-range shot in the last second, and the Raptors sadly lost the game 103:104.
In the end, the 6th-ranked Nets eliminated the 3rd-ranked Raptors with a big score of 4:3.
In the whole game, six players from the Nets scored in double figures, while five players from the Raptors scored in double figures. The role players all performed well.
The Blue Nets won mainly on defense. They relied on rebounds and steals to get 8 more shots than the Raptors. In the end, they defended Lowry's mid-range shot and won the game.
At the same time, the winner was decided in the showdown between the fourth and fifth teams in the Eastern Conference.
The Wizards defeated the Bulls 102:93 in the first game on the road, and won another 101:99 victory in the second game on the road.
Gaining a 2:0 advantage in the away game gave the Wizards a sure chance of victory.
In Game 3, the Bulls came back on the road 100:97, but in Game 4 the Wizards at home did not give the Bulls a chance, and they won another game 98:89.
Game 5 was played at the home court of the Bulls. The two teams launched a defensive battle. In the end, the Wizards affected the game with 75:69, eliminated the Bulls with a big score of 4:1, and advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Obviously, without Rose and Luol Deng, the Bulls basically have no offensive talent. It is difficult for the Bulls to win a series in the playoffs just by relying on defense.
