Current student athlete with a rare amount of knowledge on sports. Blogs will cover information on basketball at the collegiate and professional levels.
The Memphis Grizzlies entered the playoffs having never won a playoff game in franchise history. That wouldn't last for long with the Memphis Grizzlies winning Game 1 of the series. They would take a strong 3-1 lead before losing an overtime thriller in Game 5 of the series against the one seeded San Antonio Spurs. The Grizzlies took a three point lead late in the game and appeared to have the game in their hands. With under three seconds left the Grizzlies were on the doorstep of the second largest upset in the history of the NBA playoffs. The eight seeded Grizzlies would eventually lose that game to the seeded San Antonio Spurs largely due to a game tying three pointer by Gary Neal which sent the game into overtime. The Spurs would go on to win due to a horrid 1-7 shooting performance in the second half by the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies responded winning Game 6 and making history by knocking off the number 1 seed in dominating fashion. They won the series in six games but were in control of essentially every game. Zach Randolph would finish with 31 points and 11 rebounds dominating the last five minutes of the game scoring 17 of those in the fourth quarter. As I predicted the Grizzlies would be too much for the Spurs after taking a 2-0 lead. History was against them but percentages were for them after taking a 3-1 lead. The Grizzlies are poised for a historic run especially after taking Game 1 of the Conference Semifinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Critics bashed them and people wrote them off after a lackluster finish to their regular season. What's mind boggling is the fact that the Grizzlies are accomplishing so much without their all star and franchise player Rudy Gay who had a season ending injury late in the year. Now that they have shown the world they're serious contenders people are starting to jump on their bandwagon.
The Boston Celtics wasted no time closing out the New York Knicks in four games. The Celtics were the first NBAteam to move on to the second round and as usual, they were all business throughout the first series. The Celtics took an early 53-38 lead and never really looked back. Although the Knicks battled and got it within four at one point the veteran Celtics showed why they are a favorite to win it all. As a fan I must admit their chemistry is special and their nucleus of Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen makes them scary. Unlike the Miami Heat the Celtics seem to thrive in late game situations as proven throughout the first series. On multiple occasions the Celtics successfully converted on clutch baskets down the stretch to close out Games 1 and 2. In Game 1 Doc Rivers drew up a brilliant play which Allen converted for the game winning three pointer. In Game 2 Doc Rivers again made a wise decision giving Garnett the ball in an isolation on the block. Although Garnett had struggled all night he had the confidence to go to him and of course he answered the call. Garnett scored on that play putting the Celtics up two essentially winning the game for them. The reoccurring theme here is that the Celtics thrive in late games and have the combination of coaching and clutch players to win games. This will play an enormous role in next rounds potential match-up between the Celtics and Heat. The Heat ironically have struggled down the stretch all year so it should be a battle two tales. Throughout the first series the Celtics had a different leading scorer in each game and displayed the type of balance necessary to make a long run in the playoffs. As a fan I can't wait to see what's in store for the next round. I believe the Celtics defense and "big 4" will be too much for the Heat allowing Rondo and the C's to advance to the Eastern Conference Championship. The Celtics have been down this road before and it's apparent they are playing like the best team in the East right no
