We look back over the previous week of NBA action and put three teams under the microscope as we grade their recent performances
Monday 22 April 2019 13:37, UK
With the playoffs well and truly underway, the NBA's major players are beginning to assert themselves, while others' shortcomings are being ruthlessly exposed.
Here are three teams who have experienced varying fortunes in the opening week of the playoffs.
If there was any doubt going into the playoffs about which team was the main threat to the Golden State Warriors emerging from the Western Conference, it has been completely eradicated.
The Houston Rockets are resembling the team that took the champions to seven games in last season's conference finals and are on course for a mouth-watering rematch with the Warriors in the next round.
Having ended the regular season in fine form, the Rockets came into the playoffs with plenty of confidence, but then so did their first-round opponent, the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz, who knocked out the Oklahoma City Thunder before testing the Rockets in an entertaining five-game series in last year's playoffs, have been made to look extremely ordinary.
MVP contender James Harden made light of the Jazz's attempts to unsettle him as he averaged a triple-double across blowout victories in the opening two games in Houston.
Harden had an extremely off night as he went just 3-20 from the floor in Game 3, but ominously for the Jazz, the Rockets still held on for a narrow victory in Salt Lake City to take complete control of the series.
Chris Paul has been efficient, Clint Capela is dominating the boards, while the supporting cast of P. J. Tucker and Eric Gordon have crucially shot the three-ball well.
If they do face the Warriors (who lead the Los Angeles Clippers 3-1) in the next round, Harden cannot afford any no-shows, but the Rockets are well set to create a compelling series.
It appeared the Oklahoma City Thunder had gotten a favourable opening-round tie when they were matched up with the Portland Trail Blazers, who lost starting center Jusuf Nurkic to a horrific season-ending injury at the end of March.
While the Trail Blazers have performed admirably in the circumstances, the Thunder's inability to take advantage of the absence of one of their opponent's key players is extremely worrying for the franchise's present and future.
The Thunder's poor roster construction was exposed in games 1 and 2 in Portland, as the woeful three-point shooting (a combined 10-61) that has plagued them all season saw the Blazers take a 2-0 lead.
Having been comprehensively outplayed by fellow All-Star point guard Damian Lillard in Portland, Westbrook produced a signature performance in Game 3 to pull the Thunder back to 2-1, with a team effort of 15-29 from three-point range also making a huge difference.
However, the Thunder - and Westbrook - could not sustain that level of performance as Lillard and C. J. McCollum combined for 51 points to seal a crucial road victory in Game 4.
The only straw the Thunder have to clutch at is the fitness of their own star, Paul George, who has never regained the MVP form he showed prior to suffering a shoulder injury in late February.
George has shot 36.3 per cent from the floor in the series, a mark significantly down on his season average of 43.8 per cent. While the fact he may be severely hampered by the shoulder problem is of little consolation to the Thunder now, it does at least give them hope that things would be different if he were fully fit.
With the Thunder's three highest paid players, Westbrook (four), George (three) and Steven Adams (two) all tied down to the contracts for the foreseeable future, there is little room for manoeuvre in the Oklahoma City front office.
It's rare for a team to complete a series a sweep and still look unconvincing, but the Boston Celtics have managed to do just that.
The Celtics utilised their superior talent to grind out four victories, but the winning margin was never more than 10 points and there was a huge escape in Game 2 as the Pacers scored just 12 points in the fourth quarter to give up a sizeable lead.
There are certainly positives to be taken for Brad Stevens though; the Celtics held the Pacers below 100 points in three of four games, and that was without their best defensive player, Marcus Smart, who remains out with a torn oblique.
Kyrie Irving appeared to play within himself for much of the series, with his 37-point showing in Game 2 the only time he went full 'Uncle Drew' on the Pacers, and he should have plenty in the tank for the next round. Meanwhile, Gordon Hayward had his best performance in Game 4, scoring 20 points to issue a reminder he could be a factor going forward.
However, the problem for the Celtics is they will almost certainly face the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Bucks held the best regular season record in the NBA and have carried that form into the playoffs, cruising to a 3-0 lead against the Detroit Pistons, and will provide the ultimate test.
Whether Smart will be back in time to try and help slow down Giannis Antetokounmpo remains to be seen, but it is unclear whether the Celtics have another gear to go to.
Irving and Al Horford have an advantage as far as playoff experience is concerned, but aside from that, there was little on show against the Pacers to suggest the Celtics have what it takes to upset the Bucks.
With the result of the next round likely to have major implications on Irving - and other stars' - impending free agency this summer, the stakes are extremely high in Boston.
