Summary
Orlando Magic drop Game 1 of their series against the Cleveland Cavaliers for one clear reason. Minnesota Timberwolves' interior defense is more than just Rudy Gobert. Boston Celtics dominate Game 1 against the Miami Heat, after falling 3-0 last season. Denver Nuggets look to become the first repeat champions since the 2017 and 2018 Golden State Warriors.
Timberwolves star Jaden McDaniels seemed to be everywhere -- challenging shots, disrupting passing lanes. The overall physicality that the Timberwolves displayed was evident, and the Suns' backcourt seemed bothered by it. The Knicks are the NBA's best offensive rebounding team; the 76ers were a bottom-10 defensive reboundingteam.
The Nuggets beat the Lakers when they didn't box out, scoring 18 points off second-chance opportunities. LeBron James refused to categorize Saturday's loss as anything more than one loss. The Celtics turned up the volume on the thing that already stands out about their offense.
Celtics star Jayson Tatum scores 22 3s -- tying a Celtics playoff franchise record -- on 49 tries. Zubac had been mercilessly hunted by Luka Doncic as the Mavs jumped out to a 2-0 series edge and a large lead in Game 3. He was the one doing the hunting, bullying the MAvs in the paint for a playoff career-high 20 points and 15 rebounds.
Damian Lillard had 35 points in the Bucks' Game 1 win over the Indiana Pacers. The Pelicans entered Game 1 with the best road record in the NBA at 28-14. The game featured 20 lead changes -- one more than the 19 combined lead changes in the first seven playoff games.
McCollum's basket with 26.5 seconds left accounted for New Orleans' only points in the final 3:33 of the game. The Pelicans controlled the boards (52-44) and the second-chance points (24-11) The Pelicans went just 1-7 with three turnovers over the final 4:09.
