On Apr. 15, the 2024-2025 NBA postseason officially begins. With that, this dreadful Philadelphia 76ers season will finally end. Fans can rest, though they probably already are.
Although the Sixers’ competitive fire is well diminished, plenty of teams across the association have a lot to play for in the final five weeks of the campaign. Two teams could reach 70 wins, the reigning champions may not be the title favorite, and a few wanna-be contenders are making one last push for more favorable playoff seeding.
All that means there are plenty of games with high stakes. This week alone we’ve got an MVP battle, a potential Finals preview, and a playoff rematch. I’ve selected one game a day that will be cinema. Sit back, enjoy the show, and get ready for playoff hoops while the Sixers worry about ping pong balls.
March 10: Denver Nuggets @ Oklahoma City Thunder
There’s one leading headline for the matchup between the Denver Nuggets and the Oklahoma City Thunder: Fierce Frontline Battle Set To Shift MVP Favorite. Denver’s Nikola Jokic and OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are the two favorites for the NBA’s premier individual award.
They have been all season. Jokic has carried an inconsistent but still championship level roster in all statistical categories, dropping statlines that are as ridiculous as they are historical. Shai has been the league’s most unstoppable scorer, dropping 30 seemingly every night and heads one of the best defenses the league has seen in years as his team has run away with the West’s No. 1 seed.
Both have great arguments and a fitting story for the MVP. Therefore, every time their seasons converge, the MVP story is re-written.
This time will be no different, but perhaps with a bit extra as Shai and OKC ran away in the two teams’ matchup last night. If he drops another 40-ball in a double-digit win (though the game was close until halfway through the fourth), perhaps he’ll end the war and hold the Michael Jordan MVP Trophy (remember they named it after him?!).
March 11: Los Angeles Clippers @ New Orleans Pelicans
Although the New Orleans Pelicans’ season was over within a month of starting, they employ Zion Williamson. The oft-injured freak athlete is playing the best basketball of his career, all while under a minutes restriction that is helping the 17-48 Pelicans stay in prime lottery position.
In 20 games since returning from a 17-game absence, Williamson is averaging 25 points on 60% shooting, seven rebounds, five assists, and one and a half steals a game in under 29 minutes a contest. He floats over defenses while simultaneously barging through them. He’s uniquely unstoppable with an underrated playmaking game and a newfound defensive intensity. For your own good, watch him at least once a week.
And this LA Clippers matchup would be a great choice. Their oft-injured star Kawhi Leonard is also back and rounding into form. He hit a game-winning buzzer beater on Sunday night (a PTSD-inducing one for Philly fans, look at that rim bounce) and is averaging 21.5 points on 44% shooting in his last six games. He’s helped the Clippers on a three-game win streak which has kept them within just one game of the six seed.
March 12: Oklahoma City Thunder @Boston Celtics
Ding, ding, ding! We have another must-watch NBA game! OKC takes on the Boston Celtics in what is likely an NBA Finals Preview. I’m going to thoroughly enjoy watching how Shai goes against Boston’s inhaling defensive guard duo of Derrick White and Jrue Holiday, and what Boston coach Joe Mazzulla will scheme to stop the MVP-favorite.
OKC was victorious in their one previous matchup this season. They roared to victory with a 29-12 instant classic fourth quarter. I needn’t say more as they run it back on Wednesday night.
March 13: Sacramento Kings @Golden State Warriors
Jimmy Butler has lost just one game as a Golden State Warrior. The other game the team did lose since acquiring him on Feb. 5 was the only game he’s sat out since moving teams. It’s like a new coworker joining the office that gets on instantly with the established friend group. Not only are they increasing shareholder value, but they’re doing it with a smile! Because of Jimmy, the Warriors look like a threat in the West again.
That threat status has increased with Steph Curry flashing into All-NBA form. In the 13 games since the team acquired Jimmy, Steph is averaging 30 points on 50/42/91 shooting splits. That’s MVP shit.
One team all-too familiar with the overpowering effects Curry can have on a basketball game is the Sacramento Kings. Put aside the Kings being the Pacific Division bottom-feeders during the Warriors’ dynastic 2010s run, Steph dropped 50 points to eliminate them from their first playoff series since the early 2000s.
Both teams look significantly different now, with De’Aaron Fox being a Spur and Klay Thompson being the only Maverick with functioning legs, but I’m sure the rivalry springs eternal. The Kings are fighting to climb up a seed or two to avoid two play-in games while the Warriors want to make a late push for the five seed and a more favorable matchup.
March 14:Cleveland Cavaliers @ Memphis Grizzlies
The league-best Cleveland Cavaliers are the second team in NBA history to score 110+ points in every game of a 14-game win streak. They are historically awesome and, in the past month, have brushed off many nagging doubts. They’ve beaten the next three-best East teams (Celtics, Knicks and Bucks), cementing themselves as a genuine title favorite.
The Memphis Grizzlies aren’t on that level, but they’re a hell of a squad. They’re fourth in net rating and one of four teams in the top 10 of both defensive and offensive ratings (the other three teams in both cases being the three top-tier title favorites, OKC, Boston and the Cavs).
Employing a well-documentedly unique offense, the Grizzlies have found success with their star point guard Ja Morant missing games and playing below his usual standard. Stepping up as their best player has been Jaren Jackson Jr. He should make an All-NBA team and has a case for Defensive Player of the Year, with Cleveland’s Evan Mobley being another contender.
March 15: Oklahoma City Thunder @Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are just one and a half games back from the fourth seed. They’ve had the sixth best net rating since the turn of the new year. Cade Cunningham is having an All-NBA season. And every single player on the team is ready to throw hands, led by Isiah ‘Beef Stew’ Stewart squaring up with anyone from LeBron James to Stephen Curry (so, just all time greats actually).
They are the best story of the season and are the funnest non-contender. If they win against this Thunder team, the story only improves. It’s a tall task indeed, but how could you tell anyone on this roster that something is impossible? They set an NBA record losing streak last season and now could host a playoff series!
Switching focus from the narrative to the court, the Pistons have the second-best defense in the NBA since Jan. 1. OKC, of course, are first. This will be somewhat of a rock-fight with the plot kept moving by two massive lead guards that can get to their spots. Expect a kerfuffle if it stays close, or if Beef Stew feels like it.
March 16: Orlando Magic @ Cleveland Cavaliers
To wrap up the week we have a rematch of one of last season’s first-round playoff series. Cleveland got by the Orlando Magic in seven games, but Orlando could feel proud of their efforts. Nearing a year later, not so much. They started this season phenomenally, even through injuries to their two best players, but are now struggling to do one very important thing: put the ball in the hoop.
Since Jan. 1, the Magic have the third-worst offensive rating. It’s been horrific. Paolo Banchero has been awesome (averaging 30 on 50/40/80 shooting in his last five games) but seriously crippled by the team’s lack of three-point shooting.
They shoot an NBA worst 30.4 % from three. A square peg has a greater chance of going in a round hole than a three-point shot by a Magic player does of going in the hoop. Because of that, opposing teams can just set up camp in the paint and roast some marshmallows as Paolo drives and kicks to an absolute non-threat for 48 minutes a game. I try to keep it positive in this column (I’m doing my part, LeBron) but the Orlando offense is a horrific sight indeed.
But car crashes can be fun. And, this could realistically be a first-round playoff series. Three-point percentages can swing drastically from game to game, and Paolo and Franz Wagner are serious ballers who will give Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen all they’ve got. And hey, if your uncle hates all the three-point ‘nonsense’ in today’s game, get him to watch this Magic team and tell him if that’s truly what he wants.