Home court advantage meant little on the NBA playoffs’ first day. Three home favorites went down, most notably the Pacers, who continued their slide by falling to the 38-44 Atlanta Hawks.
NBA playoff scores, results and highlights from Saturday’s openers
Andy Lyons/Getty Images
5 things to know
-
It's time to panic in Indiana
OK fine, it was time to panic in Indiana three weeks ago. But now it's really time to panic. Thirteen days after letting the 38-44 Atlanta Hawks walk all over them in their own building in a regular-season game, the Pacers let it happen again in the playoffs. Playoff Teague returned, Paul George had a terrible, no-good, very bad night and Roy Hibbert was powerless to stop Pero Antic -- Pero Antic -- as he roamed around the three-point line. The 101-93 final score looks respectable, but this was never a contest after Atlanta's surge to begin the third quarter. The Hawks' bevy of shooters presents a serious problem for Frank Vogel's top-ranked defense that's used to physically overwhelming its opponents.
At some point, the Pacers are going to snap out of it, right? Right? -Mike Prada -
Blow the whistle
That's what the referees did in the Clippers-Warriors opener in STAPLES Center. Then, they did it again. And again. And again. A strange game marred by an abundance of foul calls ended, fittingly, at the free-throw line. Draymond Green hit his two to give the Warriors the lead for good, and Chris Paul missed his two to kill L.A.'s last hope for a comeback.
Without Andrew Bogut, the Warriors ran tons of pick and roll, accepted the Clippers' traps and moved the ball quickly against L.A.'s slow rotations. That's a trend that should worry Doc Rivers' crew. Then again, Blake Griffin fouled out in only 19 minutes. That won't happen again. -Mike Prada -
The Truth sets Brooklyn free
Paul Pierce had just six points when he drilled a three-pointer from the right wing to put the Nets up six on the Raptors with under three minutes to go. Then, Pierce scored on Brooklyn's next three possessions. It was the realization of the series' overwhelming, if not entirely reductive narrative. This was the cagiest of Brooklyn's team of veterans besting the Raptors' younger, more athletic defenders, and doing it when it mattered most. In a wild Toronto atmosphere that more closely resembled college basketball, Pierce ultimately provided the lasting image.
Chalk it up to veteran savvy if you want, but age alone doesn't guide a basketball to the bottom of the net. Truth is, Brooklyn's old men can still play. -Ricky O'Donnell -
Scattered Thunderstorms
The Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook show is back in action, but a hot start nearly turned into "uh-oh" time in Oklahoma City. The pull-up jumpers, the ridiculous athleticism, the Thunder looking like the THUNDER ... that first half really got out of hand. But then the third quarter came along, Tony Allen did his thing, the Grizzlies stop being spooked by Oklahoma City's athleticism and a 25-point lead turned into a two-point game. Kevin Durant came alive late and the Thunder were able to close out the game comfortably, but that third quarter provides a rather large silver lining for the Grizzlies.
The next step for Dave Joerger's crew: Putting together enough of those stretches to slow down a duo that combined for 56 points, 18 rebounds and 12 assists. -Andrew Garrison -
The new commish's first test
Welcome to the playoffs, Adam Silver! The new commissioner landed two minor kerfuffles in the first two games of the postseason. First, Masai Ujiri dropped a loud, intentional "F--k Brooklyn" on Raptors fans during a pre-game rally. A few hours later, Blake Griffin dumped water on a Warriors fan sitting courtside in L.A. Whether Griffin meant to nail the fan is in question -- even the fan doesn't believe the splash was intentional -- but Twitter detectives on the case demanded justice.
Silver can escape this by fining Ujiri and ignoring Griffin, but it's all nonetheless a nice welcoming gift. Ruling isn't all smiles and raising the age minimum, after all. -Tom Ziller
Sunday's Schedule
See More:
