Round 2 kicks off for Cavaliers-Raptors and Spurs-Rockets

Two more Round 2 series got underway Monday night with the Raptors and Cavaliers playing in the Eastern Conference Semifinals and the Spurs and Rockets in the Western Conference Semifinals. Both were extreme blowouts. LeBron James led the Cavaliers as expected over the Raptors but the Rockets were the surprise of the night, taking down the Spurs in unbelievable fashion. Here’s how it all went down.

James came out in Game 1 against the Raptors with that look in his eye and that bounce in his step. There was nothing you were going to do to stop him and he wanted to make you very aware of that fact.

The Houston Rockets blew out the San Antonio Spurs, 126-99, after leading by 30 points at the half. The quick pace of Houston’s offense matched by the efficiency of its three-point shooters proved too much for San Antonio to handle.

A brutal showing from LaMarcus Aldridge made it impossible for the Spurs to climb out of the hole that kept growing deeper. His all-around night was truly disappointing.

The Houston Rockets are good. We’ve known it all season, but now it’s real. It’s really real. James Harden is a basketball savant and this team just destroyed the Spurs in San Antonio for Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

The Rockets won Game 1, 126-99, handing Gregg Popovich one of his worst playoff loss since 2007. The domination started early for Houston, going into the half with a 69-39 lead. A 30-point lead at halftime against the Spurs. The Rockets are good.

The Raptors lost Game 1 of their second-round series with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night. Even though they beat the Bucks in the first round, they lost the first game of that series too! In all, the Raptors have now lost 11 Game 1s in a row, dating all the way back to 2001. Back when Vince Carter, Charles Oakley, and Dell Curry were still on the team. You want to remember what else was going on the last time the Raptors won the first game of a playoff series?

4. The West Wing won an Emmy for outstanding drama series.

LeBron James is not messing around en route a potential seventh consecutive NBA Finals. He came out of the gate aggressive and ready to crush the Toronto Raptors from the get-go. It was easy to forget that this was merely Game 1, because James was that disrespectful.

He finished with 35 points, four assists, and 10 rebounds, and was clearly the best player on the floor, able to put his head down and get to wherever, whenever.

LeBron James literally took a beer out of the hands of a waitress on the sideline and pretended to sip it seconds after he just barely missed an and-1 attempt.

File this under reasons why LeBron is the best.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are dunking all over the place in the opening quarter of their second-round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors.

Iman Shumpert wound ALL the way back for this one in just his second minute off the bench.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are off to an incredible start in the opening quarter of the team’s playoff series against the Toronto Raptors.

That is evident based on the many open three-pointers they’ve fired off, but more importantly by this: