In the past playoffs, there were always a few familiar faces calling for rain, James, Curry, Durant, Leonard, and the names of these 4 people always appeared in the finals of the 2010s. But since last season, the pattern has begun to change, new people are starting to emerge, and mesozoic superstars are getting stronger and stronger. By this season, the NBA's pattern has been completely chaotic: old Zhan is out of Adu was swept 0-4, and it is expected to stage a "black 9" + let 3 chase 4
It is said that Durant and James are the big and small kings of the league, but now it seems to be a thing of the past. Although James can average 30 points per game in the regular season, his dominance is not as good as before, his physical strength is only enough to attack and not enough to defend, and the Lakers are squeezed out of the playoffs at the last moment, making us unable to see the playoffs fully dedicated. In fact, with the strength of the Lakers this season, entering the playoffs should not make waves. The Clippers also failed to pass the playoffs because of too many injuries. Leonard has not played in a whole season, of course, the ceiling of this team is still very high, they do not need to make a lot of adjustments, just wait for the core to return.
Last year the Nets eliminated the Celtics 4-1, and this year the Celtics returned a wave of 4-0. In addition to Irving's slump, Durant can also be said to have been beaten by Tatum, the first 3 games, Tatum can repeatedly score in key moments of the game, Durant rarely responds, this situation is very rare, may be the end of the regular season averaged more than 40 minutes per game overdraft, or it may be that Durant is really old.
In contrast, Curry's model is better, sticking to a team, sacrificing time and energy, waiting for newcomers to grow up to become assistants. Look at the current Warriors, there are many young talents, superstars are explosive, and the next few years are the window for winning the championship.
"Black 9" refers to the Pelicans, who used to say Black Eight because only the top eight in the division could play in the playoffs, but now it's changed to a playoff, and the Pelicans are the beneficiaries, and after winning 2 games in a row, they advance to the 9th place in the West. And now in the series, the Pelicans draw 2-2 with the Suns, Ingram has played 30+ games in a row, and the Suns simply can't limit him. If Paul can't get a high score, the Suns' offense can't be beaten, but this requirement is really too high for the 37-year-old Paul.
The 76ers were the first team in the league to lead 3-0, but after two more games, the score was 3-2. Embiid still insisted on playing with injuries, 20 points and 21 points in 1 game was very ineffective, and Harden failed to stand up at key moments. Of course, the more important reason is still on the head coach Rivers, don't forget that Raptors coach Nas is also the head of the championship, if Rivers can not cope with the changes in the Raptors, it is possible to lose next time. If it is really let 3 chase 4, the hat of human beings being reversed by the essence can never be taken off.