The results of the night in the NBA
Sixers @ Heat : 92-106
Mavs@ Suns : 114-121
Miami Heat – Philadelphia Sixers: 1-0
Unsurprisingly, Philadelphia did not achieve the feat of winning in Miami without Joel Embiid. We were waiting James Harden more aggressive, as he himself had mentioned, but we did not really see the 2018 MVP in these arrangements. Bothered by the Heat’s elite defense and perhaps more capable of activating this full offense mode, Harden (16 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists at 5/13) like his entire team lowered the flag in the 2nd half .
The Floridians, led by one point at the break, quietly raised their voices. Bam Adebayo (24 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists at 8/10) feasted in the absence of Embiid and Tyler Herro (25 points) has regained all its verve after spending the last few days with breathing difficulties.
💥 @Bam1of1 in Game 1:
24 PTS
8-10 FGM
12 REBs
4 ASTs
2 STLsTea @MiamiHEAT seek a 2-0 series lead Wednesday at 7:30pm/et on TNT. pic.twitter.com/rhQL3LgsUH
— NBA (@NBA) May 3, 2022
Without Kyle Lowry, Miami didn’t seem too worried during the game. Erik Spoelstra’s group defended the lead leaving only 92 points in Philadelphia, with the only Tobias Harris close to his optimal performance (27 pts).
Embiid being still absent for game 2 (there is a greater chance that he is in a queue at the prefecture of Sarcelles for his naturalization than at South Beach), Doc Rivers will have to find solutions to the limits displayed in this first encounter of the series. The outside address (6/34) is one. The impact of James Harden is another.
Joel Embiid wants to become French and play with the Blues!
Phoenix Suns-Dallas Mavericks: 1-0
The logic was also respected on the side of Phoenix, where the Suns won game 1 of their series against Dallas, not without having had to get caught in the face of a big pig game. Luka Doncic. The Slovenian has compiled 45 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists at 50% shooting and going on the line 14 times, which is generally a bad sign for the opponent in the NBA.
The opponent in question is a little different from normal, as the Suns are able to survive performances of this order if they remain limited to one player. However, apart from Maxi Kléber (who badly broke his back and tailbone by falling badly at one point), no one other than Luka seemed ready for the event on the Mavs side. Phoenix has therefore always been in the lead on the scoreboard and has only rarely allowed the Texans to get close enough to believe in a reversal of the situation.
Most career PPG in the playoffs:
33.4—Michael Jordan
33.4 —Luka DoncicThey’re the only two averaging 30+. pic.twitter.com/MOlhhHkTLO
— StatMuse (@statmuse) May 3, 2022
By shooting at 50% and ultra dominating the rebound battle (51-36), Chris Paul and his comrades were able to take this game 1 quite calmly. This is the 10th consecutive time that the Suns have beaten the Mavs in the NBA and there may be need for a match refereed by Scott Foster to break this dynamic.
Deandre Ayton (25 pts, 8 rebounds) has, as since the start of the playoffs, been excellent. Devin Booker struggles a little bit to find his address (7/20) but compensates with a good activity (9 rebounds and 8 assists), while CP3 did not have to draw on his physical resources, Cam Payne having made enough good passages to save him more than 30 minutes of play.
We will also note the good contribution of Cam Johnson (17 pts) coming off the bench or this very beautiful and unexpected sequence of JaVale McGeewent to dunk in transition after stealing the ball from Luka Doncic.
Javale McGee WAS UP FOR THE DANCE pic.twitter.com/As0BoFWNG2
— Ted Buddwell 🏀🏈 (@TedBuddy8) May 3, 2022