The stars were out on day one of the NBA playoffs, with Donovan Mitchelll scoring 32 points to lead the Jazz to a 99-93 win in Dallas, Karl-Anthony Towns on 29 points and 13 boards to the Timberwolves leading to a Game 1 upset at Memphis, 130-117, and then Tyrese Maxey scored 38 points for the 76ers and Jordan Poole 30 for Golden State in losses to the Raptors and Nuggets, respectively.
Wait a minute… Tyrese Maxey and Jordan Poole?
Last year’s playoffs saw 106 30-point performances, with Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the way with 13. But there were a total of 27 players who made it, from Devin Booker and Kevin Durant to Dillon Brooks and Terance Mann. Sometimes it’s who you think it is, and sometimes it’s not.
Maxey had a 33-point game this season, and it was against the Raptors. It was also in November, well before James Harden came to Philadelphia, and with Joel Embiid out of the lineup. Both played on Saturday, and both contributed – Harden with 14 assists, Embiid with 15 boards – but they combined 11-to-32 compared to the 14-to-21 show Maxey put on. The Raptors must win the game in a streak where neither Embiid nor Harden has 25 points. They didn’t because of Maxey.
Poole has scored 30 or more points in 10 games this season, averaging 18.5 a night, but when you win Golden State in the playoffs, think the Splash Brothers. Klay Thompson might have scored 19 points on 5-of-10 shooting from downtown, but Steph Curry was only 5-of-13 and scored 16 points off the bench on his return from a sprained ankle.
Still, like the Raptors, the Nuggets need to win the game in which Curry only scores 16 points or there’s not much point in playing the series. Instead, Denver was overwhelmed by Poole, and although Nikola Jokić had 25 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, Denver lost for the second time in three playoff games in which the MVP recorded numbers as good or better.
The other Curry, Seth, starts Sunday’s playoffs with the Nets. If he makes 30 after Steph didn’t, and somehow neither Durant nor Kyrie Irving…even if Seth had a pair of 30s in last year’s playoffs, something’s up.
