The 2024 NBA Playoffs continued on Tuesday with a doubleheader on TNT. It started with the powerhouse Boston Celtics opening up their Eastern Conference Semifinals series with a blowout win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Boston took Game 1 by the score of 120-95 behind Jaylen Brown.
In the night cap, the Oklahoma City Thunder opened their series at home with a win over the Dallas Mavericks. Luka Doncic struggled big time in the 117-95 loss. These are among the biggest winners and losers from the NBA Playoffs on Tuesday.
Winner: Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics
Talk about being efficient. Brown took over the lead-scoring role from Jayson Tatum as the Boston Celtics opened up the second round of the NBA Playoffs Tuesday evening. The wing connected on 12-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-6 from distance en route to scoring 32 points. Cleveland really had no answer when it came to throwing defenders in Brown’s direction with Isaac Okoro and Caris LeVert struggling. If Brown keeps it up, the Celtics will make this a short series. Take that to the bank.
Loser: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Doncic noted in the first round of the NBA Playoffs that he was dealing with a knee sprain. In fact, the MVP candidate indicated that he wouldn’t be playing if this were the regular season. Even with some time off before Game 1 against the Thunder, Doncic was nowhere near 100%. It showed up with a lack of aggression on his part. It also showed up on the box score with Doncic connecting on just 6-of-19 shots from the field for 19 points. He also turned the ball over five times. Dallas ended up finishing minus-21 in Doncic’s 41 minutes of action. It was brutal all the way around.
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Winner: Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers
Mitchell talked about how media underestimated this team heading into Game 1 against the Celtics. He felt disrespected. About that? The Cavaliers had absolutely no chance in Boston. This one was pretty much over from the get. But from a micro perspective, the star guard did his thing. Mitchell scored 33 of the Cavaliers 89 points before the benches were cleared with 3:42 remaining in the final stanza. He hit on a solid 12-of-25 from the field while adding six rebounds and five assists. Simply put, Mitchell needs other players on the Cavs’ roster to step up.
Loser: Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers
Speaking of stepping up, Garland failed to do that during the NBA Playoffs on Tuesday. The guard connected on just 6-of-15 from the field while scoring 14 points. He added only three rebounds while missing on 6-of-8 from distance. It was not a great performances from the inconsistent guard. This comes after a first round in which Garland averaged 14.9 points on 45% shooting. He simply needs to play better if Cleveland is going to make this a series.
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Winner: Derrick White, Boston Celtics
Derrick White was a true star in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, averaging 22.4 points on 48% shooting from three-point range. While White has been a good player dating back to his days with the San Antonio Spurs, his emergence has made Boston nearly unbeatable. He was back at it in Game 1 against Cleveland. The guard scored 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting. He hit on 7-of-12 from distance, adding five assists in the process. This type of continued production will lead to Boston hoisting the Larry O’Brien in June.
Loser: Josh Giddey, Oklahoma City Thunder
Insult to injury for Josh Giddey to open the second round of the NBA Playoffs. That included being bloodied a bit during the game. Overall, the former lottery pick did not play a huge role in Oklahoma City’s win. He scored just two points on 1-of-4 shooting in 17 minutes of action. In a sign that Giddey lagged behind his teamamtes, OKC was minus-seven with the troubled youngster on the court and plus-29 with him on the bench. One now has to wonder whether we’ll see a lot more of Aaron Wiggins and Carson Wallace in favor of Giddey moving forward.
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Winner: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Was there ever really a thought? Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the best players in the game, and he continues to prove it in the NBA Playoffs. The MVP candidate connected on a mere 8-of-19 from the field Tuesday night. But he added nine rebounds and nine assists in a great all-around performance. Primarily, SGA’s ability to distribute the ball on offense while playing great perimeter defense was a major tone-setter in Oklahoma City’s series-opening win. The dude is a force. He’s making a major name for himself.
Loser: Max Strus, Cleveland Cavaliers
Strus was brought on by Cleveland ahead of this past season to provide more scoring in the backcourt. To an extent, he did that. But the veteran has been extremely inconsistent. The Cavaliers can’t have that going up against the mighty Celtics. Unfortunately, this was indeed the case Tuesday night. He scored just five points while missing on 4-of-5 from distance in 35 minutes of action. That’s simply not going to cut it. If Strus does not get his double figures moving forward in the series, it’s going to last four games.
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Winner: Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder
A breakout star this past regular season, Williams started out slow Tuesday night. But he came up big as Oklahoma City opened up a huge second-half lead. That included hitting multiple three-pointers and a rim-rocking dunk. Overall, Williams scored 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting. The stats tell us one story. Williams’ overall impact on the game told us another story. He acted as a third scorer behind SGA and Chet Holmgren.
Loser: Dallas Mavericks bench
When the likes of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are not having big games, Dallas’ depth needs to show up. That’s especially true against a Thunder team that goes about nine deep. Outside of Jalen Green (11 points), we did not see this from Dallas’ bench Tuesday evening. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored two points on 1-of-5 shooting. Star rookie Dereck Lively scored just two points with four rebounds and was minus-13 in as many minutes. If the Mavs’ supporting cast doesn’t come to play, this is going to be a short series.