Just The One NBA Playoff Game For Friday
We are now at the stage where the majority of Playoff games have been concluded and we are not far away from the next round games taking place. On Sunday, the Golden State Warriors and the Memphis Grizzlies battle it out in the first game of their Conference Semi-Final and yet here we are on Friday and there are still Playoff series raging around us looking for a winner!
On Thursday night, there were two NBA Playoff games and there are probably still some teams and fans celebrating after a rather big win at this stage of the campaign. Of course, this means that there are some teams and fans coming to terms with a big loss, such is the nature of NBA basketball at this time of year.
The Bulls finally delivered the knockout blow to the Bucks season, giving them a 4-2 win in the series. The Bulls were in impressive form and the final score line of 66-120 emphasises the gulf in class over the course of the game. The Bulls now have a trip to Cleveland on Monday to look forward to.
There is still all to play for in the Clippers and Spurs series though as an away win in San Antonio ensured that the series is tied at 3-3 at the end of Game 6. This means that we have a deciding match in Los Angeles on Saturday and who knows who is going to prevail in that one. The 96-102 win for the Clippers prevented the reigning champions from progressing through and the Spurs know that they are at risk when they head to LA this weekend.
Other news from around the NBA
In other NBA news, there has been a celebration for Andrew Wiggins, who was named the Rookie of the Year on Thursday. As the number one pick last June (by the Cavaliers), big things were expected from Wiggins but he has shocked many people with his consistency and talented over the season. He was traded to Minnesota in August in a move that allowed Kevin Love to move to Cleveland.
The consistency of Wiggins was shown by the fact that he picked up the first four Western Conference Rookie of the Month awards of the campaign, marking his impressive start in the campaign and pushing him onwards to this award.
The player who headed to Cleveland in the trade deal hasn’t had such a good time of late and Kevin Love has been informed that he will be out of action for around 4 to 6 months. Love had undergone surgery on his dislocated left shoulder, and while surgery was deemed to be a success, there is a lengthy rehabilitation period in store for the player, with the Cavs hoping that he is back early on the 2015/16 NBA campaign.
We now move on to the one game taking place in the NBA on Friday.
Atlanta Hawks @ Brooklyn Nets
The Hawks have a 3-2 lead going into this game and they know that a win in Brooklyn brings the series to a close and allows them to focus on their Conference Semi-Final. However, a home win means that we have a 3-3 score line and in a best of seven series, this means that we will be going into a sudden death game where the winner takes all the glory and the loser knows that their season has ended. This is the sort of drama that plenty of fans are calling out for and if there is a seventh game in this series, it will take place on Sunday.
Of course, that would require a Brooklyn Nets win, and there is no guarantee of that happening. Then again, there is no guarantee of what will happen between these two teams, who have served up some exhilarating and exciting basketball so far over the course of the series.
The Nets may not have been assured of a Playoff spot at the end of their final regular season game but they look as though they mean to extend their season for as long as possible. The history books are on the side of the Nets as they have never lost a first round Game 6 matchup, so they will be hoping that history repeats itself.
The Hawks won the opening two games of the series before the Nets responded with two wins in Brooklyn and they managed to rally back from a big loss in Game 5 before ultimately losing out. However, they showed a fighting spirit in that match-up which wasn’t always apparent during the course of the normal season, and they do have a chance of upsetting the Hawks yet again in this game. The Hawks will clearly want the game and series settled at this point but the Nets are not going to lie down and let that happen without a fight.
The first quarter has been hugely important in this series with the Hawks vastly outscoring the Nets in this quarter in their wins and the Nets were by far the stronger team in the opening quarter in their two wins. This means if you are looking for an indicator in how the game will pan out, make sure you watch from the start.
The Hawks come into this game with a 60-22 record and their away record stands at 25-16. In their last 10 games, the Hawks have a 5-5 record. For the Nets, they hold a 38-44 record so far this season and their 19-22 record at home is the exact same as their away record at the moment. In the last 10 games, the Nets have notched up a 6-4 record. With respect to average points for, the Hawks lead with a 102.4 record to 98.0 and for average points against, the Hawks have the advantage of 97.2 to 100.9.
Taking the Atlanta Hawks with a -4 handicap, at odds of 1.90, makes sense because they will surely be fired up to put this series behind them and move on to the next round. Bet Now!
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