The 2017 NBA Playoffs were brutal for the Portland Trail Blazers. We all knew a series against the Golden State Warriors had potential to be Blowout City, but PDX, despite keeping things close in Game 3 (119-113), fell in four contests by an average of 18 points per night.
Ouch.
The good news? The Blazers aren’t the only group to be completely embarrassed.
None of the following is meant to be a troll-fest. It might end up being one…but the onus is on the league and its teams/players to keep us entertained—not us.
So far this postseason, we’ve seen 20 games out of 63 end with a margin of victory of at least 15 points. The most recent of the bunch is hands down the most pathetic: a 39-point drubbing of the Houston Rockets…in an elimination game…at the hands of a San Antonio Spurs squad sans Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard.
The average margin of victory league-wide hasn’t been as bad as Portland’s in Round 1, but on average, teams are losing this postseason by 12.9 points per game.
Again, that’s over an incredible 63 matchups.
As for those historically pesky Warriors, they did their damage against the Blazers, but they didn’t slow down. When faced with the defensively dominant and offensively underrated Utah Jazz, they swept the series with an average point differential of 15.
Throughout Golden State’s eight playoff games, they’ve not only put together the fifth-best point differential in history, they’ve also made their mark in that category against the likes of former Larry O’Brien Trophy winners.
Think this is just a Western Conference thing? Think again.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have combined with the Warriors to become the first two-team duo in league history to both win their first eight games. And wouldn’t you know it, the two Eastern Conference squads fighting for a chance to face those defending champion Cavs are locked in a series right now that has gone five contests hasn’t seen a single game decided by fewer than 10 points.
In fact, the average margin of victory in the showdown between the Washington Wizards and Bostons Celtics has been a mind-blowing 18 points per night, the previous three outings decided by an astronomical 22.7 points per contest.
Let’s call it like it is, folks. This postseason has stunk. Not only did the Blazers lay an egg, but the league as a whole has proven two things: 1) Parity exists in the NBA, but 2) It only exists at the top.
Sometimes in this league, it’s about finding silver linings and making the best of the hand you’re dealt. For Portland, it has three lottery picks and a young center that (hopefully) will put his injuries behind him at the start of 2017-18. For the league at large, it has a finals rematch (most likely) coming that is truly going to be more compelling that most want to admit.
But as far as the postseason as it stands now is concerned, the Blazers were dealt a 2-8-offsuit while the league as a whole got the dreadful 2-7.
This is Cleveland and Golden State’s NBA, folks.
We all just live in it.
