The NBA Playoffs have lived up to the billing thus far, with
--- games going into overtime through two games in all of the series. Some
series have gone back-and-forth, but there are also a couple teams are staring
down 0-2 holes. 85 percent of teams go on and win once they open up a 2-0 lead;
only 16 teams have come back from an 0-2 deficit in an NBA playoff series, most
recently being done by the Memphis Grizzlies last season against the Los
Angeles Clippers. Will any of the teams facing that deficit become the 17th
team to do it? Here are their chances of breaking through and taking control of
the series.
Chicago Bulls – The Bulls came into the
playoffs riding high, as they rode their chemistry and defense to the fourth
seed in the Eastern Conference. Both things have abandoned the Bulls in the
postseason thus far, as they are in an 0-2 hole to the Washington Wizards,
despite having the home court advantage.
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| sportspyder.com |
Coming into the series, many people believed the Bulls held
a serious advantage in the paint, as the trio of Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer and
Taj Gibson has been the backbone of the team all season. No one told the
Wizards this, as they have actually been the ones benefiting from the play of
their big man, with the resurgent Nene leading the way. Nene has gone for 24
points, eight rebounds, three assists and 17 points, eight rebounds and three
assists in the first two games. He has been able to affect the game of Noah,
disrupting Noah with his brute strength.
The Bulls should still feel comfortable that in the end Noah
and their other big men will get the most of the Wizards bigs, but the problem
they face then is slowing down the Wizards perimeter players. John Wall and
Bradley Beal make up one of the best young backcourts, and are thought of by
many as potentially the best backcourt in the NBA within the next few seasons.
Wall has yet to get going, combining for only 10 field goals
in the two games, while turning the ball over eight times. The Bulls will
regret not getting at least one, if not both of these games at home, as they
cannot pin their playoff hopes on Wall putting up underwhelming games four more
times.
Not in the Bulls favor is that Beal looked much more
comfortable in Game 2, leading the way for the Wizards with 26 points. He made
big time shots in the fourth quarter as well, canning two of his four three
point makes to keep the Wizards deficit at a manageable margin in the fourth
quarter. Beal, like Wall and Nene, give the Wizards a player that create
offense for himself and get a basket when they need it most. That is something
the Bulls lack, as D.J. Augustin was the player keeping them in the game
tonight.
Even worse for the Bulls, the Wizards are now heading home with
all of the momentum and a 2-0 lead. The Bulls have proven they play well in the
face of adversity, but this is a task that seems too tall to climb. The Bulls
became the 24
th team in NBA history to go down 0-2 starting the
series at home, and only three teams previously came back to win the series.
The Bulls should avoid the sweep, but becoming the fourth team to come back
from that kind of series deficit does not look to be in their future.
Charlotte Bobcats
– The Bobcats gave the Miami Heat everything they could in Game 2, yet the
result was the same as Game 1; a loss. The end score was closer, but in the
postseason morale victories are useless, and that is all the Bobcats came away
with from the first two games of the series is a morale victory.
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| Lynne Sladky-AP Photo |
When you get 22 points from Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who
hadn’t scored more than 11 in game since November 15th, you are
thinking positively. Add in the fact that Al Jefferson had 18, Kemba Walker
with 16 and Gerald Henderson scored 15, and you would say the Bobcats had a
pretty good shot at the victory.
Unfortunately for them, the Heat have the best player in the
world in LeBron James and he put up a monster game of his own, scoring 32
points with eight assists and six rebounds.
With big man Jefferson injuring his left foot in Game 1, the
Bobcats miniscule chances of pulling off the big upset became nonexistent.
Couple that with the fact that the Heat are a perfect 17-0 against the Bobcats
since James and Chris Bosh joined Dwayne Wade, getting a victory in this series
would be something to celebrate for the Bobcats. A win on their home court in
the playoffs would be nice for the fans, and the best they should expect, as
the Heat have the Bobcats number and the Bobcats are without a lot of firepower
with Jefferson hobbled.
Houston Rockets – Coming into the postseason,
this was a series circled by many to be the most entertaining of the first
round. Matched up with the Portland Trail Blazers, this was a series many
people picked to go seven games. Both teams were extremely similar, posting
identical regular season records and playing similar styles. Unfortunately for
the Rockets, they do not have LaMarcus Aldridge.
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| USATSI |
Aldridge has been a monster through two games, scoring 89
combined points between Game 1 and 2. The Rockets have had no answer for
Aldridge, as he has dominated all over the court. He is 17-26 from the paint,
16-31 from the rest of two point shots, and 2-2 from three point line. These
are not all open shots, but Aldridge has supreme confidence right now and does
not look like he will be slowed down anytime soon. He is the reason why the
Blazers are up 2-0 in a playoff series for the first time since 1977,
coincidentally the same year they won their only championship.
The Rockets blew a golden opportunity to tie this series up,
as Aldridge was the only player who shot the ball well for the Blazers in Game
2, and Dwight Howard finally showed up. He scored 32 points to go with 14
rebounds, yet that was not enough to get the Rockets a victory. Houston
even dominated the paint, outscoring the Blazers by 38 in the paint, yet they
still found a way to lose the game.
Things are not looking up for the Rockets right now, and
have the deck severely stacked against them. The one thing that can get the
Rockets back on track is James Harden. All season they have relied on Harden to
lead their up-tempo attack, but through two games in the post season he has
struggled. The struggles have caused the Rockets to change how they play,
running the offense through Howard on the interior in Game 2 instead of getting
out in transition.
The Rockets need Harden to play how he played
throughout the regular season if they are to have any chance of making this a
series again. With how similar the teams are, the Rockets have the best chance
of coming back from the 2-0 deficit they face of any team on this list. That is
not saying much, as teams down 2-0 are in a big hole, but when you have
firepower of the level of the Rockets anything is possibly. It just is not very
likely, but for the fans sake hopefully they get it going as the two games in
this series have made for the most entertaining series thus far in the post
season.
