SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As the first round of the NBA playoffs nears an end, the main storylines have revolved around injuries and suspensions, but several top seeds have shown their true colors.
In Monday’s Locked On NBA podcast, Locked On NBA insider Howard Beck joined the show to give his insight on all the biggest series, including the defending champions getting even.
“You could kind of see this coming,” Beck said of the Warriors tying their series with Sacramento at 2-2. “ They’re gonna go home, they’re gonna be pumped up by their crowd. As bad as they are on the road this season, they’re still dominant at home. … And it went exactly to that script.”
Elsewhere in the Western Conference, the Lakers lead a bizarre series with Memphis 2-1, but haven’t gotten much offensively from star big man Anthony Davis.
“There are days you look out there and say ‘this is a top-five player, this is a guy who can lead a team, this is a guy you can build around,” Beck said of Davis. “And then sometimes he disappears. … He should be winning his matchup on a nightly basis.”
The Grizzlies have both their starting and backup centers Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke sidelined due to major injuries in this series, yet Davis has been unable to make a consistent impact. Los Angeles is at home Monday for Game Four.
In the Big Apple, the Knicks took a surprising 3-1 lead over Cleveland with a 102-93 win over the Cavs on Sunday.
“This is a top-four team with pressure on them, with a bunch of young guys who don’t have a lot of experience who had to figure out how to play in the most intense environment possibly in the NBA, Beck said. “And I think you saw it in their play.”
The Cavs’ young stars continue to play poorly, while in Game Four, veteran offseason acquisition Donovan Mitchell shot 5-18 from the field and was not heavily involved in the offense down the stretch.