I had a chance to chat with NBA columnists Sekou Smith and Vince Thomas about two top teams facing possible elimination in the first round of the playoffs – the Mavericks and the Nuggets. Click here to check out our discussion in Episode 6 of the Hang Time Podcast.
The Mavericks and Spurs brought back old-school playoff basketball in Sunday’s incredible matchup. After a high-charged contest played with rugged intensity from start to finish, the Spurs came out on top to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. It’s unfortunate that these two teams had to meet in the first round. Both are better than some others that will slip past lesser adversaries and move on to the second round. The Mavs will look for a lift from their hometown crowd and fight like mad to stay alive in Game 5 tonight at 9:30 PM ET.
The Nuggets find themselves in the same predicament and must win or go home when they face the Jazz in Game 5 tomorrow night. It will be a terrible upset if the Jazz, who are without starters Mehmet Okur and Andrei Kirilenko, take the first round 4-1. The Nuggets were considered real contenders this season – some people even felt they might wind up beating the Lakers if they were to meet in the playoffs. Now with the series on the line, their season could come to an abrupt end all too soon unless they can get back the game-winning confidence that gave them the early first-round edge with a decisive victory in Game 1.
Dick Stockton and I will have the call along with Marc Fein on the sidelines: Utah @ Denver Wednesday 4/28 at 10:30 PM ET on TNT.
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