Bucks, Clippers and Lakers advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs

Three more teams advanced to the second round of the 2020 NBA Playoffs on the weekend. The Milwaukee Bucks eliminated the Orlando Magic in five games on Saturday with a 118-104 win. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the Portland Trail Blazers in five games on Saturday with a 131-122 win, and the Los Angeles Clippers eliminated the Dallas Mavericks in six games with a 111-97 win.

The Bucks will now play the Miami Heat in one of two Eastern Conference semifinals. The other has the Boston Celtics playing the Toronto Raptors. In game one in the Orlando bubble on Sunday, the Celtics were victorious 112-94.

In the Western Conference, there are still two more first round series to be decided. The Houston Rockets lead the Oklahoma City Thunder three games to two, and the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz are tied at three. In the Rockets/Thunder series, the Rockets saw the return of Russell Westbrook. Even though he only had seven points, seven rebounds and six assists, the Rockets hammered the Thunder 114-80 to take the lead in the series.

The Nuggets/Jazz series meanwhile has been the best by far. On Sunday, Jamal Murray of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada registered his second 50-point game of the series as Denver beat Utah 119-107.  On the Jazz side, Donovan Mitchell led the way with 44 points. In the series to date, Mitchell has had games of 57 and 51 points.

As the 2020 NBA Playoffs evolve, three of the games’ biggest stars are now in the second round. As the Bucks, Clippers, and Lakers get deeper into the playoffs, there is no doubt that Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, and Kawhi Leonard will experience tougher tests than they did in round one. On the weekend Antetokounmpo had a double double, as he had 28 points and 17 rebounds. James had a triple double (36 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds), and Leonard had a double double (33 points and 14 rebounds). Even though James had a triple double, it was Anthony Davis that led the Lakers with 43 points.

In other NBA news, former NBA center Clifford Robinson of Buffalo, New York died of cancer on Saturday at the age of 53. Robinson was honoured before every weekend playoff game. From 1989 to 2007, Robinson played for the Portland Trail Blazers, Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Golden State Warriors and New Jersey Nets. The NBA’s sixth man of the year in 1993 with Portland, Robinson also represented the Trail Blazers at the 1994 NBA All-Star Game. In 1380 regular season games, Robinson averaged 14.2 points per game.

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