NBA Preview: April 17

The NBA Playoffs officially got underway on Saturday. Over the last 48 hours, everybody has played once. On Monday, there will be two game twos. One will be in the Eastern Conference and one will be in the Western Conference.

Brooklyn Nets @ Philadelphia 76ers

The 76ers lead the best out of seven series 1-0. On Saturday, Philadelphia beat Brooklyn 121-101 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

My Take:

Mikal Bridges had a game-high 30 points in game one for Brooklyn, but did not compare to the all-around performances of Joel Embiid and James Harden of the 76ers in game one. The Brooklyn supporting cast simply did not have an impact as Bridges only had one assist. Embiid meanwhile led Philly in scoring with 26 points, while James Harden had a double-double as he had 23 points and 13 assists. The 76ers are the better bunch here, and should easily cover the -10 spread. I also like the over here of 213. I do not think Brooklyn’s defense is strong enough to keep the total number of points under that mark.

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Golden State Warriors @ Sacramento Kings

The Kings lead the best out of seven series 1-0. On Saturday, Sacramento beat Golden State 126-123 at the Golden 1 Center in the California capital.

My Take:

Yes, I know that the Warriors are the defending champions, but somehow and some way, this franchise has not seemed comfortable on the road this year. The Warriors were an awful 11-30 away from San Francisco. Only the Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs had more road losses. They had 33 defeats away from home. Take Sacramento at +1 and the over at 239.5. Both offenses are potent.

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