We’re watching four players and a coach across three teams in the first round this year.
The 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament is wrapped, and the 16 team playoff field is set! Action in the first round starts on Saturday…… but we’re here for three specific teams with Marquette connections, and as luck would have it, all three of those teams don’t start until Sunday. That’s a fun triple-header of Marquette-connected pro hoops to wrap up your weekend, and we’ll be keeping our eyes open on all three series as long as they’re still running.
Here’s what you need to know about the former MU stars who are in the first round!
Jae Crowder & Doc Rivers: Milwaukee Bucks
Things got very touch and go late in the season in the Eastern Conference, as the Bucks finished 49-33 with the #3 seed, one game back of the Knicks…… but just two games ahead of a three-way tie for fifth and a possible spot in the play-in tournament. Milwaukee lost their last two games of the season to land in third while the Knicks closed out on a five game winning streak, and so it’s a first round series against the Indiana Pacers, one of those three teams in that tie for fifth place.
Making things even more challenging for Milwaukee? Giannis Antetokounmpo has a calf strain that sat him down for the final three games of the regular season. On one hand: He’ll have been out for two weeks since the injury when the series starts; on the other hand: if Giannis goes too hard too quick, there’s a risk that he misses the rest of the series. There’s also a lingering injury issue for Damian Lillard, and well, none of this is helping anyone’s thoughts about how far the Bucks can go in the playoffs.
We’re here for Jae Crowder and Doc Rivers reasons, though. Crowder played in 50 games for the Bucks this season, earning a starting spot 25 times. His missed time mostly came back in December and January, so he should be a regular rotation guy for the Bucks in this series. He’s averaging 6.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.3 rebounds in just over 23 minutes per game this season, which is his 12th in the NBA. Rivers was brought in as Milwaukee’s head coach after Adrian Griffin was dismissed after a 30-13 start to the season. Obviously the wins and losses weren’t the problem with a Bucks team that acquired Damian Lillard with an eye on contending for a title….. but if we presume that things are running more smoothly with Doc in charge, that hasn’t shown up on the court. Milwaukee went 19-20 during Doc’s tenure, and, uh, well, y’all can do math.
Game 1: Sunday, April 21, 6pm, TNT
Game 2: Tuesday, April 23, 7:30pm, NBA TV
Game 3: Friday, April 26, 4:30pm, ESPN
Game 4: Sunday, April 28, 6pm, TNT
Game 5*: Tuesday, April 30, TBD
Game 6*: Thursday, May 2, TBD
Game 7*: Saturday, May 4, TBD, TNT
Olivier-Maxence Prosper: Dallas Mavericks
The Western Conference playoffs are going to be one battle after another, it seems. Dallas is the #5 seed out west after finishing with a 50-32 record, which leaves them seven games behind #1 seed Oklahoma City and #2 Denver…. but just six behind #3 seed Minnesota. The Mavs missed out on home court advantage in this series by just one game, as their opponent, the Los Angeles Clippers, went 51-31.
In terms of points on the board, the Mavericks are kind of a two-man operation. Luka Doncic is a triple-double threat every time out, averaging 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game, while Noted Head Case Kyrie Irving tosses in 25.6 points per game while helping out across the board as well. While Dallas will need them to perform to get to the conference semifinals, they’ll need the supporting cast to chip in as well.
Does that mean we’ll see a lot of rookie Olivier-Maxence Prosper in the playoffs? Well, the good news on that front is that he played in 40 games this season. The bad news is that head coach Jason Kidd has only used Prosper eight times since March 1st…. and four of those were Dallas’ last four games of the season…. and OMax suddenly played 29 minutes and 37 minutes in the last two. Generally speaking, that’s not indicative of his entire season, as he’s averaging 3.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in eight minutes per outing. I’m gonna say that the Mavs were resting some guys late, huh? Never say never though, this is the playoffs, and there’s always unsung heroes popping up.
Game 1: Sunday, April 21, 2:30pm, ABC
Game 2: Tuesday, April 23, 9pm, TNT
Game 3: Friday, April 26, 7pm, ESPN
Game 4: Sunday, April 28, 2:30pm, ABC
Game 5*: Wednesday, May 1, TBD
Game 6*: Friday, May 3, TBD
Game 7: Sunday, May 5, TBD
Jimmy Butler & Jamal Cain: Miami Heat
Miami bounced back from a narrow loss in the #7 seed Play-In game to romp past Chicago in the #8 seed game, 112-91. I say romp in a 21 point win for two reasons. #1: The Heat fended off some early hot shooting by the Bulls to lead by as many as 19 late in the first quarter before leading by as many as 29 at one point. #2: Jimmy Butler did not play. Butler suffered an MCL sprain somewhat early in the game against Philadelphia but did not leave that contest. An MCL sprain means he’s going to be out multiple weeks at the very least, so it’s pretty much a guarantee that Butler will not play in this first round series. As the #8 seed, Miami draws the #1 seeded Boston Celtics, who finished with the best record in the regular season at 64-18. That’s seven games better than the OKC/Denver tie for the best record in the Western Conference, so yeah, the C’s are good.
Jimmy Butler’s absence from the lineup didn’t help Jamal Cain get on the floor for the Heat in the #8 seed game, and so I don’t think we’ll be seeing him against Boston either. This could be a fascinating series without a rooting interest, as logic would dictate that Boston should evaporate a hobbled Miami team….. but a 44 win #8 seed Miami team beat a 57 win #2 seed Boston team — admittedly with Butler — in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals last year.
Game 1: Sunday, April 21, Noon, ABC
Game 2: Wednesday, April 24, 6pm, TNT
Game 3: Saturday, April 27, 5pm, TNT
Game 4: Monday, April 29, TBD
Game 5*: Wednesday, May 1, TBD
Game 6*: Friday, May 3, TBD
Game 7*: Sunday, May 5, TBD