By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
It’s only just the beginning of the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs but a lot of expert predictions might have to be disregarded after a surprising turn of events in the April 17 schedule of the post-season.
During the four games played, only one higher-seeded team managed to pull off a win when Western Conference’s no. 1 squad Denver Nuggets crushed the no. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves, 109-80.
In the other games of the Western Conference, the second-seeded Memphis Grizzlies got served on their home floor by the seventh-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, 128-112, while the no. 4 ranked Phoenix Suns lost in a nail-biter at the hands of the fifth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers, 115-110.
Meanwhile, in the Eastern Conference, the no. 1 seeded Milwaukee Bucks dropped their opening game against the no. 8 team Miami Heat, 130-117.
After most of the home teams bagged their respective wins during the start of the 2023 playoffs, the first-round trend suddenly dropped when three of the favorite teams to advance to the semifinals quickly lost Game 1.
The Nuggets showed why they are the best team in the Western Conference when their high-octane offense proved to be too much for the Timberwolves who had to clinch their current spot after two play-in games.
Jamal Murray led Denver in scoring after shooting 9/22 from the field on his way to 24 big points alongside eight assists and eight rebounds.
Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic, one of the candidates for this year’s 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, filled the stat sheets and tallied 13 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, and one steal.
Minnesota managed to keep themselves within striking distance after the first half but the Nuggets started to blow the game wide open when they scored 32 points in just the third quarter alone.
After the third frame, Denver suddenly extended its lead to as much as 30 points and provided the early exclamation point when they handed the Timberwolves a barrage of three-pointers with six minutes left in the fourth.
The Nuggets will look to take care of their home floor business in Game 2 for a comfortable 2-0 lead but the Timberwolves will seek to exact their revenge and try to drag the series longer to avoid another first-round exit.
