NBA Playoffs 2024: In Game 1s, it was Home, Sweet Home. Road teams now will try to recover
By The Associated Press
Posted 4/22/24
Home teams won 54.3% of their games in the regular season, the lowest such percentage in the NBA’s 78-year history. On the opening weekend of the playoffs, home-court advantage was a thing again. …
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NBA Playoffs 2024: In Game 1s, it was Home, Sweet Home. Road teams now will try to recover
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams celebrates in the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the New Orleans Pelicans, Sunday, April 21, 2024, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)
Posted
By The Associated Press
Home teams won 54.3% of their games in the regular season, the lowest such percentage in the NBA's 78-year history.
On the opening weekend of the playoffs, home-court advantage was a thing again.
Game 1 of Round 1 all had a similar ending — the home teams prevailed. For the first time since 2013, home teams were undefeated in Round 1, Game 1 of the NBA playoffs.
“You want to take care of business at home, especially with us being the home-court advantage team,” Clippers forward Paul George said. “It’s very important to start off on the right note.”
Added Milwaukee's Damian Lillard: “It's about setting a tone.”
The opening games — with one exception — were not close, with an average margin of 13.25 points. Boston led Miami by as many as 34 points, Milwaukee led Indiana by 30, the Los Angeles Clippers led Dallas by 29, Minnesota led Phoenix by 27 and Cleveland led Orlando by 20. It was the first time since 2016 that five Game 1s in Round 1 saw teams lead by at least 20.
The drama was saved for the end, when Oklahoma City survived New Orleans 94-92. CJ McCollum had a decent 3-point look for the Pelicans in the final seconds, but it missed and the Thunder escaped to cap the perfect weekend for home teams.
For those wondering, in 2013 when home teams went 8-0 to open Round 1, they went 6-2 in Game 2s. The 2004 playoffs also saw an 8-0 mark for home clubs in Round 1 openers; those teams went 7-1 in Game 2s.
NATIONAL TV SCHEDULE
Monday
7 p.m. — Orlando at Cleveland, NBA TV
7:30 p.m. — Philadelphia at New York, TNT/TruTV
10 p.m. — L.A. Lakers at Denver, TNT/TruTV
Tuesday
7:30 p.m. — Phoenix at Minnesota, TNT/TruTV
8:30 p.m. — Indiana at Milwaukee, NBA TV
10 p.m. — Dallas at L.A. Clippers, TNT/TruTV
Wednesday
7 p.m. — Miami at Boston, TNT/TruTV
9:30 p.m. — New Orleans at Oklahoma City, TNT/TruTV
BETTING GUIDE
Boston has home-court advantage throughout the NBA playoffs and currently is the favorite to win the championship, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. The Celtics are listed at +125, ahead of defending champion Denver (+275). Next up: the Los Angeles Clippers (+1300), Milwaukee (+1400), Oklahoma City (+1600) and Minnesota (+1800).
WHAT TO KNOW
— Denver's Nikola Jokic, Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Dallas' Luka Doncic are MVP finalists. NBA awards start dropping this week.
— Giannis Antetokounmpo misses Game 1 for the Bucks, as does Kawhi Leonard for the Clippers. Also still out: Jimmy Butler for the Heat and Zion Williamson for the Pelicans.
That's because he's a 23-year-old Oklahoma City fan who got a chance to take a half-court shot to win $20,000 during Game 1 against New Orleans. He had 30 seconds to connect; on his fifth try, he swished the big winner.
The Thunder said O'Conner was also the recipient of the 1,000,000th playoffs T-shirt in team history. According to the team, O'Conner said he'll use the $20,000 to start his own business.
STAT OF THE DAY
Damian Lillard had 35 first-half points in Milwaukee's Game 1 win over Indiana, matching the third highest-scoring opening half in NBA playoff history. (Charles Barkley, in 1994, and Kevin Durant, in 2019, each had 38 before halftime of a playoff game.) Lillard went scoreless in the second half.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“He's got that prizefighter-like mentality. It's almost like he was training for the fight. And then when the bell rings, he seems to be ready. That's his mentality. And that's how he plays.” — Bucks coach Doc Rivers on Damian Lillard.