Wednesday night in the 2023 NBA Playoffs saw another stunning Miami comeback against Milwaukee that ended the top seed’s season in overtime. Elsewhere, the Knicks eliminated the Cavaliers in Cleveland, the Grizzlies had few problems with the Lakers to bring up Game 6, and the Warriors finally won a road game in Sacramento to take a 3-2 lead.
Knicks Send Cavaliers Packing in Game 5
The Cavaliers finish the season with a 2-7 record against the Knicks as they were defeated at their own game of stellar defense and guard play. Jalen Brunson had better shooting games in the series, but he scored another 23 points to lead the Knicks in Game 5. Mitchell Robinson had 18 rebounds to pick up the slack from Julius Randle.
Cleveland never led and never got closer than 6 points in the fourth quarter of the 106-95 loss. It was the fourth time in the series the Cavaliers failed to score more than 97 points. Donovan Mitchell scored 28 points on 26 shots, and Michell and Darius Garland combined to shoot 4-for-18 from 3-point territory. Garland also had 6 turnovers.
Cleveland’s first postseason in five years since LeBron James left resulted in a Game 5 loss at home in the first round. For the Knicks, it is the team’s first playoff series win since 2013 and only the second series win in the 21st century.
The Knicks will host the Heat in the semifinals.
Lakers Flat in 116-99 Loss in Memphis
The Grizzlies were facing elimination at home where they have played so well this season, and they came out with a purpose. The Grizzlies played their most complete game of the series while the Lakers were at their flattest, never seriously threatening as LeBron James scored just 15 points in one of the worst playoff games of his career.
Ja Morant and Desmond Bane both scored over 30 points with 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who really ripped the game open when the Lakers had their bench players in.
Memphis led by as many as 25 points before winning by 17. Anthony Davis had 31 points and 19 rebounds for the Lakers, but they never seriously threatened in the fourth quarter thanks to a collapse late in the third.
The Lakers only trailed 75-74 with under 4:00 remaining in the third quarter before the Grizzlies ended the quarter on a 19-2 run to set up the limp finish.
Jimmy Butler, Heat Finish Improbable Upset of Top-Seeded Bucks
It is not right that the first round of these playoffs saw Austin Reaves of the Lakers proclaim, “I’m him!” for a Game 1 win in Memphis. Jimmy Butler is HIM.
After another 42 points, Butler put the Heat on his back once again and erased a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter in Milwaukee to force overtime with an incredible basket.
JIMMY BUTLER SENDS GAME 5 TO OT ?
HE'S GOT 40 PTS. UNBELIEVABLE.
?: NBA TV pic.twitter.com/x9AGDSlxpC
— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2023
With teammates fouling out left and right, Butler led the Heat in overtime to another late lead. But the Bucks fought back and made it a 128-126 game in the final 30 seconds. The Heat missed a shot with nearly a full 10 seconds left, and the Bucks ran the court only to end on one of the worst end-of-game sequences you will ever see with the season on the line.
GRAYSON ALLEN FOR THE WIN pic.twitter.com/AQUmKwHaVZ
— SGG Media (@SGG_hq) April 27, 2023
There were coaching mistakes like the Bucks not calling timeout after Butler’s game-tying bucket. But at the end of the day, the Bucks allowed the lowest-scoring team in the NBA this season to score at least 119 points in all five playoff games, something that has only been done by five other teams in NBA history. Much of this damage was done by Butler too.
For as great as Giannis Antetokounmpo is, he missed 13 free throws (10-of-23) in a game the Bucks lost by 2 points. He has to be held accountable for that flaw in his game.
The Heat move on after shocking the top-seeded Bucks in five games. This is the first time since the 2012 76ers-Bulls series where a top two seed lost in the first round in the Eastern Conference. It is arguably a top three upset in NBA history given the rarity of No. 1 seeds losing to No. 8 in a best-of-seven series, and the Bucks were also huge favorites, including a 13-point favorite in this game.
Never count out Playoff Jimmy.
Warriors Win Road Game for 28th Playoff Series in a Row
Tale as old as time, the Warriors found a way to win a road game for a 28th-straight playoff series. But it was something we had to question this year after the Warriors were 11-30 on the road in the regular season and 0-2 to start this series.
But the Warriors were a 2-point favorite in Game 5 with concern over the finger of Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox. But he hit his first three 3-point shots, showing no problems there. In fact, the Kings shot 8-of-12 from three in the first quarter.
But good basketball fans know that was going to regress over the rest of the game. You just did not expect the Kings to go 2-of-22 from three the rest of the game. That allowed the Warriors to take control, because eventually Steph Curry (31 points) and Klay Thompson (25 points) are going to figure things out. Even Draymond Green had 21 points, tied for his most in a playoff game since 2017.
The Kings still had their chances in the fourth quarter, closing a 107-99 deficit to a single point multiple times. But the Warriors sustained their lead, and Malik Monk missed a game-tying three with a minute left. Andrew Wiggins scored a basket for the Warriors, and Fox continued the brutal run of missed threes for the Kings over the final three quarters. The Warriors ended up winning 123-116.
The Warriors can win the series at home in Game 6 unless the Kings find a way to get this back to Sacramento for a Game 7.
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