Each Game 1 explained with 1 play

Max Strus, Victor Wembanyama, balky Timberwolves, confused Rockets, and more

Eight games are in the books, and so far, it’s looked about as chalky as we all expected (with a few exceptions).

I forgot which coach said this — eight games in two days is a lot even for me! — but someone with a big paycheck said that Game 1s are about fact-finding. And despite a lack of late-game drama, there were plenty of facts to be found.

Let’s briefly examine each series through the lens of one telling play. These aren’t always highlights. They’re just the snippets that help me tell the stories I found most compelling.

Cleveland 126, Toronto 113

This game didn’t feel as close as its not-particularly-tight final score would indicate, thanks to the combined efforts of Donovan Mitchell and Max Strus.

Mitchell, who has the sixth-highest postseason scoring average in NBA history (!!), dropped 32 points. Strus got luus, lacing 24 of his own in the same number of minutes. No play was prettier than this one:

Mitchell gets the steal, races down the court, fakes out the defender with his vehement gesturing, and drops a dime to Strus, who converts the twisting alley-oop layup right as the quarter horn sounds. It was either beautiful or deflating, depending on which team you were rooting for.

Their chemistry went beyond the numbers, too. The Athletic’s Joe Vardon had a very fun story about how Mitchell had to play peacekeeper with an official, Tony Brothers, to keep the quick-tempered Strus out of trouble. Give it a read here.

The other story in this game was Cleveland’s ability to keep the Raptors out of transition. Toronto only had three fast-break points after leading the league with 18.9 in the regular season. While the Cavs had only two themselves, Cleveland is far better equipped to score in the halfcourt. If Toronto can’t get out and run, they won’t be able to keep up in this series.

(Side note: It was brutal watching the Raptors waste a game in which they got eight combined threes from RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes, and Jamal Shead in the first half alone. The trio averaged less than half of that per game during the regular season!)

(Side note, part deux: Kenny Atkinson was not messing around with this one. It looked like Donovan Mitchell might be done for the night after the Cavs opened up a big fourth-quarter lead, but he popped back in after the Raptors cut the margin to 18 with 3:57 left in the game. Atkinson’s seat might be hotter than we realize; he’s not taking any chances.)

Knicks 113, Hawks 102

As I asked in the preview: What do the Hawks do with Karl-Anthony Towns?

The online spaces are screaming for Atlanta coach Quin Snyder to put a wing (Jalen Johnson? Dyson Daniels?) on Towns and move center Onyeka Okongwu onto reluctant shooter Josh Hart, as many other teams have done. I’m not quite as high on that strategy for the Hawks, and I think Saturday showed why.

Towns had a cold shooting night through three quarters before finding his groove from deep late, but the sheer physicality he played with proved too much for even the Hawks’ centers. KAT drew 10 free throws in this contest. If this is what Towns is doing to Okongwu, what would he do to the far smaller wings?

Jalen Johnson likely is too valuable to the Hawks offensively to carry such a defensive burden and risk foul trouble. Daniels’ ability to take away Towns’ dribble and harass him on the catch is interesting, but Towns could simply shift to the block and mash the skinny guard like a potato.

It was hardly the best Towns night. He had five turnovers and five fouls, and his three blocks only partially offset some bad defensive moments that let Okongwu run wild from deep. But no matter how you cut it, 25 points on 13 field goal attempts is strong offensive output; something probably needs to change. Having a center in the paint to back up the primary defender could help corral Towns, but “could” is doing a lot of work here. Will going smaller help, or play into Towns’ strength(s)?

Orlando 112, Detroit 101

Look at this sexy Banchero pass (sorry for the phone-video quality):

For all the talk of Banchero’s broken jumper this season, it’s his lack of playmaking improvement that has disappointed me as much as anything. After his rookie year, I believed that Banchero could have operated like fellow Blue Devil Jalen Johnson, a legitimate point forward. So far, I’ve been wrong.

He only finished with four assists, but plays like this— the angle, the creativity, the perfect touch — still inspire hope for better in the future.

It’s funny how results determine whether a player is “patient” or “slow.”