Stephanie Logue 

Staff Writer 

szl414@psu.edu

The NBA playoffs for 2022 have begun. Sixteen teams are competing for the Larry O’Brien Trophy after the first round began this weekend. After a season full of surprises, the title fight in both conferences appears to be wide open, with plenty of intriguing first-round matchups. On Sunday, Jayson Tatum’s buzzer-beater gave the Celtics a 1-0 lead over the Nets, while the Bucks began their title defense with an ugly win over the Bulls. The playoffs resume Monday night with three Game 2s. On Monday night, the 76ers, Jazz, and Warriors all have a chance to go up 2-0 in the series, while the Raptors, Mavericks, and Nuggets try to tie things up at 1-1. Here below is this week’s playoff schedule: 

The NBA playoffs in 2022 are well underway, and there have already been a number of exciting games. Most notably, the Boston Celtics beat the Brooklyn Nets by one point in Game 1 of their series on Sunday, thanks to a spinning layup by Jayson Tatum at the buzzer. The basketball betting market is hotter than ever now that the 2021-22 NBA regular season is in the books. For the duration of the postseason, CBS Sports will provide daily picks. Between now and the NBA Finals, Sam Quinn will make at least one pick. All odds are provided by Caesars Sportsbook.

One player that stood out to all of us was Chris Paul with his record. Paul, who will turn 37 in three weeks, became the oldest player to record 30 points and 10 assists in a playoff game on Sunday, April 17th, when he led the top-seeded Phoenix Suns to a 110-99 victory in Game 1 of their first-round series. He surpassed Steve Nash, who accomplished the same feat as a Suns player at the age of 36 in 2010. Paul is now one of only five players in history to have ten playoff games with at least 30 points and ten assists. LeBron James has the most, with 22, followed by Michael Jordan, who has 15.  The majority of it came in a furious fourth-quarter rally in which Paul scored 17 points in a five-minute span to thwart a Pelicans comeback attempt. Green’s decision to have his defenders give Paul space by going under pick-and-rolls backfired when Paul hit three 3-pointers in a row as he attacked a switching defense that left him up against the slower Larry Nance Jr. “That’s like inviting me [to] shoot,” said Paul, who looked over at Green several times after splashing shots. “I know Willie; that’s my man. It’s all a part of the game.”

Green, who was an assistant with the Suns last season and previously played with Paul on the Los Angeles Clippers and the then-New Orleans Hornets, used a bench-heavy lineup to cut a 23-point Phoenix lead to six points early in the fourth quarter. However, Paul violated the strategy by repeatedly instructing center Deandre Ayton to set a screen and force Nance into a switch. Green eventually had to take Nance out of the game after he had been very effective with Paul on the bench. “We went under a couple screens, and he just stood behind and shot the 3 ball,” Green said of Paul. “The mix-ups were on our part, my part as a coach. I have to do better with that coverage. Chris, this is just what he does.” In the fourth quarter, Paul scored or assisted on 23 of the Suns’ 31 points. His 19 points in the fourth quarter were the second most in his career. “That man is a true competitor and a true winner,” said Suns star Devin Booker, who tallied 25 points. “When he wants it that bad, you can see it in his demeanor and see it in his walk, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone. He’s built for these moments.”

Mikal Bridges, a finalist for NBA Defensive Player of the Year, smothered Pelicans guard CJ McCollum in the first half as the Suns held the Pelicans to 22 percent shooting. According to ESPN Stats & Information tracking, the Pelicans shot just 2-of-16 when Bridges was the primary defender. McCollum had 25 points but missed 16 shots and went 0-for-9 with Bridges on him. 

Paul also contributed three steals while playing defense. “It’s just his ability to understand he needs to take over a game,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “I don’t think I’ve been around anybody like Chris who has that innate feel for that time.”