Street, candy street.
HT Picture
Residence-court benefit? It doesn’t exist up to now within the NBA convention semifinals — the place visiting groups mixed to go 4-0 in Sport 1s, the primary time that has occurred throughout this spherical within the league’s playoff historical past.
Indiana beat top-seeded Cleveland on Sunday within the opener of that East sequence, New York beat defending champion Boston and Denver beat West top-seeded Oklahoma Metropolis of their respective openers Monday, and Golden State topped Minnesota in Sport 1 of their matchup Tuesday.
“It’s an amazing group of guys,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr stated after Golden State’s win, one which got here with Stephen Curry out for a lot of the sport with a strained hamstring.
Up to now in these playoffs, street groups have gone 23-25. That is on tempo to be the third-best total street playoff document in NBA postseason historical past, not counting the bubble season of 2020 when no person technically was at house.
Street groups had gone 3-1 within the Spherical 2 openers of the NBA playoffs on three different events — 2023, 2015 and 2011 — within the present playoff format, which dates to 1984.
However 4-0 has by no means occurred, till now.
“I always say a playoff series doesn’t start until someone wins a road game,” Indiana guard Tyrese Haliburton stated. “Well, we’ve won two.”
That’s true: Indiana doubled down on its street success by additionally taking Sport 2 at Cleveland on Tuesday evening, simply earlier than Golden State misplaced Stephen Curry early however received Sport 1 at Minnesota.
And all that led to much more street historical past: Sunday, Monday and Tuesday grew to become the primary three-day stretch in NBA playoff historical past the place visiting groups mixed to go at the very least 6-0. That run began Sunday with Indiana’s Sport 1 win at Cleveland, then Golden State’s Sport 7 street win at Houston within the conclusion of the primary spherical of the playoffs.
The wins by New York and Denver had been Monday, then Indiana and Golden State received once more on Tuesday.
“This team has fought all year,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau stated. “It’s been a pretty good road team.”
They’re not alone. Not this 12 months, anyway, and this pattern did not begin in these playoffs. Residence groups received 54% of video games within the common season, the fourth time the leaguewide house profitable proportion has dipped that low within the final 5 years.
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