NBA: The All-Surprise First And Second Team Of The NBA Playoffs

Looking at the 10 players who have turned in surprise performances through the first round of the NBA Playoffs

With the first round of the NBA Playoffs officially in the books, we decided to put together a list of our first and second All-Surprise teams.

Some players on these teams are guys that happen to be playing above and beyond their regular season selves, while other are already really good players who happen to be playing at an unreal level in the playoffs.

Without further ado, here we go.

Rajon Rondo, Chicago Bulls, PG (Second Team)

If Rondo doesn’t break his thumb/wrist, he is an absolute lock on the All-Surprise First Team, but because his sample size is so small (played in first two games of the series), I have him making the Second Team.

There is no doubt Rajon Rondo had a crucial impact on this Boston Series. He had an obvious chip on his shoulder playing against his former team, and was playing like it was 2008. In his two games he played in, the 8th-seeded Bulls shocked the one-seeded Celtics and got off to a 2-0 series lead. Rondo averaged 11.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 10 assists, and 3.5 steals per game. He was a pace-controlling monster offensively, and was giving Isaiah Thomas fits with his length defensively.

Since not being able to play, the Bulls plummeted in this series and fell to the Celtics in six games.

Gerald Green, Boston Celtics, SG (Second Team)

The Celtics were an absolute mess after Game 2 in Boston. They were down 2-0 to an 8th seed and everyone nationwide was freaking out. People around the NBA were comparing them to the Dirk Nowitzki-led Mavs team that lost to Baron Davis and Golden State in 2007, which was the last 8 seed to take down a one seed.

But Brad Stevens made an adjustment. Granted, the man mentioned above being out was a huge momentum shift, but the plug of Gerald Green into the starting lineup in Game 3 was ballsy, and it paid off. The Celtics desperately needed to hit outside shots, and everyone and their mother knows Marcus Smart isn’t going to give you that (28% 3PT).

In Games 3 and 4, Gerald Green shot 50 percent from three (6-12) and averaged 13 points which is exactly what the doctor ordered. This not only spread the floor more for Isaiah Thomas to play-make, but it gave Boston new life for the series.