NBA Playoffs 2019: Winners and Losers from April 16th

Winner: Blazers’ Backcourt

Remember the duo everyone wanted to break up? After last year’s sweep, media coverage turned the Lillard-McCollum backcourt into a Kardashian relationship. According to the internet, Portland had to break it off with one or the other. They didn’t. Instead, they re-upped their core and handed Lillard the keys to total control on offense, at the slightest expense of McCollum’s own stats. No bother. Portland enjoyed sustained consistent success all year (rare in the West) and secured the three-seed over Houston and drew Oklahoma City in the first round, where Portland–without starting center Jusuf Nurkic–was an underdog. After two games, the Blazers announced their status as a conference finals contender, not a center-less pushover.

Last night, Lillard and McCollum were superb, accumulating 62 points combined.  Like two academics playing chess, they took turns performing their craft. Deep pull-up three by Lillard, followed by a step-back mid-range jumper by McCollum. All night. Their rhythm was unflappable, even the Tasmanian devil wearing number zero on the other sideline couldn’t buck their flow.