NBA: 7 big takeaways after the first week of the postseason

Seven big takeaways after the first week of the NBA Playoffs. 

We’re roughly a week into the 2021 NBA Playoffs and it has certainly lived up to the potential. Young stars have taken the opportunity to announce themselves to the nation at large, a few contenders have flexed their muscles on the national stage, and underdogs are making their mark on what will be remembered as a memorable campaign.

A week into the postseason, there have been several interesting storylines that have risen. We explore the seven biggest.

NBA Playoffs takeaways: The Brooklyn Nets didn’t need a regular season

It’s been four games but it’s been an impressive four games for the Brooklyn Nets. So much so that this team is clearly going to be a problem in the Eastern Conference and might actually end up winning the NBA championship.

The trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving has proven to be all but unstoppable on the offensive end and at least willing to do their part defensively. Through the first four games of the postseason, the Nets have the best offense and the 8th ranked defense. Not terrible.

Brooklyn has looked overwhelming in all but one of their games against the Boston Celtics and will be a favorite against nearly any other team in the NBA in a series. For those that didn’t believe the Nets could do this in the postseason without a true regular season sample size to create cohesiveness and familiarity, it’s not looking great for that narrative.