Austin- NBA Playoffs - CC

Welcome all basketball fans to Take Charge. It’s been an exciting week in the basketball world, as the NBA Playoffs are officially underway. We’ve got a lot to cover today, so let’s get to it. First of all, the two 1-8 seed series are insane. The Atlanta Hawks hold a 3-2 lead over the 1 seed Indiana Pacers, and they look to become the first 8 seed to ever beat a 1 seed in these playoffs. On the other side of the league, the Dallas Mavericks are tied at 2 games a piece with the San Antonio Spurs. The Eastern Conference series is strange, because I haven’t yet been able to figure out if the Hawks are going to win that series or if the Pacers are going to lose. They’ve been blown out twice, once at home. In the Pacers last home game, fans near the Indiana bench would chant “You’re supposed to be an all-star!” at Paul George when he came to the bench. Reports of Lance Stephenson and Evan Turner fighting pregame have also been brought to light. In conclusion, all is not right in Indiana. In the West, the Dallas Mavericks are simply healthy and playing the best basketball they’ve been playing all year. It’s a great series and it’ll likely see 7 games. 2 seed Oklahoma City trails Memphis 3 games to 2. That’s another crazy series that will likely see 7 games. Portland leads Houston 3-1. Miami is one of two teams to advance so far, beating the ‘Cats in 4 games. Toronto-Brooklyn is tied at two games apiece. That’s a great series as well. Athleticism vs. Experience. That’s always a good match up. I’m hoping the Nets take that series, since I think that they may be the only team in the East that can beat the Heat. The Nets swept Miami in the season series, 4-0, and I just don’t think that the Raptors match up well enough. But credit the Raptors. They had a great season. And how about the Washington Wizards. What a year for them. The Wall-Beal back court has become one of the best 1-2 combinations in basketball, right up there with Curry-Thompson. Wall’s having a great year, and their veteran leadership coming from players like Nene and Trevor Arizia have been a driving force to their advancement. And then we have the Golden State- Los Angeles series. The battle of California. Some of the best young players in the league are in this series, and it’s been a great one so far. The series is 3-2 in favor of LA. But if you want drama this is the series for you. David Sterling, the Clippers’ owner, has been under a lot of heat lately. Sterling’s girlfriend recently leaked a recording of a telephone conversation that took place between the two of them, in which Sterling told his girlfriend that he doesn’t like African Americans, and that he doesn’t appreciate them coming to the LA games. The basketball world blew up in result. LA players wore their warm ups inside out in following games to hide the Clippers logo, and they also all wore black wristbands. Coach Doc Rivers declined a chance to speak with Sterling. Commissioner Adam Silvers, as a result, banned Sterling from the NBA for life, and fined him 2.5 million dollars. Sterling is now forced to sell his organization. An organization that I might mention was purchased for 16 million dollars. It’s current worth? 600 million dollars. Call it inflation, but that’s pretty impressive. Now, Sterling, the owner, is forced to sell his 600 million dollar organization, as well as pay 2.5 million, for stating his honest opinion through a private phone conversation. To a woman who blew him in. A woman that he thought was his girlfriend. Who happens to be half Black and part Mexican. Say what you will. Those are the facts.