The surprising playoffs, in which for the first time in almost 20 years neither LeBron, Curry nor Durant are anymore, uncover the talent of young people like Edwards or undervalued ones like Brunson
«I’m still big! “It’s the movies that have become small.” could pronounce LeBron James what Norma Desmond or accept the twilight. Also Steph Curry o Kevin Durantthose who were gods of the best basketball in the world, those who dominated the last 20 years of the NBA and now, for the first time in 19 seasons, they do not even appear in the second step of the playoffs.
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Jokic wins his third NBA MVP after beating Doncic and Gilgeous Alexander
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The exponential growth of the Thunder, the unexpected contender for the ring: “too young”, draft rounds and Shai’s star
These days it is time to assimilate the names of those who warned of reigning in the future and are already doing so with the present. Starting with the huge Anthony Edwards and following Jalen Brunson. Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander o Tyrese Haliburton. None over 27 years old, all absolute protagonists of the current fight for the ring. It is the new batch of stars, who should be separated, by training and origin, from the Europeans Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo (with him injured, his Bucks failed against the Pacers, for the second straight season out in the first round) and, of course, Luka Doncic.
From 2012 to 2022, between LeBron (39 years old) and Curry (36), they won eight rings and accumulated awards, records and praise. They were the ‘divas’ of the NBA, who still maintain their strength statistically, like even Kevin Durant (all three will be with the USA Team in Paris this summer). More than losing benefits – there is no longer any trace of Joel Embiid, James Harden…-, they have seen how the new generation breaks down the door, many of them well-known kids, but others not so much.
Jalen Brunson, during the series against the Pacers. ELSA
Nobody these days like Anthony Edwards, who was number 1 in the 2020 draft, but in his progressive takeoff it has been this season when he has finished exploding. And even more so in the playoffs, where his Wolves, who already eliminated Durant’s Suns in the first round, have the champion himself on the ropes. The dapper movements and spectacular dunks of Ant Man, which the general public could see as Nemesis of Juancho Hernangómez in the film Garra, at times reminiscent of those of the man himself Michael Jordan and how Kobe Bryant, was able to score more than 40 points in two consecutive playoff games at under 23 years old. Abandoned by his father, he bears his mother’s surname although she died of cancer when he was 13 years old. He then wrote on the wall of her room: “Future NBA player.” His performance and averages have skyrocketed in the postseason, where he leads a team that is aggressive and undefeated on terrain it has not been in for 20 years: 32.3 points and percentages above 40% in three-pointers and 60% in two-pointers.
Los Knicks
If everyone advances as it seems and neither Jokic nor Doncic manage to reverse the course of the semifinals, a revolution will take place in the fight for the Western throne, as the Thunder seem fresher and more determined than the Mavs. The youngest team ever capable of winning that conference is led by Canadian Gilgeous-Alexander, a 25-year-old guy (the oldest of the quintet) who the Clippers once included as a bargaining chip for the transfer of Paul George.
Although underrated, the other big name on the scene. If anyone has had to carve out his own story, it has been Jalen Brunson, a phenomenon in the Big Apple. The left-hander only dropped below 40 points last night after four in a row (something that had not happened since Jordan in ’93), although his Knicks, who swept the Sixers in the first round, beat the Haliburton Pacers, reviving a historic rivalry : Reggie Miller, John Starks, Spike Lee…In Madison they haven’t played in an Eastern final for 24 years. Chained crises that now make us forget a point guard who does not reach 1.90, son of Rick (nine NBA seasons), who did not appear until 33rd place in the 2018 draft (despite having won two NCAA titles with Villanova) and who , after three somewhat forgotten seasons in the Mavericks, was transferred in the fourth, already in full takeoff. In six years he has gone from averaging more than 10 points to 28.7 this season, which is 35.6 (in addition to 8.1 assists) in the current playoffs in which no one seems capable of stopping him (he shoots almost 30 shots per evening). «Mental strength is very important, the ability to overcome things. Give your best when necessary, even when you don’t feel your best. That’s what he is. “A great leader,” he praised. Tom Thibodeau after the second game, heroic after overcoming some physical discomfort.
If the Knicks advance, it seems that the Celtics will be there, those who maintain order (although they stumbled in the second against the Cavs), fulfilling their role as favorites and with their usual consistency. Despite being out due to injury Porzingis. Of the rising stars, only Tatum made all the predictions count. The Cavaliers indulge in the compulsive action of Donovan Mitchell.
2024-05-10 12:38:19
#LeBron #Curry #Anthony #Edwards #Jalen #Brunson
