By Nunnie Robinson, WG Sports Writer
The NBA playoffs are doing what they always do: exposing the flaws of an 82-game regular season that too often leaves teams limping into the playoffs . Talent may set expectations, but health determines outcomes.
Case in point: my Eastern Conference pick, the Boston Celtics, sent home in a Game 7 on their own floor by Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers. When Embiid is healthy, seeding becomes irrelevant. He elevated a seventh seed into a legitimate title threat.
Boston’s downfall was predictable. The Celtics live and die by the three-point shot. In wins, they hit; in losses, they don’t. That’s a flawed strategy readily exposed when the shooting percentage hovers in the 30th percentile. It’s a gamble. Coupled with Jayson Tatum’s leg injury, the outcome became more uncertain.
Which brings us to the larger issue: the NBA season is simply too long. Eighty-two games, followed by multiple seven-game series, is less a test of greatness and more a test of survival. A championship run can stretch to 110 total games. If series extend to seven games, a distinct possibility with the quality of of the remaining teams. Then it becomes a level of attrition as much as competition.
The league should seriously consider reducing the regular season and shortening early playoff rounds to five games. Yes, revenue would take a hit, but the quality of play would improve and so would the product fans are paying to see.
In the West, injuries are again shaping the narrative. The Los Angeles Lakers, dealing with setbacks to Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves, face an uphill battle against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. Even their earlier series win over an injury-depleted Houston team – missing Kevin Durant – came with an asterisk.
Minnesota’s gritty elimination of Denver despite injuries to Anthony Edwards and Dante DiVincenzo raises another question: can resilience carry them past San Antonio and the uniquely gifted Victor Wembanyama? Talent is essential, but durability is proving decisive.
The remaining field reflects both excellence and endurance: New York vs. Philadelphia and Cleveland vs. Detroit in the East; Minnesota vs. San Antonio and Oklahoma City vs. Los Angeles in the West. At this stage, availability is as valuable as ability.
So here’s the question the league should be asking: why is its champion still being crowned in June, after a marathon that compromises its own stars?
Elsewhere, change came swiftly in Orlando, where the Magic parted ways with head coach Jamal Mosley following their collapse against Detroit—a reminder that in professional sports, patience is often the first casualty.
Of Note: The 152nd Kentucky Derby delivered the kind of drama sports fans crave. Golden Tempo surged from last place to win by a nose over favorite Renegade, while Cherie DeVaux made history as the first female trainer to win the Run for the Roses. Before a crowd of 150,000 and a record television audience, the Derby once again proved that spectacle and competition can coexist at the highest level.
In the end, whether it’s hardwood or horse track, one truth remains: sports never stop delivering.