The first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs is giving us a stern reminder about postseason basketball: you need superstars to win.
The Brooklyn Nets were the first team that got sent home and the ragtag group of role players is a prime example of the need of having go-to players. Despite the groundbreaking trades that saw Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant go to other teams, the Nets were able to weather the storm and enter the playoffs because they had a strong collection of players. In addition, the emergence of Mikal Bridges as a fearless scorer gave them a fighting chance. But it was all for naught because the Nets ran through a brick wall in the form of Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers.
Bridges was still getting used to his new role as a do-it-all offensive threat. Spencer Dinwiddie can score but you don’t expect him to be the focal point. Defensive standouts Cam Johnson, Royce O’Neale, and Dorian Finney-Smith can also shoot from the outside but you’re asking for too much if you want more than 20 points from each of them.
The Nets are solid and coach Jacque Vaughn had a lot of options with his roster. He tinkered around full defensive lineups with Bridges, Johnson, O’Neale, Finney-Smith, plus Nic Claxton. For shooting and ballhandling, he opted for Dinwiddie or Seth Curry as a supplement to the 3-and-D guys.
But the playoffs are a different breed with an opposing team hellbent on stopping you. The Sixers found it easy to shut down the perimeter threats of the Nets. In the end, you need somebody to get the ball and make a play. You need a professional bucket-getter.
Just ask the LA Clippers who were recently eliminated by the Phoenix Suns because Kawhi Leonard and Paul George were hobbled with injuries again.
Head coach Ty Lue even stressed the value of having stars on your team when it comes to playoff basketball.
“Our two best players got hurt. Take Steph and Klay out of Golden State. Take Booker and KD off this team. Greek Freak was out two games they couldn’t [win],” Lue said postgame. “Take the two best players off any team in the league and see if they can win in the playoffs.”
Lue was still proud of his team and their no-quit attitude despite being undermanned.
“You take the two best players off anybody’s team. They’re not gonna win. I don’t care how you’re gonna look at it, they’re not gonna do it. But that doesn’t mean you can’t compete and fight and play hard and play the right way every single night,” he went on.
Lue then pointed out that having Russell Westbrook saved their season. Russ, of course, is a former MVP and the all-time triple-double leader. In other words, he’s a bonafide superstar. But Russ is 34. Even though he still has a lot left in the tank and can still showcase his explosiveness, you’re demanding a lot from somebody who is now a supplementary star, not a singular talent who can will your team to a playoff series win.
On the flip side, you see the value of having a legitimate star on one team who can constantly deliver.
Jimmy Butler had a historic night that pushed the No.1 seed to the brink of elimination. LeBron James can still put up big numbers and make game-winning plays down the stretch. Trae Young just saved his team’s season even without his co-star Dejounte Murray.
A franchise player can singlehandedly win you games. That’s why it was perplexing for the Dallas Mavericks to give up knowing they had not one, but two stars in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. You can argue that it was already a long shot for them to enter the playoffs, but you have a possible future MVP and one of the best guards in the history of the game. Who knows what could have happened?
The playoffs are unpredictable and anything can change in an instant. A role player can go off and change the momentum of a game. Injuries can impact the entire lineup. There could be an ejection and a subsequent suspension of one of your key guys. But in the end, if you have a guy that can get a bucket when you need it the most, you can put yourself in a position to succeed. With a star, you always have a chance.
