NBA play in tournament proves its worth

Much to the dismay of many fans around the world, the NBA changed the format of the manner in which some teams reach the playoffs. This became known as the NBA play-in tournament. However, fans will be happy to know that they were actually treated to edge of the seat basketball over the last couple of nights because of the play-in tournament. The winning teams in this tournament make for great NBA playoff betting picks.

If we looked at the Warriors roster compared to the Lakers, we would have assumed that the Lakers would win comfortably, but this was far from the case. The Warriors threw everything at Lebron James and the Lakers on Wednesday night after narrowly losing by 103-100. 

The famous battle between James and Steph Curry lived up to its expectation and more as the game left us all wanting more. With one minute left on the clock, the scores were tied at 100; Lebron decided to take matters into his own hands and hit a deep three that proved to be the game-winner for the Lakers, which left the Warriors stunned. 

The Warriors could leave the game proud as they put up a good fight and even led most of the game. They will now shift their focus to Friday, where they will face the Memphis Grizzlies for the NO.8 seed in a do or die clash.

The most crucial point of the season for both the Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs arrived in the Western Conference’s 9-10 play-in game. It was a win or go home clash of which the Grizzlies emerged victorious 100-96. 

This win was important for Memphis as they earned the right to continue their season on Friday in another critical game against the Warriors. The winner will then advance as the 8th seed and face the Utah Jazz in the first round on Sunday. The Grizzlies have a chip on their shoulder and would like to prove themselves after a disappointing bubble exit last year against the Portland Trail Blazers.

In what was a mouth-watering clash between two teams stacked with stars, the Boston Celtics were victorious over a disappointing Washington Wizards side. The Celtics outscored the Wizards 118-100, which meant that they secured the 7th seed and would face the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the playoffs. However, the Wizards season is not over just yet as they will face the Indiana Pacers to secure the 8th seed. 

Boston can give a huge thank you for the win to Jayson Tatum, who scored an incredible 50 points, which he may need to carry over into the playoffs with Brooklyn having the deadly trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden.

The Charlotte Hornets have had a lot of hype around them this year, and rightfully so, as they have been impressive during the regular season. The hype has mostly been because of favourite to win Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball and surprise performer Miles Bridges. Unfortunately, they were not able to help the Hornets as they suffered a humiliating loss to the Pacers by 144-117. 

The Pacers advanced onto the next round, where they faced the Wizards for the final playoff spot in the East. The Pacers will hope Two-time All-Star Domantas Sabonis can continue his fine form as he nearly recorded a triple-double after scoring 14 points, 21 rebounds and 9 assists.