The NBA playoffs are upon us and seven Australian stars are still in the hunt for the Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy.
All across Australia the NBA League International League Pass is streaming video at breakneck speed to basketball fans allowing Aussie Hoops tragics the ability to support our Australian Boomers in real time and on a daily basis.
Six NBA teams are already through to the semis, another four teams will know their destiny in the next 48 hours. In the East, the Philadelphia 76ers are matched up against the Toronto Raptors, while the Milwaukee Bucks will take on the Boston Celtics.
Over in the West the Houston Rockets will play the winner of the Golden State-Clippers series. The Denver Nuggets and the San Antonio Spurs are tied 3-3, with the winner to take on the Portland Trailblazers. Brooklyn, Detroit, Indiana, Orlando, Utah are OKC are all out.
For Australians Thon Maker (Detroit Pistons), Utah Jazz guards Joe Ingles and Dante Exum, their playoff run ends here. Former Adelaide 36ers rising star Terrance Ferguson will be packing his bags after Portland eliminated OKC with a buzzer-beater.
Spurs point guard Patty Mills has helped will San Antonio to a second-round appearance after a 6 point, 6 assist effort in the team’s 120-103 Game 6 win over the Denver Nuggets. In 20 minutes per game, he has averaged a modest 5.3 points and 3.3 assists, but has failed to find his shooting touch with only 11.7% from beyond the arc (2/17 3PT FG%).
Former Brisbane Bullets import Torrey Craig has made a solid contribution as a starting forward for Denver in the same series, averaging 7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assist per game against the Spurs. He’s an outside shooting threat and gives Denver another defensive presence.
Defending champion Golden State’s new starting centre Andrew Bogut is looking to add another championship ring but they still have to get past the Clippers. It’s been a dream run for Bogut.
After successfully leading the Sydney Kings in the NBL, he signed with GSW only to find himself a plum starting role after DeMarcus Cousins went down with a season-ending injury. In the playoffs, he’s been very productive amongst a sea of Future Hall of Fame talent, averaging 5.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 65% FG shooting.
Superstar Ben Simmons, his fellow 76er and rookie forward Jonah Bolden, Australian-born guard Kyrie Irving and Celtics big man Aron Baynes are moving forward to the next round.
Irving continues to carry the load for a stacked Celtics team.The bona fide superstar was a handful for the Pacers as he unleashed 22.5 points, 7.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1.25 steals and 11 three-pointers in four games.
Simmons is the main cog that keeps the 76ers such a a dangerous team. He’s averaging 17.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1 block and 1 steal over five games against Brooklyn. Bolden on the other hand is coming off the bench, averaging 2 points and 2 rebounds as a key reserve.
Baynes is averaging 18 minutes per game for Boston, delivering a solid presence off the bench with 3.6 points and 4 rebounds per game against Indiana.
With Simmons, Bolden, Irving and Baynes thru to the next round, Bogut, Mills or Craig could join them soon.
Good luck to all our Australians who are still playing in the NBA Playoffs!
Marco Selorio is a serial entrepreneur, basketball writer, Master of Ceremonies, event director and promoter. Follow him on Facebook @marcoandreselorio and on Instagram @marcoselorio
