There’s a lot more to life than scoring thirty or forty points in an NBA playoff match. But then, why wouldn’t I say that? None of us will ever do it (at most I could get 20). But for some – namely Dwayne Wade, Kevin Durant and the indomitable Steph Curry, this is not only a highlight – it’s commonplace. With the Playoffs in full swing, let’s take a look at how three of the game’s stars are taking firm hold of their team and driving them forward.
The Golden State Warriors won in overtime against Portland Trailblazers, on the back of a Curry turnaround. He scored 40 despite a horrible – for him – start to the match from the arc. He scored 17 in OT alone. That’s a record for Playoffs history. Expect a high scoring encounter in Oakland, where the Warriors barely ever lose and can finish off the series. With Curry in this form despite a month off, it’d be a shock if anything else happened, and short odds are for a total score topping 220.
Meanwhile, in Miami, punters are expecting Wade, who just won’t stop, to continue on his merry way. He scored 30 in Miami’s win over Toronto, in a game that marked the first time his team has been taken to OT three times in a singe series. With the two teams embattled in low scoring, tight matches much if the time, the end result at come down to whether Wade can keep up this scoring run – something he hasn’t done consistently in five years.
It looked fairly likely going into the fourth game that San Antonio Spurs would run away with their series against Oklahoma. That wasn’t to eventuate, with Durant starring for the Thunder with 41 points. That marked his career high in a Playoff match, and ignited his team to draw the series to 2-2. Across the court, Tim Duncan had his first no-score game in hi almost two decades in the game. A staggering stat, and one that means that a bold but good punt might be the long odds of him copping that twice in a row. Despite this, Durant will need to be dominant again with Spurs losing just once at home this season.
