The top storylines of the NBA Conference semi-finals

In the wake of the horrific shooting of Jacob Blake by a Kenosha police officer, the Milwaukee Bucks decided to boycott Game 5 of their first round matchup against the Orlando Magic. The Magic didn't accept their forfeit. Shortly after, the Rockets-Thunder game and Lakers-Blazers game were also boycotted (and later, postponed by the NBA). After a number of meetings and conversations, the players ultimately decided to continue to play, contingent upon the league and owners putting more skin in the game in nationwide social justice reforms. The playoffs have restarted, but it's no guarantee that it finishes without incident. What happens if there's (god-forbid) another George Floyd or Jacob Blake or Breonna Taylor incident happens in the next two months? What if a player calls out Betsy DeVos or Tilman Fertitta for their ties with President Trump? The bubble has a bit of a house of cards feel to it as the second round begins.

As successful and exciting as the basketball has been within the Orlando Bubble, it hasn't been without the usual distribution of injuries. Kyle Lowry hurt his ankle in the first half of the Raptors' closeout game in the first round and, although he played in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, he and backcourt mate Fred VanVleet struggled in the 112-94 loss to the Celtics. Speaking of the Celtics, Gordon Hayward badly sprained his ankle in Game 1 of the first round and will leave the bubble to be with his wife for the birth of his child at some point. Thus, there's a decent chance he doesn't appear in another playoff game. Meanwhile, out West, Russell Westbrook is back for the Rockets (quad) after missing Games 1 through 4 against the Thunder. Keep an eye on his explosiveness. And finally, Patrick Beverley (calf) has quietly missed the past five games and no timetable has been provided for his return. Any and all of these injuries could have a major impact on this playoff race.

Basketball camp with the greatest players on earth is finally over. As the number of teams is reduced to eight, players from the remaining teams are allowed to have up to four guests join them in the bubble. Some players are taking full advantage and inviting their entire family; some players are inviting their friends; some players are inviting neither. Some players may get distracted having more responsibilities; some players might be more comfortable around their loved ones. No matter how you peel the onion, there will be a new dynamic in the bubble from here on. Games will have more people in the crowd. And drama is surely to ensure. Oh, and in case anyone forgot the whole reason there's a bubble in the first place, the NBA will have to hope that its policies continue to prevent a COVID outbreak. 

There's been a 20 percent decrease in TV ratings since 2019 according to ShowBuzzDaily. However, there's no context associated with that statement. For instance, did you know that broadcast television is down 19 percent since last year? Or that the 18-49 age demographic is down 36 percent across all of television, but only down 13 percent (as of the date the data was compiled)? Or that the post-Jacob Blake boycott ratings have been the same as the pre-Blake boycott ratings? Obviously, the NBA is concerned about the slippage in ratings over the past few years, but their current TV contract runs through 2023, and their next one will be based upon more than simply ratings given the increasingly numerous ways people consume sports content today. The NBA will still have multiple providers and streaming services bidding against each other come 2023-24. They'll have an even larger global audience given the number of rising international stars. I'm not worried about it at all, especially not in 2020...and you shouldn't be either. 

Fans are always going to hate referees. However, the NBA referees have been objectively bad while in the bubble. Whether it's the two Kristaps Porzingis technical fouls in Game 1 of the Mavericks-Clippers series or the anticipation call followed by the make-up call in Heat-Bucks Game 2 or the unconscionably long and frequent replay reviews, NBA refs have made themselves part of the show in the bubble. They're honestly starting to remind me of the NFL's refs where they're so focused on trying to call the game by the letter of the law that they're overthinking some of the more basic calls (the NBA's version of "what is a catch" is obviously the block/charge call).  And then there's Steve Javie, former referee and current minister of referee propaganda. Has Javie ever disagreed with a fellow referee's call? Javie would defend OJ Simpson if he was wearing a ref's jersey. Let's hope that the second round brings about less refereeing controversies and even less Javie call-ins. 

Remember when the Mavericks set the regular season record for the highest offensive rating (points per 100 possessions) ever this year at 117.50? Well, the Clippers (121.4) and Jazz (120.3) are currently destroying that mark in the playoffs (ya know - where defense is supposed to be better and it's supposed to be more difficult to score?). Most playoff teams are well above, or at least very close to their regular season efficiency as well. Are offenses going to remain this efficient now that only the best eight teams remain? Or will defenses start to clamp down? Much of this will depend on the way referees are calling games. Fouls have been called way more frequently in the bubble, leading to more free throws. Players are also shooting the ball much better - nearly 2.5 percent better on contested shots as of late-August according to FiveThirtyEight. At the same time, the Rockets (101.3), Celtics (101.7), Raptors (103.4), Lakers (104.1), Heat (104.1) and Bucks (104.2) have played as well as the Bucks' league-best defense did this regular season (103.4). Team's paces have been similar to the regular season as well. Something's got to give in the second round.

The longer the playoffs go, the more you start to see the true hierarchy of NBA superstars. The semifinals tend to be where the elite of the elite start to separate themselves from the rest of the league's great players. Right now, there seems to be a three-way battle for the proverbial "Best Player in the World" title between LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard. All three of these guys are good enough to win an entire series on their own (think about Kawhi's run in the playoffs last year when he willed the Raptors to victories over the 76ers, Bucks and Warriors, averaging 31.2 ppg., 9.7 rpg. and 4.2 apg. from the second round on). Are there any other players who are ready to asset themselves into that conversation this postseason? Luka Doncic gave it a run but is a year away. James Harden still needs to have a signature playoff series or moment to have his claim taken seriously. Jayson Tatum (25.8 ppg., 9.6 rpg.) and Anthony Davis (29.8 ppg., 9.4 rpg.) seem to be knocking at the door of this level these playoffs, but it remains to be seen whether either, or both, can do it for an extended postseason run.

Calling Bam Adebayo "Draymond Green, but bigger and more athletic" feels a bit early, but it's not as premature as you might think. Adebayo isn't on Draymond's level from a defensive IQ standpoint and won't even attempt three pointers yet (not that Draymond shoots them particularly well), but everything else about that comparison is apt. Adebayo, who is 6-foot-9 and 255 pounds, has the size of a modern center, the lateral agility of a wing and the quickness and court vision of a guard. Those attributes make his uniquely equipped to do the one thing no one in the NBA seems to be able to do: neutralize Giannis Antetokounmpo. Those skills were on full display in Game 1 of the Bucks-Heat series where Adebayo held Giannis to 18 points and walled off the paint enough to keep him from getting to the rim most of the night. With the Heat up 2-0, can he replicate that performance another two times?

Remember that year we were supposed to get the Kobe-LeBron NBA Finals? It was the 2008-09 season. The Cavs were an absolute regular season juggernaut, going 66-16, and swept their way to the Eastern Conference Finals where they were expected to take care of the Dwight Howard-led Orlando Magic. Unfortunately for Cleveland, the Magic, with Howard's elite rim protection and a bevy of huge wings that could shoot threes (and some really good PEDs that Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu took), were the Cavs' kryptonite that year. Despite a historically great series from LeBron, the Magic beat the Cavs in six games behind a scorching hot 40.8 percent three-point shooting effort the entire series. It was the perfect storm of contrasting rosters, strategies and hot shooting.

It's not much different from some of the problems the Heat can present the Bucks if they get hot from three during this series (in which they lead 2-0). The Heat can throw Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler, Jae Crowder and Andre Iguodala at Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Bucks gave up the most three point attempts and makes all season. The Heat had the second-best three-point percentage all season and made the sixth-most threes. In their two pre-bubble matchups, the Heat twice defeated the Bucks...I'm not saying the Heat will win the series...but, if they do, it'll draw parallels to the 2009 Cavs-Magic series.

The Rockets narrowly eked out their seven game series against Chris Paul and the surprisingly tough Thunder. This Round Two series against the Lakers is their "Last Stand" with head coach Mike D'Antonio, possibly General Manager Daryl Morey and maybe even James Harden. Ironically, their super small ball strategy has held up defensively as they have the best defensive rating in the playoffs. Thus, if their offense got hot, there's a chance they could pull of the upset against LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Lake Show. If they do, it'll be validation for their strategy to go all-in on analytics and one of the first huge playoff moments of Harden's career. 

After playing some of the most offensive offense the Orlando Bubble had ever seen through their first eight seeding games and their Game 1 loss against the Blazers, the Lakers averaged over 123 points per game the next four games (all wins). It started with LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing more aggressively, and trickled down to the likes of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who managed to shoot 40.6 percent from three in the series despite going 0-5 in Game 1, and even Danny Green, who started to finally make some shots after posting laughably bad 39/25/25 shooting splits in the seeding games. Is this the Lakers we are to expect the rest of the playoffs? Or was that more of an indication of how bad the Blazers' defense was?

Let's have a round of applause for the Jamal Murray-Donovan Mitchell seven-game showcase we just witnessed in the Nuggets' first round victory over the Jazz. Both players made did things we've never seen in a series. Both scored over 50 points in multiple games. Mitchell became the first player to ever average 35+ ppg. and have 50/50/90 shooting splits. Murray was 14-20 FG (7-9 3FG) with 36 points, six assists and zero turnovers in 20 minutes of clutch time. Murray was fortunate to have a superstar teammate, Nikola Jokic, carry him for Game 7, and ultimately prevailed. The question is: Can he continue to play like a superstar and All-NBA player in the second round versus a much better team in the LA Clippers? Or will Kawhi and PG13 smother him and send him back to being the streaky secondary star we thought he was prior to these playoffs?

The Clippers' title hopes may very well rest on whether they get more Playoff P or Pandemic P performances from Paul George in the latter rounds of the playoffs. Playoff P, present for Games 1 and 5 of the first round against the Mavericks, does things like score 35 points in less than 25 minutes like he did in Game 5. Pandemic P, present for Games 2, 3, 4 and 6, only scores 12.3 ppg. and shoots an abysmal 24.2 percent from the field (16-66 FG). The Clips know they're getting MVP-level play from Kawhi Leonard (32.8 ppg., 10.2 rpg., 5.2 apg.) every playoff game, but they're ripe for an upset, especially with the Pat Beverley injury, if Pandemic P shows up for four of the first six games against the Nuggets/Jazz. 

The Raptors have the most complete roster in the Eastern Conference (and maybe even the NBA, depending on how you feel about the Clippers' roster). Every player in their rotation could get playoff minutes for any team in the league. The problem is that their best players - Pascal Siakam, Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet - are only All-Star level players. The latter rounds of the playoffs are generally won by superstars...like the Celtics' Jayson Tatum. Between Tatum and Kemba Walker, the Celtics have the two top shot creators in the series. When they need a bucket in a tight moment with only a few seconds left on the shot clock, Tatum and Walker can create space and get buckets better than any player on the Raptors. Oftentimes, tight playoff games come down to whether your team hits those clutch shots. So far, the stars seemed to be carrying the day as the Celtics lead, 2-0.

This is one of the best coaching matchups we've had this early in the playoffs in a while. On one end, there's Nick Nurse, the 2019-20 NBA Coach of the Year and one of the most innovative minds in basketball. On the other end, there's Brad Stevens, who is almost universally regarded as one of the best minds in basketball despite being only 43 years old. The Raptors have the better team chemistry and depth. The Celtics have the higher ceiling with more star players. Toronto will have a hampered Kyle Lowry. Boston might not have Gordon Hayward at all. This series seems fairly even across the board - perhaps it will all come down to coaching? Boston got Games 1 and 2. Let's see what Nurse has up his sleeve the rest of the series.