Thunder dominate, Celtics cruise & concerns about Luka & Brunson | Good Word with Goodwill

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On this episode of the Good Word with Goodwill, Yahoo Sports senior NBA reporter Vincent Goodwill is joined by NBA analyst Tom Haberstroh to talk about everything that’s going on in the NBA Playoffs Conference Semifinals.

The guys start in Oklahoma City, where the Thunder defense looked too big, too strong and too energetic for Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks to handle. Are the Thunder just the better team or is Luka’s high usage rate going to sink the Mavericks?

As expected, the Boston Celtics cruised to an easy victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers, even without Kristaps Porzingis. Vinnie and Tom talk about Jayson Tatum, who has been Boston’s 3rd best player amidst a poor playoff run by him and it hasn’t mattered at all. Tom wonders if he’s just keeping himself fresh for the later rounds.

The end of game 1 between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers was a mess due to inconsistent officiating. Tom and Vince talk about what calls they wish were, or weren’t, called and why the players are right to complain about the refs in this postseason.

Jalen Brunson, similar to Luka Doncic, has been carrying a high usage rate for the Knicks and the guys are wondering how long he’ll be able to keep it up. Tom digs through the stats to show that, historically, offenses built around one player with a high usage rate doesn’t typically equal playoff success.

Back to the officiating, Tom wants to talk about what happened in game 2 between the Nuggets and Timberwolves because he has a theory as to why Jamal Murray felt empowered to throw a towel and a heat pack at a referee. Meanwhile, Vinnie has a theory as to why Michael Malone wasn’t given a technical foul when he was screaming in the same ref’s face.

Finally, Producer John asks the guys to give their Top 5 best playoff breakout performances. The type of games that announce to the world that a new star is taking over the league and the old star’s time is done, similar to what Anthony Edwards did to Kevin Durant in round 1 this year. And, as per usual, the guys go digging in the crates and find examples from the 80s and 90s.

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