This is it.
After a 66-game truncated season due to the lockout, the NBA playoffs tips off in a hurry Saturday with four games on the schedule.
The matchup that everybody is probably looking forward to on Saturday, especially here in the New York, is the Knicks vs. Heat, which kicks off at 3:30 p.m.
But there are plenty of other great games to look forward to, including Saturday night’s game between the explosive Oklahoma City Thunder and defending champion Dallas Mavericks who fell off a bit this year.
And there are plenty of headlines out there. What will happen to the Big 3 is they fail to win the title this year? Can the San Antonio Spurs old legs carry them to a title? Is the window closing on the Boston Celtics?
Here’s a look at the matchups for the entire first round.
East:
Chicago Bulls (No. 1) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (No. 8)
Miami (No. 2) vs. New York Knicks (No. 7)
Indiana Pacers (No. 3) vs. Orlando Magic (No. 6)
Boston Celtics (No. 4) vs. Atlanta Hawks (No. 5)
West:
San Antonio Spurs (No. 1) vs. Utah Jazz (No. 8)
Oklahoma City Thunder (No. 2) vs. Dallas Mavericks (No. 7)
Los Angeles Lakers (No. 3) vs. Denver Nuggets (No. 6)
Memphis Grizzlies (No. 4) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (No. 5)
Saturday’s schedule:
Philadelphia 76ers at Chicago Bulls – 1 p.m. TNT
New York Knicks at Miami Heat – 3:30 p.m. ABC
Orlando Magic at Indiana Pacers – 7 p.m. ESPN
Dallas Mavericks at Oklahoma City Thunder – 9:30 p.m. ESPN
