Wednesday night both teams down in the series evened it up, does that trend continue? And do we finally get a close game in Round 2? Lots of questions for Thursday night.
Brooklyn Nets at Miami Heat (Heat lead series 1-0). What does Brooklyn need to do differently in Game 2 compared to the second half of Game 1? Almost everything. They need to defend the three ball better. They need to find a way to keep LeBron James and Dwyane Wade from living in the paint. They need to grab some offensive rebounds. They need to make sure Heat role players such as Ray Allen are held in check (Allen had 19 in Game 1). They need to get Kevin Garnett (zero points in Game 1) and Paul Pierce (8) going. Deron Williams has to have a better game. That’s not a complete list, but that should be enough to keep Jason Kidd busy for 24 hours. Expect the Nets to play better and answer some of those questions, but will that be enough?
—Kurt Helin
Portland Trail Blazers at San Antonio Spurs (Spurs lead series 1-0). How did Terry Stotts spend his off day? Did he plot ways to free hissuddenly blanketed shooters, especially LaMarcus Aldridge? Did he scout Aron Baynes? Did he devise a defensive gameplan that includes Nicolas Batum on Tony Parker? There are so many issues for Portland to fix in such a short time. Meanwhile, after San Antonio’s 24-point win, Gregg Popovich can work on luxuries -- like getting Manu Ginobili following an 0-for-6 Game 1.
—Dan Feldman