The NBA playoffs have been characterized by incredible individual performances (e.g. Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook's 51-point, 13-assist and 10-rebound triple double against the Houston Rockets in a 115-111 loss on Wednesday night) and some surprising team efforts (e.g. the No. 8 seed Chicago Bulls taking two on the road against the No. 1 seed Boston Celtics).Here's a look at the rest of the first-round schedule as well as three prominent storylines.Can the Chicago Bulls Pull Off the Upset'Only four No. 8 seedsthe 1993-94 Denver Nuggets, the 1998-99 New York Knicks, the 2006-07 Golden State Warriors, the 2010-11 Memphis Grizzlies and 2011-12 Philadelphia 76ershave beaten a No. 1 seed in the first round of the NBA playoffs.The Chicago Bulls, who lost to the 76ers as a No. 1 seed five seasons ago, are two wins away from adding their name to that list. Chicago also has home-court advantage in the series now, as it will host Games 3 and 4 as well as Game 6 if the series goes that far.Bulls forward Jimmy Butler has been the No. 1 reason why Chicago is up 2-0, as the All-Star has averaged 26.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists in two games, but center Robin Lopez is the X-factor. Hehas simply been dominant on the boards, pulling down 9.5 a game in addition to averaging 16 points.The Bulls have also received key contributions from Rajon Rondo, who was a rebound shy of a triple double on Tuesday, Dwyane Wade and a trio of forwards (Nikola Mirotic, Paul Zipser and Bobby Portis).With the entire Bulls rotation firing on all cylinders, it will be difficult (but certainly not impossible) for Boston to fight its way back.How Will the Memphis Grizzlies Respond After Coach David Fizdale's Rant'Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale etched his name alongside Jim Mora, Herm Edwards and other managers and coaches who have gone on epic postgame rants on Monday night:Fizdale was unhappy with the officials after Game 2, in which the San Antonio Spurs shot 32 free throws while Memphis attempted just 15. Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard attempted four more free throws than the entire Grizzlies team.Fizdale was fined $30,000 for criticizing the referees, but per ESPN.com, Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley said some of the Grizzlies are paying that five-figure fee.The Grizzlies have looked outmatched during this series, in part because their defensive stopper, Tony Allen, is sidelined with an injury. Without Allen, no one can slow down Leonard, who has averaged 34.5 points per game.However, will Memphis use the momentum from their coach's postgame speech to turn the momentum in this series' For what it's worth, the Grizzlies are only a 3.5-point underdog to the Spurs for Game 3, per OddsShark, despite losing their first two playoff games by an average of 21.5 points.Giannis Antetokounmpo's Rise to SuperstardomNo basketball fan doubts that Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the best players in the league, but a future where everyone considers the Milwaukee Bucks superstar top five in the NBA might be close on the horizon. Perhaps he'll be considered the consensus best player in the entire league one day.The Toronto Raptors, who are one of the better defensive teams in the league, simply have no answer forAntetokounmpo in this series.Antetokounmpo has averaged 26.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game in the playoffs, and he's now headed home to Milwaukee for Games 3 and 4 with the series tied at one.Antetokounmpo looks like he's running downhill at the Raptors all game given his incredible length and breakaway speed for someone his size (6'11"). That helps open up opportunities for his teammates beyond the arc. Malcolm Brogdon and Tony Snell combined for seven three-pointers in Game 1, and Snell and Khris Middleton hit seven more in Game 2.With the wayAntetokounmpo is playing, and given the fact that Milwaukee now has home-court advantage in this series, maybe we'll see him vs. LeBron James in the conference semifinals.
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