The NBA’s conference semifinals are set, and they taste like chalk. The top four teams in both the Eastern and Western conferences advanced as the second and third seeds tip off Game 1 of their series on Sunday. The first and fourth seeds tip-off their Game 1s on Monday.
News out of those eight organizations is fairly quiet as they prepare for their respective series. However, the Phoenix Suns are hopeful to get Devin Booker fully healthy and back.
Philadelphia 76ers
He did play through his hamstring injury in Game 6 against the New Orleans Pelicans after an original timeline that had him out till the first or second week of May, at least. Booker wound up playing 32 minutes in the 115-109 clincher but only scored 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting and was one for six on three-pointers.
The Philadelphia 76ers may be without MVP candidate Joel Embiid for their series with the top-seeded Miami Heat. Embiid was ruled out indefinitely late Friday night with a right orbital fracture and a mild concussion suffered in Thursday’s 119-90 series-clinching win over the Toronto Raptors. He suffered the injury with under four minutes left as Pascal Siakam was called for an offensive foul.
Zion Williamson
Beyond the postseason, Zion Williamson has dominated headlines despite having not played since May 4th, 2021. He missed the entire season with a right foot fracture and has played just 85 games in his three professional seasons.
On Friday, he didn’t hesitate saying, “Of course, I wouldn’t sign it fast enough,” when asked about a potential contract extension this summer.
Williamson, a YouTube sensation in high school who went on to star at Duke, had an All-Star campaign in his lone full season. He played 61 games during the 2020-21 campaign, in which he averaged 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game.
He will turn 23 before the start of next season and is eligible for a five-year, $181 million max rookie contract extension as a potential birthday present. He spoke to reporters for the first time since September.
He began rehabbing in January in Oregon and rejoined the team in March. He went through 5-on-5 but was never cleared to return to game action. He said the medical staff, front office, and coaches agreed it would be best if he was held out.
“Being real, it sucks watching from the sideline,” he told reporters. “I just want to be out there. Just seeing the potential. We have a lot of great pieces. I’m excited to get out on the court with those guys.”
The Pelicans snuck into the play-in tournament and advanced to the eight seed, losing a six-game series to Phoenix.
Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls star guard Zach LaVine is weighing his options of testing free agency and returning to the Bulls. He wouldn’t rule anything out.
LaVine averaged 24.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in his second straight All-Star season. The eight-year veteran played in 67 games, the most since the second year of his career when he played a full 82 with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Bulls added DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball, and Nikola Vucevic last summer, and it turned into a playoff run. Chicago was the sixth seed and lost a five-game series to the Milwaukee Bucks with Ball and promising young forward Patrick Williams out.
Denver Nuggets
Similarly, the Denver Nuggets were wiped out in a five-game series by the Golden State Warriors. Despite having MVP candidate Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets didn’t have enough firepower due to Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. missing most of the season.
Murray and Porter were seen dunking and shooting late in the season but said they weren’t anywhere close to returning. Murray is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered a year ago, and Porter had another back surgery during the season.
Murray estimated he was at 85% health, and Porter said he probably could have played if all that was asked was standing on one leg and shooting corner 3s.
“We can be the best team in the NBA,” Porter told reporters Friday, “when we have everybody healthy.”
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