What The Playoffs Mean: The Playoffs Kinda Suck When Your Team Plays

The playoffs are the sacred text, broad and malleable enough to explain any point of view. They are the way players reach immortality, the way GMs keep their jobs for another year. They are the reason Courtney Lee, Trevor Ariza, JJ Barea and Derek Fisher are kind of close to household names. They are why they play the games and why we watch. But they also mean a lot more than this, which is why we are here. From now until the end of the finals, we'll be here, toiling away, trying to unpack exactly what makes these games so great, exactly What The Playoffs Mean.
 
Here's how I imagine a day in the life of a near-homeless heroin addict:

Nobody Knew That They Were All Dead

Once again, the Miami Heatles, led by their three best players, took over the fourth quarter of a game that was close throughout to put a stranglehold on the Eastern conference finals. There are a few different angles worth analyzing when discussing last night's game.

Question of the Day

Despite the truth that this first round has been downright thrilling since tipoff, will we remember it less fondly if the Grizzlies fail to make good on the promise implicit in their game four drubbing of the Spurs and lose in seven? Would we ultimately be disappointed if the only underdog victory was the Hawks semi-upset of the Magic? Or are competitive series, no matter the outcome, all we ask of lower seeds in the first round?