NBA Update

In recent years, it has been noticeable how the energy seems to drain out of the NBA playoffs in the later rounds.  Somehow the NBA has managed to combine a situation where we have a different champion every year with a situation where we never seem to have close series in the end.

In the Western Conference, the T-Wolves were never competitive with OKC.  The Thunder conceded Game Three, which was a blowout, but OKC won the other four games without too much trouble to win the series in five.

In the Eastern Conference, the Pacers won two thrillers in New York to open the series, and the Knicks could never get off their back foot after that.  The Pacers closed them out in six.

So now we have the Thunder and the Pacers for all the marbles.  Neither team has won the NBA title before.  The Thunder are overwhelming favorites -- the odds on OKC to win the title are now -750, compared to +525 for the Pacers.  I will be surprised if the Pacers can win two games in the series.

The sports year is coming to an end.  Paris-Saint Germain won the championship of European Club Soccer yesterday, which means that the NBA, the Softball College World Series, and the College World Series are the only big trophies yet to be handed out.  Last year was an election/Olympics year, so we've been pretty much going full blast since September 2023.  I have enjoyed this all enormously, but I'm looking forward to quiet months in July and August.