Lakers and Bucks Create an Unusual Record With Their Poor Performance at NBA Playoffs

In an unexpected turn of events, both top seeds of the Western and Eastern Conference lost to the eighth seeds in Game 1 of the playoffs today. The Milwaukee Bucks first lost to the Orlando Magic. Then later, the Los Angeles Lakers further increased bookies misery when they fell to the Portland Trail Blazers.

This is the first time since the 2002-03 season that both #1 seeds lost to the eighth seeds in the first-round matchup.

The Bucks loss was the bigger surprise. The Magic looked like the last team to upset the Bucks. They had lost all of their regular-season games against the Bucks earlier in the season. And each regular-season victory was a convincing one, but tonight they failed to win when it mattered the most.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a good game, but none of his teammates could step up. So despite finishing with a stat line of 31 points, 17 rebounds, and seven assists, it was a lone effort and the team couldn’t rally on it.

Lakers fail to stop Blazers juggernaut

The Blazers came into the game after a good run of games in the Bubble. They had won seven out of their nine games as they entered the playoffs. The Lakers started slowly, but eventually caught up with the Blazers. In the fourth quarter, with seven minutes to go, the Lakers had a six-point lead. But then they allowed the Blazers to go on an 8-0 run, and the Lakers never recovered.

LeBron James starred for them yet again, but like in Giannis’ case, he was also let down by his teammates. The Lakers were led by Anthony Davis, who shot a miserable 8/24 from the field at 33%.

The Lakers have been struggling with shooting throughout the Bubble, and tonight was one of the worst outings for them. In fact, it was one of the worst shooting performances in playoff history.

Both the #1 seeds will have to regroup now and get back stronger. Their over-reliance on their stars has been exposed, and they need the whole team to pitch in. One or two individuals cannot be expected to carry the team every night.