The next day.
When news spread that the Suns, Bulls, Mavericks, and Magic had all suffered shocking home losses, it immediately caused an uproar.
"Hiss!"
"No way. That shouldn't have happened!"
"I can understand the Mavericks maybe having a small chance of losing to the 'Thunder Trio,' but teams like the Suns and Bulls, the No. 1 teams in the West and East.
How could they lose at home to the eighth seed?"
"Exactly. It just doesn't make sense!"
"With their 'one star, four shooters' strategy, plus 'Superman' dominating the paint, the Magic should have been almost impossible to beat at home too.
This is really strange."
"The Suns are even more ridiculous. 'Monster Rookie' Blake Su put up a gorgeous '30+' triple-double in his debut, and they still couldn't win.
Unbelievable. It makes no sense!"
"Come on, what's so hard to understand? Everyone already said this group of Suns newcomers was stepping onto the playoff stage for the first time. They needed time to adjust.
They just happened to run into the defense-first Grizzlies, and that's why they slipped up.
Besides, even then, they only lost by 7. Just watch. The Suns will win the next game in dominant fashion and fully adapt to the playoff stage.
After that, it'll be the Suns slaughtering them one-sidedly."
"Exactly, I feel the same way. We should understand and believe in the Suns. This dark horse team of the season will definitely shine in the playoffs too."
"O-okay, then... what about the Bulls, Mavericks, and Magic? What do you say about them losing at home too?"
"Uh... I don't really know what to say."
"Yeah. Anyway, four higher-ranked teams all suffering upset losses at home at the same time really is rare."
"Haha, yeah. This year's playoffs feel like they're going to be really interesting!"
"..."
All through the next day.
Fans and media were completely caught up in heated discussion over the four straight upsets from the night before, talking nonstop about the shocking results.
And that discussion lasted all the way into the night.
All the way until tonight's games arrived.
On the second day of the first round of the playoffs, there were also four games: Spurs vs. Trail Blazers, Lakers vs. Nuggets, Heat vs. 76ers, and Celtics vs. Knicks.
First came the Celtics vs. Knicks matchup.
The two teams were evenly matched, and the series felt like it had the intensity of an Eastern Conference Finals. Even before the game, people expected it to be a fierce, tightly contested battle.
However.
Since the Celtics were at home, the experts predicted before the game that the Celtics would be the team to win tonight.
But from the very start, the Knicks took control. Anthony handled the outside, Stoudemire controlled the inside, and the two cores had clearly defined roles.
Their offensive firepower was fierce.
Those two alone scored the Knicks' first 18 points in the first quarter, leading the team on an 18-8 offensive storm and putting them up by 10.
The Stoudemire-Carmelo duo was that strong.
The Celtics, playing at home, fell into a passive position right from the start.
After the first quarter.
The Knicks led by as many as 9 points. In the second quarter, the Knicks pressed their advantage and kept expanding the lead. By halftime, they were already up by 14.
At that rate, it looked like the game might be blown open in three quarters.
At the commentary desk.
Jon Barry shook his head. "What's going on? The Celtics' 'Big Four' are way too out of rhythm tonight. No matter how they attack, nothing is going in."
"Exactly!"
Mark Jackson nodded. "The Celtics' touch is ice cold. They haven't gotten their home-court offense going at all. They're in serious trouble.
When they come back after halftime.
If they don't adjust in time, they may end up dropping this one at home tonight."
That was what they said.
But after halftime, the Celtics, who clearly had home-court advantage, continued to struggle.
On the Knicks' side, the Stoudemire-Carmelo duo's offense in the second half was clearly not as fierce as it had been in the first quarter. The problem was that the Celtics were even less efficient.
After three quarters.
The gap had already reached 21 points, and the game was blown open.
In the final quarter, the Celtics still could not find their shooting touch. After struggling for half a quarter, they finally decided to give up the game.
In the end, the Knicks opened the series with a win, slaughtering the Celtics by a huge 17-point margin.
People originally thought the Celtics would take the game, but not only did they lose, they got blown out. The Celtics' loss was another upset.
As soon as it ended, the discussion erupted.
"Tsk, tsk... another upset. Last night started with four straight upsets, and tonight's first game is another one. What is going on?"
"Hiss! The Celtics have already suffered an upset loss, and the Spurs, the No. 2 team in the West with their 'Big Three,' are about to lose too."
"What?!"
"Hey, what do you mean 'about to'?"
"Exactly. Bro upstairs, what stream are you watching with that much delay? Parker missed the game-winner, and they already suffered an upset loss to the Trail Blazers."
"Oh, my god!"
"This is really unbelievable!"
"The Celtics and Spurs both got upset tonight. The Lakers vs. Nuggets and Heat vs. 76ers games are about to start, and the gap in strength is extremely obvious. There shouldn't be any more upsets, right?"
"It's... really hard to say!"
As the fans kept talking.
The Heat vs. 76ers matchup tipped off first.
The unstoppable "Heat Big Three" faced the 76ers at home, a team without "AI" Iverson and led only by "Little AI" Andre Iguodala.
No matter how you looked at it, it should have been a one-sided Heat slaughter.
But... the 76ers all stepped up. Brand, Andre Iguodala, Holiday, Lou Williams, Thaddeus Young, and Meeks all exploded.
Six against three.
They actually went head-to-head and beat the Heat Big Three. No one saw it coming.
After the game.
Inside the broadcast studio.
Seeing the Heat lose, Hubie Brown could not help sighing. "This is the playoff stage. This is a battlefield where teams fight with bayonets and get serious.
Don't look at the 76ers and think they don't have stars.
They have six players averaging 10-plus points per game. If you dare to underestimate them, even if you're the Heat's 'Big Three,' even if you're the league's big villain.
You won't be able to handle it, and you'll pay the price with a loss."
"Hiss!"
Dave Pasch's mouth twitched as he exclaimed, "The Heat actually lost? That's even harder to believe than the Spurs losing.
With the Heat suffering an upset loss, there have already been seven upsets in the first games of the playoff first round. The final matchup is Lakers vs. Nuggets.
They can't possibly have an upset too, right?
You have to know, although the Nuggets are fifth in the West, that was the result Anthony helped them achieve. After he left in the second half of the season, the Nuggets as they are now are actually very weak.
Are the defending champions really going to lose to them?"
Buzz!
Dave Pasch said it as if he thought the Nuggets would win, but everyone listening knew it was sarcasm. They all believed that the Lakers, with "Black Mamba" Kobe, would definitely beat the Nuggets.
But... his words came true.
Right after the Heat, the back-to-back champion Lakers.
At Staples Center, on their own home court, they ultimately lost by 5 points to a Nuggets team without "Melo" Anthony.