The 2018 NBA Playoffs, besides being a beacon of entertainment, provide us with endless stories of heroism in high-pressure situations (as far as sports go). Superstars elevate their games, carrying entire rosters on their backs to gut out tough wins.
But the best stories are often the ones we do not expect. It’s not the MVP candidates and All-Stars going off for 35 points in an elimination game. It’s the unheralded role player or second option doing all the little things and exploiting his matchups in order to win a quarter en route to a game and series victory.
The 2018 NBA Playoffs have been filled with these types of unheralded heroes. Each series has had at least one surprising player make pivotal plays to change the course of games or series.
New Orleans Pelicans: Jrue Holiday
Jrue Holiday’s excellent play is not a surprise to anyone who has followed his career. The Pelicans’ point guard has always been among the league’s most underrated players, with his inability to remain healthy the only true weak spot of his career.
But even the most devout followers of Holiday’s game could not expect the sheer domination he showed in a four-game sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers. Matched up primarily against All-Star Damian Lillard, Holiday not only won his positional battle but turned the course of the series to the Pelicans’ favor from the start.
Holiday managed to average 27.8 points and 6.5 assists per game while shooting a scorching hot 56.8 percent from the field and 35 percent from three. But Holiday’s statistical production was secondary to his defensive impact where he held Lillard to 22 points on 6-31 shooting (4-15 from three) in possessions where he guarded the Blazers’ star. He also forced eight turnovers in those four games.
Anthony Davis was a world beater all series long. But it was Jrue Holiday’s two-way excellence that turned a potential upset into a dominating sweep.
Toronto Raptors: Fred VanVleet
The Raptors exorcised many of their playoff demons in the first round. They beat the Wizards. They won a game one. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan were fantastic for most of the series.
But there were still some moments when hope in the Eastern Conference’s first seed wavered, especially after they gave up a huge comeback victory to Washington in game four to tie the series. Much of the Raptors’ woes could be traced back to their bench which was uncharacteristically poor in the first round, mostly due to the absence of stud backup point guard Fred VanVleet.
VanVleet only played major minutes in one of the six games but his presence was felt in both. In game six, VanVleet scored five points, four rebounds and four assists en route to closing out the Wizards at home. While the stats were not particularly impressive, the point guard settled down the second unit (he only committed one turnover) and played his usual brand of gritty defense. The Raptors outscored the Wizards by 12 points in his 19 minutes on the court.
The Raptors may be favorites over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers who are limping into the second round after a grueling seven-game series against the Pacers. But if the Raptors are to finally make it past the gatekeeper of the East, they will need VanVleet and the rest of the bench to dominate in their minutes against a thin Cavs’ squad.
Boston Celtics: Terry Rozier
The Milwaukee Bucks had the best player in the series by far in Giannis Antetokounmpo. They had arguably the second best player in the series in Khris Middleton. The Bucks still lost.
Without Gordon Hayward, Kyrie Irving and Marcus Smart for much of the season, the Celtics needed stellar performances from their “other guys.” Perhaps none were as remarkable as Terry Rozier, the backup point guard who surprised everyone with his strong play.
In seven games, Rozier averaged 17.6 points and 6.7 assists per game, outplaying Eric Bledsoe – who the Bucks traded for in order to improve their playoff chances – for the entire series. Rozier scored more than 20 in three games, including a phenomenal 26 point and nine assist performance in game seven to oust the Bucks all while frustrating Bledsoe into short-term memory loss.
The Celtics are severe underdogs against the 76ers but as long as Scary Terry keeps giving them production off the bench, they’ll have a chance.
All stats via NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.
