Warriors Broadcaster Bob Fitzgerald is in Orlando to broadcast select games from the first round of the 2020 NBA Playoffs. While in Florida, the Warriors’ television play-by-play broadcaster for the last 23 seasons checks in to provide updates on his experiences and observations from the NBA Bubble.
The Bubble is still buzzing from Luka Doncic and his incredible game-winner for Dallas against the L.A. Clippers in overtime on Sunday, tying that series at 2-2. When you have 16 teams and all of the players and league officials in one place, EVERYONE is watching the games in which they don’t play. I’d make a comment about not having a lot else to do (there is golf, bike riding, fishing and boating), but you become immersed in the playoffs and follow all of the storylines pretty closely. The thing about Doncic is that he’s only 21 and everyone is comparing him to a combination of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. His triple-double potential on a nightly basis also makes him comparable to a Euro Lebron, as well. The legend of Luka is just building!
Now as much as I love Adam Silver (we converse a fair amount), I am going to stay consistent that eventually the NBA Playoffs will become a 16 team tournament that is properly seeded according to records. We’ve had such an East-West disparity for nearly two decades that dividing teams just based on geography doesn’t really make sense anymore. I fully understand why the league didn’t want to make major changes with all the uncertainty around finishing the season with the Bubble concept, but just look at the East and West series.
Toronto, Milwaukee, Miami and Boston have all been involved in essential walkovers. All four of those teams are really good, so the second round in the East will be very good. But the West has Lakers vs. Portland, Clippers vs. Dallas, Houston vs. OKC and Denver vs. Utah in the first round. A far more competitive series and clearly eight of the 12 best teams in the NBA are in one conference. Add in the Warriors next year and the West becomes even more of a monster. Some day we will get the 1-16 tourney (still using a seven-game series). I’m more than willing to be patient.
I have the OKC vs. Houston Game 4 today at 1:00 p.m. PT on TNT (Rockets up 2-1). I have obviously have seen a ton of the Rockets over the past several years with Warriors playoff battles, but this version of Houston is better. The Rockets have gone full “micro-ball.” Five guards/forwards, no center, launch more than 50 three-pointers every game and play a switching defense that creates a frenetic game pace. Houston is so different than any other team in the NBA that I’ll be really curious to watch how this experiment unfolds throughout the rest of the playoffs.
One item that can’t be mentioned enough is how impressed I have been with the professionalism and effort of the NBA players. Most of these guys have been away from their family and friends for over 50 days already. And we are still in the first round! Yes, it’s easy to say they are just playing a game and the players are highly compensated, but just think about being away from everyone that matters in your life for months at a time. Not an easy thing to do in any job, let alone all the pressure and scrutiny of being involved in the postseason. The second round will allow family and children to travel to Orlando to be with the players. This will be great on a personal level, but create a considerable logistical situation in keeping the Bubble perfect with zero positive Covid-19 tests. As I continue to maintain, if any league can get this done, it’s the NBA.
