32 teams survived the gauntlet of July, and by week's end, we will only have 16 still standing. Today though, we're only going through four series just because of the sheer volume.
Some of these series may not have ended theoretically quite yet (any seven-game series would play their final games in the next couple of days), but the results will be shared here to complete the round in time for the start of the next round.
In this and every round of Elimination play, all series are best-of-seven following a 2-2-1-1-1 format. Home court advantage in this round goes to the higher seed based on finish in Group Play. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play.
Stephen Curry Bracket
(4) 2008 Boston Celtics vs (1) 2015 Golden State Warriors
Game 2: @ '15 Warriors 87, '08 Celtics 78 (Series tied 1-1)
Game 3: '15 Warriors 113, @ '08 Celtics 98 ('15 Warriors lead 2-1)
Game 4: '15 Warriors 100, @ '08 Celtics 93 ('15 Warriors lead 3-1)
Game 5: @ '15 Warriors 110, '08 Celtics 92 ('15 Warriors win 4-1)
Boston's defense came to play early in this series, containing the Warriors in Game 1 behind 15 steals to grab a road win, but the Warriors responded in Game 2 with a stifling performance of their own while Steph Curry went off for 32 points. The Warriors caught fire in Game 3, shooting 53.4 percent overall and 48.1 percent from deep. Boston turned the ball over 21 times in Game 4, unable to take advantage of a down shooting day for Golden State. The Warriors then used a 33-18 third quarter advantage in Game 5 and Curry going off for 35 points to seal the series.
Magic Johnson Bracket
(4) 1980 Los Angeles Lakers vs (1) 1987 Los Angeles Lakers
Game 2: @ '87 Lakers 119, '80 Lakers 110 ('87 Lakers lead 2-0)
Game 3: '87 Lakers 126, @ '80 Lakers 114 ('87 Lakers lead 3-0)
Game 4: @ '80 Lakers 131, '87 Lakers 108 ('87 Lakers lead 3-1)
Game 5: '80 Lakers 119, @ '87 Lakers 114 ('87 Lakers lead 3-2)
Game 6: '87 Lakers 113, @ '80 Lakers 110 (OT) ('87 Lakers win 4-2)
Showtime was on full display in Game 1, as '87 Magic went off for 25 points and 15 assists to lead an '87 Laker offense that shot 54.3 percent to roar to a 1-0 series lead. He had 33 points in Game 2 while three other starters had at least 16 and the '87 Lakers controlled the boards to lead 2-0. The '80 Lakers shot 53.6 percent in Game 3, but turned the ball over 20 times while only forcing eight at the other end, and suffered a tough loss to end up on the brink. They shot over 60 percent in Game 4 and dominated the glass to stave off elimination, then continued to win the rebounding battle in Game 5 and used a 10-0 run late in the game to break a tie and force a Game 6. '80 Michael Cooper did all he could to force a Game 7, hitting a three at the regulation buzzer to force overtime, but '87 Magic scored four straight points to break the tie and send the '87 Lakers on to the next round once '80 Magic's three at the buzzer did not fall.
Scottie Pippen Bracket
(3) 1976 Boston Celtics vs (2) 2009 Los Angeles Lakers
Game 2: '76 Celtics 100, @ '09 Lakers 99 ('76 Celtics lead 2-0)
Game 3: '09 Lakers 106, @ '76 Celtics 80 ('76 Celtics lead 2-1)
Game 4: @ '76 Celtics 114, '09 Lakers 107 ('76 Celtics lead 3-1)
Game 5: @ '09 Lakers 116, '76 Celtics 91 ('76 Celtics lead 3-2)
Game 6: @ '76 Celtics 118, '09 Lakers 111 ('76 Celtics win 4-2)
Los Angeles shot 3-22 from beyond the arc in Game 1 and were outrebounded by a feisty Celtics team to fall behind early in the series despite Kobe Bryant's 38 points. LA then blew a seven point fourth quarter lead as Jo Jo White hit an 18-footer at the buzzer to win Game 2, spoiling a go-ahead three by Bryant with nine seconds left. In Game 3, the Lakers held the Celtics to 38 percent shooting and Bryant had 33 points to get Los Angeles on the positive side. The Lakers then turned it over 21 times in Game 4 and the Celtics took advantage despite 36 more from Kobe. Boston couldn't close it out at Staples, turning it over 20 times and getting outscored 32-12 in the second quarter to extend the series. Back in Boston, Kobe Bryant fouled out with six minutes to go in a tie game, and the Celtics went on a 9-2 run to pull away. The Lakers got back within one with 35 seconds to play, but a Paul Silas tip effectively sealed the upset for Boston.
Michael Jordan Bracket
(4) 1998 Chicago Bulls vs (1) 1997 Chicago Bulls
Game 2: @ '97 Bulls 96, '98 Bulls 73 ('97 Bulls lead 2-0)
Game 3: '97 Bulls 99, @ '98 Bulls 86 ('97 Bulls lead 3-0)
Game 4: '97 Bulls 92, @ '98 Bulls 83 ('97 Bulls win 4-0)
The Michael's and Scottie's largely cancelled each other out in Game 1, but four other '97 Bulls scored in double figures to lead them to the early series lead. In Game 2, the '98 Bulls hit just a third of their shots and '97 Pippen had a triple-double to hold serve at home. '96 Michael went off for 32 points in Game 3 while '97 Pippen put up a near triple-double while the '98 Bulls improved to 35.4 percent shooting. Finally in Game 4, the '97 Bulls overcame a deficit going into the fourth quarter and a last gasp from '98 MJ, who scored 28 points, but the '98 Bulls couldn't control the glass or get much in the way of secondary scoring, becoming the second sweep victim of the Elimination Round.
To see the updated bracket, click here. We've now seen results from one series in each bracket. Tomorrow, I'll have more results and officially unveil half of the matchups for the second round.
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