“The Bulls and Thunder Secure Play-In Wins, Set to Face Miami and Minnesota for Postseason Entrance”

Inside out. The second series of games of the play-in offered fascinating challenges, without proof of appeal. Chicago in Toronto and Oklahoma City in New Orleans win them away and in sprint. The playoffs for the eighth seed in the Conference will therefore be played on Friday, during the Italian night, in Miami and Minneapolis respectively. For the Raptors and Pelicans instead remorse, regrets and the awareness of a season that began with great expectations and ended with enormous disappointment.

The suggestive, pre-game story was DeRozan against his past. Well, he wins at his “house” of him, but the stage is taken by the other great scorer of the Bulls, Zach LaVine. Who catches the Chicago season by the hair when it seemed already over. From under 19 points, in Canada. He scores 39, inevitable in the second half, and makes a sensational comeback. The Bulls are still standing. The playoffs will be played in Miami against Jimmy Butler’s Heat. Toronto wraps up an already disappointing season in the most disappointing way possible. Wasting a comfortable advantage in front of their fans: shooting 18/36 on free throws, the line becomes a nightmare. By committing 10 turnovers in the second half. The utopia of interchangeable players didn’t work, with Poeltl arriving mid-season as a classic center to salvage first and this scorching elimination in the play-on then. The toy is broken and the franchise’s future could be very different from the current physiognomy with Coach Nurse at the end credits and at least one big guy with suitcases in hand. It will be a summer of change in Canada.

The match

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58-47 Toronto at halftime thanks to a triple from midfield by Van Vleet who will close 2 short assists from the triple double. Then the Raptors stretch 66-47: maximum advantage of the evening. It all seems easy, all taken for granted. And instead…Instead LaVine scores 17 points in the third period which the guests close on the water line, down 72-81 after 36′. The inertia of the game changes, now the Bulls believe it, refreshed by the errors in the line of the opponents (with DeRozan’s 9-year-old daughter who screams to disturb the shooters) by the turnovers of others forced by the pestiferous Beverley and Caruso. The guard with Italian origins scores the triple of the draw at 91, then the triple is signed by Beverley and is worth 96-93, the first external advantage from 29-28. DeRozan takes away the satisfaction of the one-handed dunk with thunder, Siakam completes the hosts’ omelette. After an unforgivable foul by Caruso against him, down by 3 points with 12” to play, he misses the second and third free throws. Finished. The Bulls continue the hunt for the playoffs, the Toronto season is already over.

Toronto: Siakam 32 (12-19, 1/3, 5/11 tl), VanVleet 26, Barnes 19. Rimbalzi: VanVleet 12. Assists: VanVleet 8. Chicago: LaVine 39 (10/15, 2/7, 13/15 tl), DeRozan 23, Vucevic 14. Rimbalzi: Vucevic 13. Assist: White 5.

Really thunder, that Thunder. Unexpected, even. But Oklahoma City kids grow up fast. Better trained by Coach Daigneault than those of Coach Green, who bungles once more in this disastrous season and even with the best team available, loses the last good challenge to still cling to playoff hope. Terminus therefore for New Orleans, huge disappointment, well beyond the injury of Zion Williamson. Instead OKC will play the playoffs on Friday night in a single match in Minneapolis with the Wolves, beyond any pre-season forecast. The Big Easy gives us the splendid (indirect) duel between the young phenomena Ingram and Gilgeous-Alexander. 30 points at the end for the Pels ace, 32 and above all the victory for the Thunder.

The match

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32-29 Thunder after the first quarter thanks to 14 points from Dort who will close with 27, a season high. In the middle of the second quarter, the Lithuanian Valanciunas is already in double points / rebounds: a colossus. The Pelicans dominate under the boards. 63-.57 Pels at halftime, thanks to Murphy’s 15 points in the second period. Gilgeous-Alexander with just 7 points, and shooting 3/10, never in the line for the guests: a problem…Solved soon, however: he overflows in the third period, scoring 17 points, and when Giddey scores the triple, the guests go up to 95 -85, their greatest advantage. Richardson’s dunk is worth the counter-overtake of 101-100 and we arrive in the sprint, with Giddey, 20 years old, who comes close to the triple double – short by one rebound – and manages offensive possessions like a veteran. While Green forgets Valanciunas on the bench, unforgivable. 111 all, 1’30” to play. Ingram and Gilgeous-Alexander score heavy baskets, Giddey and Dort free throws under pressure. OKC +3, last Pels possession. Green has run out of time outs and cannot throw in the opponent’s half. Result? Lost ball. The best trained team wins, Oklahoma City wins.

New Orleans: Ingram 30 (9/17, 1/2, 9/11 tl), Murphy 21, Jones 20. Rimbalzi: Valanciunas 18. Assist: Ingram 7.

Oklahoma City: Gilgeous-Alexander 32 (9/17, 2/5, 8/8 tl), Giddey 31, Dort 27. Rimbalzi: Giddey 9. Assist: Giddey 10.