Upsets are not unusual in the NBA playoffs. In the later rounds, yes; the last two NBA champions were the No. 1 seed in their respective conferences, and historically speaking only two teams below the No. 3 seed have ever won a title. But the early series often include at least one surprising result. The first round, with the large pool of teams and multitude of things that can go wildly right or wrong for either side, is especially prone to upsets.
In 2024, for example, the No. 5 Dallas Mavericks upset the No. 4 Los Angeles Clippers en route to a surprising NBA Finals appearance. On the other side of the bracket, the No. 5 Indiana Pacers took down the No. 4 Milwaukee Bucks, who were missing Giannis Antetokounmpo. The year prior, the No. 6 Golden State Warriors wiped out the No. 3 Sacramento Kings in seven games, while the No. 8 Miami Heat defeated the top-seeded Bucks to kick off their historic postseason run. The ’22 playoffs were straight chalk, and the ’21 postseason had only one first-round upset.
