The very first game of the first round of the NBA’s 2022 Eastern Conference playoff series between the Boston Celtics was an instant classic by all accounts, with the punch-for-punch tilt close from wire to wire. Decided by a buzzer-beating layup coming from trust and ball movement as both veteran point guard Marcus Smart and star forward Jaylen Brown passed up potential game-winners to get the rock to a cutting Jayson Tatum, who laid up and in as time expired to secure the Game 1 win for Boston.
Widely seen as among the greatest starts to a first-round series — and by some, among the greatest of any Game 1 series — the tilt from start to finish has elevated anticipation for the rest of the series to perhaps unsustainable levels.
