Four NBA Stars Who Must Bounce Back After Terrible Game 1 Performances

Game 1 of any NBA playoff series is informative on a number of levels, particularly when it comes to the stars. The first game is an opening salvo of sorts where each team plays tug-of-war trying to set the tone for the upcoming battle that could stretch as many as seven games. That tone is largely determined by the performance of the best player on the roster.

This past weekend brought eight Game 1s, kicking off the first round of NBA playoff action. For several teams, the leaders went out there and did indeed set the tone. Jayson Tatum led the Celtics to a whooping of the 76ers. Donovan Mitchell and James Harden combined to score 54 points to handily beat the Raptors. Victor Wembanyama starred in his playoff debut against a feisty Trail Blazers team and made sure everybody knew he’d be the same floor-warping presence in the postseason that he was in the regular season.

Conversely, there were a few stars who did the opposite by setting a low bar with terrible showings in to open their playoff series. Which isn’t necessarily cause for alarm. Bad games happen to everybody in the playoffs and it’s better to get them out of the way in Game 1 rather than Game 7.

However, most teams can’t afford for their best players to have more than one bad game in a series.

As Game 2s begin across the NBA this week, let’s look at four stars who flopped in Game 1 and absolutely must bounce back with a good performance in Game 2 for their teams to have any hope of surviving another round this postseason.

Jalen Duren, Pistons

Game 2 vs. Magic: Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET

The Pistons are collectively at fault for dropping Game 1 against the Magic on Sunday night. But nobody had a more disappointing playoff opener than Duren. A first-time All-Star this year, the fourth-year center took only four shots and totaled eight points; he averaged nearly 20 points per night this season. The supposed walking double-double pulled down only seven boards against Orlando and turned the ball over four times.

Worse than all that? Duren looked like he had no idea what he was doing defensively. He took a huge leap on that end this season but regressed hard to his former self as Detroit began to panic in the second half. He took himself out of plays regularly by biting on every pump fake, screwed up defensive coverages and was constantly out of position. According to the NBA’s own stats Duren’s individual defensive rating came in at 134.3 after Sunday’s game, a significant decline from his season defensive rating of 108.2. As a result the Magic waltzed down the floor and scored at will, putting up 54 paint points en route to the 112–101 Game 1 victory.

Duren is definitely capable of scoring better and coach J.B. Bickerstaff acknowledged Orlando “packed the paint” to stifle his production on pick-and-roll actions. It’s likely he’ll have a better game in that regard on Wednesday. But the Pistons need him to step up defensively even more.

Alperen Şengün, Rockets

Game 2 vs. Lakers: Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. ET

Şengün had quite an opportunity in front of him on Saturday evening after Kevin Durant was surprisingly ruled out due to a knee injury. Going up against LeBron James and the Lakers in Los Angeles, the Turkish center could have reminded everyone why he’s a two-time All-Star and earned “baby Jokić” labels in the not-so-distant past.

Instead, he flopped in the 107–98 loss. The Houston star needed 19 shots to record 19 points and shot below 30% from the field. Unlike Duren, Şengün was able to round out his game a bit with six assists to pair with eight rebounds but it wasn’t nearly enough. The Rockets’ offense was completely lifeless the entire game to the degree it felt like Şengün and his teammates were merely going through the motions on the way to a scheduled loss. Rather than, you know, Game 1 of a Western Conference playoff series in which the Rockets were seen as heavy favorites due to the injuries on the other side.

Şengün’s team just needs more from him, whether or not KD can return in the coming games. He is the only other capable offensive player on the roster and the best paint scorer on the team, something that could prove very valuable against this Los Angeles team. Unless he locks in and plays like it’s the postseason, Houston doesn’t have a chance.

Brandon Ingram, Raptors

Game 2 vs. Cavaliers: Monday, 7 p.m. ET

Ingram earned his second All-Star nod this year because he is, by far, the best offensive player the Raptors employ. All of Toronto’s other players can hit shots but struggle mightily when they have to create for themselves. The lone exception is Immanuel Quickley—and he was ruled out before Game 1 with a hamstring issue. That left Ingram as the Raptors’ most important player on Saturday even though he wouldn’t be tasked with shutting down Donovan Mitchell and James Harden.

But Ingram came up short. Way short. He managed only 17 points in Toronto’s 126–113 loss to Cleveland, a final score that belies how close the game actually was. And it wasn’t like Ingram was cold—he just didn’t take shots. The veteran forward totaled nine attempts on the day. Three of his teammates recorded more. The Cavaliers’ defense is no slouch with the Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen combo patrolling the paint and Ingram did draw 10 free throws. But Cleveland’s perimeter defense is not exactly elite given how often Mitchell and Harden are on the floor. There were opportunities for Ingram, opportunities he simply did not take advantage of. The Raptors’ offense shuts down when that happens.

As Ingram himself said after the game: “At the end of the day, me shooting nine shots is not going to win basketball games.” Toronto needs a much more aggressive version of the high-scoring forward going forward.

Julius Randle, Timberwolves

Game 2 vs. Nuggets: Monday, 10:30 p.m. ET

Randle did not have a good game to begin these playoffs. He shot 7-for-16 from the field to total 16 points with seven rebounds, two assists and one turnover. The Timberwolves were -9 in his 31 minutes, the second-worst plus-minus mark of the starting lineup. Even though Minnesota kept it closer than most of the lower seeds did this weekend Randle will need to give a lot more if there’s any chance of an upset—and the heights he can reach will dictate how much the Wolves’ offense can thrive.

That’s because Randle is being treated like a complete non-shooter by the Nuggets’ defense. As noted in Sports Illustrated’s Winners and Losers column from over the weekend, Denver was content to leave the former All-Star forward completely alone beyond the arc to collapse the defense on whichever Timberwolves player managed to get into the paint. It’s a common strategy in the playoffs for opponents to aggressively help off players who aren’t threats from deep but it’s quite uncommon to see that treatment applied to a three-time All-Star who averaged over 20 points per game in a Western Conference finals run only one year ago.

But the numbers back it up. Randle is not shooting well from deep this season, at 31.5% on the year, nor is he getting up shots in great volume with 4.4 attempts per game. Since the All-Star break his make percentage dipped below 30% and his attempts to 3.4 per game. Deep shooting has never been a big part of Randle’s game but his ability to at least make defenses pay attention to him opened up the rest of the floor, for both himself and his teammates. Right now that’s not happening and Minnesota will suffer every minute he’s on the floor as a result.

Randle has to find his scoring touch again. If he finds his deep shot in the process, great. But he isn’t punishing the Nuggets for the space they’re giving him right now. That has to change.

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