The Takeover

LeBron James and The 2026 First Round NBA Playoffs

Photo from Wikimedia Commons / C BY-NC-ND 2.0

As the NBA playoffs have begun, many fans are on the edge of their seats watching each game. Each fan hopes that their team can win four games in a best of seven series to see their team inch closer and closer to glory. This season is no different, and some players have the opportunity to win with their family.

LeBron James is widely considered one of, if not the best players in NBA history. His achievements are extremely impressive and his longevity has allowed James to grow his records more and more with each game. Along with that, James is the only player in NBA history to play in a game with his son, Bronny James Jr. However, with the playoffs starting and James Jr. receiving his first playoff minutes, the pair of James’ set a new milestone. They became the first father-son pair to play in an NBA playoff game together. Though the milestone was something many fans cherished, both players and the rest of the Los Angeles Lakers were focused on one thing: beating the fifth seeded Houston Rockets and advancing to the next round. Which is exactly what James and the Lakers did, taking down the Rockets in only six games.

Though James is considered the best of all time, he currently is not considered the best in the NBA. That title belongs to either Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic or Anthony Edwards. Each of whom are players represented by other teams who are in the Western Conference playoffs. Gilgeous-Alexander, who is the reigning NBA MVP, and the Oklahoma City Thunder were the one seed in the west and held the best record in the NBA being 64-18 during the regular season. This dominance shown by the Thunder has also translated into the playoffs, as the Thunder swept the eighth seeded Phoenix Suns led by Devin Booker to advance to the next round. In the next round the Thunder will face off against the Lakers, and only time will tell if the newest MVP can beat one of the best. Wembanyama and the other names listed are no slouches either. Wembanyama is considered an “alien”, as he is 7’4” and 235 lbs, but is able to shoot and dribble like a guard. Wembanyama plays for the San Antonio Spurs who are the second seed in the west and led the team to a 4-1 beatdown against the seventh seeded Portland Trail Blazers. Wembanyama was recently named an MVP finalist and is the youngest player to be a part of that group since James. Lastly, Jokic and Edwards faced off against each other in the first round of this year's playoffs. Jokic led the third seeded Denver Nuggets and Edwards led the sixth seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. This matchup between two of the league's best players was extremely anticipated, and many fans considered this matchup to be the best of the first round. This turned out to be true as the Timberwolves upset the Nuggets in six games with many controversial and tense moments between the two teams.

The Eastern Conference may not be as exciting as the Western, but still had many great series and matchups. In the eastern conference, three of the four series went to game seven. The only series not to go seven games was the third seeded Knicks facing off against the sixth seeded Atlanta Hawks in which the Knicks, led by Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, took down the Hawks in six games. The second seeded Boston Celtics and seventh seeded Philadelphia 76ers were the first game seven series in the east. After the Celtics lost star player Jayson Tatum before game seven to injury, the Celtics were unable to hold off the 76ers and were upset in the first round. This was a big upset as the 76ers are a part of a handful of teams to get out of the play-in tournament and win a series. The other two series which went to game seven were the one seeded Detroit Pistons against the eighth seeded Orlando Magic, and the fourth seeded Cleveland Cavaliers against the fifth seeded Toronto Raptors, where in both series the higher seed was able to win and advance.

As the end of the season approaches in June, there is plenty of great basketball to come and it will be exciting to see who wins the NBA Finals this season.