The NBA Playoffs are here and we could see some major upsets in the first round

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Goooood morning, folks! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for rocking with us today. We appreciate you taking the time.

After a long season, the NBA playoffs are finally upon us. Well, almost, anyway.

We’ve still got to slog through another round of play-in games (which I am still firmly against).

Let me put it this way: The play-in tournament is like a cram studying session. Can you pass the test? Sure, you can. Do you deserve to? Probably not. You should’ve studied before this, fam!

Regardless, it’s here. It’s fun sometimes and it’s presented us with a few possibilities for upsets in these NBA playoffs:

In the East: 

• No. 2 New York Knicks vs. No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers: I know the Knicks have been a fantastic story this year. Jalen Brunson is legitimately one of the 10 best players in the league. But the 76ers have won eight straight games since Joel Embiid returned and Philly is only 3 games back of the Knicks in the standings. That’s a closer matchup that we’re being presented with.
• No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks vs. No. 6 Indiana Pacers: Malik Beasley says this won’t be easy for Indy, but he probably shouldn’t be talking. The Pacers have already beaten Milwaukee five times this season. I’m not 100 percent confident in this because it’s hard to beat a team nine times in one year. But Indy has the juice here.

In the West: 

• No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 6 Phoenix Suns: This is another matchup in which the lower seed has won every regular-season game this year.  The Suns beat Minny three times this year—granted, two of them came in the last couple of weeks here. But still! This team has Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal. They believe.
• No. 4 L.A. Clippers vs. No. 5 Dallas Mavericks: Ok. I’m unsure if a five-seed beating a four-seed is technically an “upset,” considering they were only one game apart. But the Clippers were at the top of the West at one point this season. The Mavericks are now playing their best basketball heading into the playoffs with one of the best playoff performers we’ve ever seen. They’ve got a great chance to win here.

Let’s have some fun this postseason, man. If we get another Miami Heat run from some play-in team (maybe it’s the Heat again?!?), maybe I’ll stop talking so much trash about it in the future.

Tonight is the night

March Madness may have just ended, but you’ll be seeing a lot of the stars from the women’s tournament on your TVs again tonight. The WNBA Draft is here.

We know what’s going down with the top pick — Caitlin Clark is headed to Indiana. But it’s the next few picks that are so intriguing.

• The Sparks are the key. LA is picking at No. 2 and No. 4. That’s a team that just needs to build talent, so they’ll making best-pick-available moves.
• Most think Stanford’s Cam Brink is going two, but our Meg Hall has South Carolina star Kamilla Cardoso there. Brink slides to four, and the Sparks get her anyway, setting their frontcourt for the future.
• The most interesting player might be Tennessee’s Rickea Jackson. She’s an absolute bucket with a ton of size at forward on the perimeter. Personally, I think I’d give her a look at two myself.

There are so many ways this thing can go. Hopefully, someone good slides down to my Mystics at number six. I’m hoping for Aaliyah Edwards, but we’ll see.

READ MORE: Here are some WNBA draft predictions from the homie Prince Grimes 

Boban is the best

What else is there to say about Boban Marjanovic? The dude is a comedian, a movie star, a great friend, and now, we can confirm he’s a man of the people.

Boban intentionally missed a free throw to help Clippers fans win a free chicken sandwich. Here’s Mary Clarke on the situation:

“Much like many sports teams do, the Clippers have a promotion that can net fans free food should certain conditions happen in a game. For the Clippers, fans can get a free Chick-fil-A sandwich if a visiting team misses two consecutive free throws in the fourth quarter. Pretty specific, but in this case, it worked out perfectly for fans in the arena on Sunday.”

Watch Boban clank this last free throw here. This dude is seriously the best.

Boban intentionally missing a free throw to give Clippers fans free chicken is the craziest thing I’ve seen all season pic.twitter.com/Ok9Z5JGdTA

— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA) April 15, 2024

What a guy. Man of the people, folks. You love to see it.

Quick hits: Scottie holds the crown … John Rahm is a hater … and more

— Scottie Scheffler won The Masters with an absolutely ridiculous performance. Here’s Blake Schuster on these five incredible shots that won him the tournament.

— Scheffler had has caddie walk with him after winning this time, too. What a guy. Meg Hall has more here.

— And here’s John Rahm at Scheffler’s Masters ceremony. Hating. Charles Curtis has more.

— People actually like the Jets’ new uniforms and logo. I feel like … they’re kind of the same? But whatever. It’s working.

— Christian D’Andrea put together an all-trades 2024 NFL mock draft for you just to bring a bit of chaos into your life.

— See Jim Nantz’s call on Scottie Scheffler’s second Masters win here. Blake Schuster’s got it for you.

Alrighty, folks! That’s a wrap. Thanks so much for reading. Let’s do this again tomorrow. Until next time, peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.

-Sykes