5 best NBA playoff risers in recent memory
The NBA playoffs are the time when teams up the ante in pursuit of their championship aspirations. It is also an opportunity for players to underscore their worth, with performances that far exceed their showing during the regular season wars.
Through the course of the history of The Association, it has seen a number of players who have established a solid reputation of rising during the NBA postseason, helping their respective teams and/or fortifying their standing as true stars of the game.
Here's a closer look at some of the best NBA playoff risers in recent years.
5 best NBA playoff risers in recent seasons
#5. Derrick White (Boston Celtics)
Now in his third year in Beantown, White has been a steady presence in the backcourt of the Celtics. His numbers are pretty much the same in the regular season and in the NBA playoffs with Boston but his value in the postseason goes beyond what is seen on the stats.
The seven-year pro has a penchant for rising to the occasion at the most opportune of times. Be it an all-important basket in the clutch – like his buzzer-beating, game-winning putback in Game 6 of last year's East Finals against the Miami Heat – or solid defensive play, he has his fair share of those in the Cs uniform.
In the ongoing postseason, White has significantly improved his scoring, averaging 21.8 points in the four games they have played against the Heat so far, up from his 13.3 ppg average in the regular season. He punctuated it with a 38-point performance in their 102-88 rout of Miami in Game 4, where he went 8-of-15 from 3.
#4. Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks)
While playing alongside a generational player like Giannis Antetokounmpo for much of his tenure in Milwaukee, it has not stopped three-time All-Star Khris Middleton from shining, especially come the NBA playoffs.
In the regular season, the 32-year-old veteran forward has career averages of 16.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg and 3.9 apg. But in the playoffs, he has picked it up with numbers of 26.8 ppg, 9.4 rpg and 5.0 apg in five games so far in the postseason in Milwaukee.
Middleton is particularly solid for the Bucks in the ongoing season in the absence of Antetokounmpo and, of late, Damian Lillard, because of injuries.
#3. Anthony Davis (LA Lakers)
Anthony Davis has had his share of injuries in the regular season that hampered his showing throughout his career but there is no denying that come playoff time he is a true performer, particularly in scoring and rebounding.
For his career with the New Orleans Pelicans and Lakers, "AD" has norms of 26.1 ppg and 11.8 rpg in six trips to the playoffs, including in 2020 where he won an NBA title with the Lakers. These are up from his regular season career totals of 24.1 ppg and 10.6 rpg in the regular season.
The Lakers saw their playoff run this season come to an end on Sunday at the hands of the defending NBA champions Denver Nuggets but not after Davis played solid with 27.8 ppg and 15.6 rpg in five games.
#2. Jimmy Butler (Miami Heat)
Another solid performer in the playoffs throughout his career is Jimmy Butler, who has had postseason career averages of 21.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg and 4.6 apg in 11 trips in the NBA playoffs, which also includes stops in Chicago, Minnesota and Philadelphia.
But in Miami he is particularly special, posting averages of 24.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 5.7 apg in 64 games. Last season, he also took the lead for the Heat as they made their way to the NBA Finals as the eighth seed in the East.
Unfortunately for Miami, in the ongoing NBA playoffs, Butler has yet to take the floor because of the sprained MCL he suffered late in the regular season.
#1. Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets)
"Playoff Jamal Murray" is undoubtedly a thing for the Denver Nuggets and the point guard has the track record to prove it.
For his career, the 27-year-old former Kentucky star has postseason numbers of 24.9 ppg, 6.4 apg and 5.0 rpg in four trips to the NBA playoffs, including their champion run last season. The numbers are significantly higher than those of his regular season orms of 17.5 ppg, 4.5 apg and 3.7 rpg.
He further solidified his lofty playoff stature with his 23.6 ppg and 7.2 apg performance in their five-game defeat of the Lakers in the first-round playoff series this season, highlighted by two game-winners at home.