Has a #7 seed ever beaten a #2 seed in NBA Playoffs?
Two of the most exciting matchups in the 2024 NBA Playoffs from both the Eastern and Western Conferences will start on Saturday. The series between the second-seeded New York Knicks and the seventh-ranked Philadelphia 76ers will be quite intriguing. Out in the West, the No. 2 seed Denver Nuggets will host LeBron James’ LA Lakers in a rematch of last year’s conference finals.
The Knicks, who could have avoided either the 76ers or the Miami Heat, pulled out a hard-fought 120-119 victory over the Chicago Bulls. Milwaukee and Cleveland, who were in the running for the No. 2 seed, were disinterested in winning. Philadelphia’s squeaker (105-104) over Miami set up a date with New York.
Meanwhile, the LA Lakers also shrugged off ideas of punting against the New Orleans Pelicans to avoid the Denver Nuggets. The Lakers were all business in fending off the Pelicans 110-106 to get a rematch with their tormentors last year. Instead of a conference finals showdown, they will battle in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs.
Has a No. 2 seed ever lost to a No. 7 seed in the NBA playoffs?
In 1984, the NBA decided to expand the playoffs from 12 to 16 teams to give more excitement to fans and incentive to franchises. Since then, there have been six No. 7 seeds who have pulled off an upset against their No. 2-ranked opponents.
The 1986-87 Seattle SuperSonics led by an underrated core of Dale Ellis, Tom Chambers and Xavier McDaniel pulled the rug from under the Dallas Mavericks. They were the first seventh-ranked team to beat a second-seeded opponent. The Sonics’ luck ran out when they faced the mighty Showtime Lakers who brought out the broom in four games.
The Golden State Warriors replicated the feat during the 1988-89 season when they sent the No. 2-seeded Utah Jazz to an early vacation. Chris Mullin and Co. took on the best of the legendary duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone and swept them.
The Dubs weren’t done exercising the upset ax as they did it again two years later against the San Antonio Spurs.
The Patrick Ewing-led New York Knicks, ranked seventh in the 1998 NBA Playoffs, finished off the Miami Heat in a bruising and feisty five-game series. Game 5, the win-or-go-home showdown didn’t have several stars due to suspension. A brawl between Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson was the reason both teams were undermanned in the deciding encounter.
The San Antonio Spurs joined the club during the 2010 NBA Playoffs when, as the No. 7 seed, they eliminated the Dallas Mavericks. Dirk Nowitzki’s Mavericks bounced back from that stinging loss to eventually capture its first and only championship in 2011 against the Miami Heat.
Finally, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the LA Lakers inducted themselves into that group last year by cutting short the Memphis Grizzlies’ season. Ja Morant’s team was seeded second but the veteran Lakers gave them a neat lesson in NBA Playoffs.
Los Angeles, again led by James and Davis, will try to follow the same script this year versus Denver. Joel Embiid’s Philadelphia 76ers also have a chance to join the enviable list if they can stun the New York Knicks in the 2024 NBA Playoffs.