The Opening Tip

Tonight’s playoff games

You gotta give.

1. It’s definitely worth trying to win

‘The NBA regular season doesn’t matter’ is the new ‘baseball is dying.’ It’s the thing a sports fan says to their partner’s friend’s partner because that person also vaguely likes sports and you’ve run out of other talking points. It’s so en vogue that even NBA team Twitter accounts are saying it.

We’re here to make an important distinction: You might not watch the regular season. But it definitely matters.

IE .. you need to win 50 games in the regular season to win the Finals, full stop. Barring the Pacers or Cavs pulling off a miracle, this will be the 43rd time in the last 44 full 82-game seasons that a 50-plus-win team has won the NBA Finals.

More: Here are the eight teams remaining, ranked by odds to win the title with coinciding regular season wins. 

The Bucks (49 wins), Suns (49), Lakers (47) and Warriors (46) -- the fraudulent pseudo contenders who sleep-walked through regular seasons of varying tumult -- are all gone. By next round, only serious NBA teams who won games and built chemistry from October through April will be left.

Please remember this next March, when you’re talking yourself into the 38-38 Lakers as true contenders.

2. Daily GIF: Right, right

This Hail Mary capped a 20-second 8-0 run to end the half for Denver. The final score was 115-107.

[WATCH: Nuggets-Wolves Game 4 highlights]

3. Trivia

4. What comes of these YOLO trades

The NBA draft lottery was yesterday, snuck in right before Knicks-Pacers Game 4. 

One interesting thing: Rent was due yesterday on three memorably bad/backfired/YOLO trades. 

[READ: Post lottery NBA mock draft]

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