The playoffs were under way in the NBA, and there were some shockers right off the bat (or the rim).

First off, it was the #6 seed Philadelphia 76ers v. #3 seed Orlando Magic.  The Magic have been a bit cold as of late, but the playoffs make things different.  A cold team can suddenly become hot.  Well, this is what happened, but not for the Magic.  The 76ers were down by 18 at one point, but battled back to keep things close in the 4th quarter.  Then, with the game tied at 98, and only three seconds on the clock, the Sixers Andre Iguodala did a beautiful fake out move at the top of the key, then shot a falling fade-away and… SWISH!  The Sixers up by 2 with just 2.2.  The Magic took one last shot, but it didn’t fall, and the Sixers get the upset to open the series.  Philadelphia 100, Orlando 98.

Elsewhere, it was the #5 Miami Heat v. the #4 Atlanta Hawks.  Even though Atlanta was ranked higher coming into the series, all the buzz has been around Dwayne Wade and the Miami Heat.  Both Wade and Heat have looked awesome as of late, and people were pretty much penciling them in for the second round.  Well, the Hawks weren’t too keen on that, as they came out and trounced the Heat in Game 1.  Wade had only 19 points, but all five of Atlanta’s starters were in double digits.  Now that’s team ball.  Did we count out the Hawks too soon?  Atlanta 90, Miami 64,

Sunday also marked the debut of Kobe Bryant and the Lakers quest to get back to the championship and win a title.  They would have to get by a pesky Utah Jazz team, but fortunately for the Lakers, the Jazz are a bit banged up now (not that it really matters, because the Lakers would beat them at full strength too).  Carlos Boozer led the way for Utah with 27 points, but Kobe was hot on the other end with 24 points and 8 assists, as the Lakers easily took Game 1.  LA Lakers 113, Utah 100.

MLB

And in baseball, the Dodgers continued their hot start, winning their 8th straight game. The Dodgers Matt Kemp had a stunning two home runs on the day, as the Dodgers demolished the Colorado Rockies.  The Dodgers appear to be quite serious this year about winning a World Series.  They did everything in their power to sign Manny Ramirez in the off-season, and although he’s been off to a slow start, they know he will come around and add even more force to their current tremendous team.  Watch out for the Dodgers this season!  They could be historic.  LA Dodgers 14, Colorado 2.