From Randy Hill of FOXSports.com:
During the 2007-2008 playoffs, home teams won 60 of the 80 contested games. As any hoop scholar would be eager to inform us, winning in the regular season often allows a successful team to play more games at home. Home-court advantage includes all Game 1 dates, another obvious benefit that seems even greater after noticing Game 1 victors went on to win 16 of the 17 series waged last year.
Having Game 1 at home also guarantees that Game 7 (if necessary) will be contested in the same home arena of the team with the best regular-season record. How important is playing Game 7 at home? In the 100 Game 7s recorded in league history, the home team has won 80.
Yeah, it’s good to wear the white (or gold) jerseys.
Hill breaks down the Lakers, Celtics, and Cavaliers’ road records and illustrates his point by citing Boston’s struggles to win on the road in last season’s playoffs. Home-court advantage is always important. One of the points Kenny Smith likes to make is that role players struggle on the road. Can the Celtics count on Tony Allen or Glen Davis to step up in a Game 7 away from TD Banknorth Garden? Have Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar and Vladimir Radmanovic learned from last season’s Finals loss? The Cavs took Boston to the wire in Game 7 of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals as LeBron James poured in 45 points, but James received little help from Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Wally Szczerbiak. Superstars and sidekicks maintain their level of play on the road, but role players and reserves rarely produce at the same rate away from home, especially when the pressure mounts.
