It’s an often repeated trope, but perhaps that is because it’s undeniably true. The NBA regular season and the playoffs are a different game. Physicality increases, teams shorten rotations, and more than anything, opponents adjust from game-to-game. If the regular season is checkers, the postseason is chess. The Toronto Raptors are in a game of chess with the Philadelphia 76ers right now.
The Raptors dominated Game 1 in every sense of the word. They came into the playoffs with a matchup advantage and proved it. After controlling the game from tip-to-buzzer many worried about the 76ers viability in this series.