NBA Playoff Schedule 2020: Game Times, TV and Live-Stream Coverage for Tuesday

Kelvin Kuo/Associated Press

The final NBA first-round series to tip off may be the most anticipated of the eight matchups. 

Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers enter their series with the Los Angeles Lakers off a wave of momentum following their successful hunt for the Western Conference's No. 8 seed. 

Now the Blazers face their toughest task yet in the NBA bubble, as they try to do the unthinkable and knock out one of the favorites to win the NBA Finals. 

As we saw Monday, the lower seeds are more than capable of posing a challenge, but it is difficult to close out contests against the league's best teams. 

Oklahoma City and Miami could be in the best positions to become the first lower seeds to win a postseason game, but it won't come easy against some dynamic scorers. 

Tuesday NBA Playoff Schedule

Game 1: Orlando vs. Milwaukee (1:30 p.m. ET, TNT)

Game 1: Miami vs. Indiana (4 p.m. ET, TNT)

Game 1: Oklahoma City vs. Houston (6:30 p.m. ET, TNT)

Game 1: Portland vs. Los Angeles Lakers (9 p.m. ET, TNT)

Games can be live-streamed on TNTDrama.com.

Portland Looking For Game 1 Upset

Portland comes into Tuesday night's clash with the Lakers off a 7-2 record that pushed it above all of its competition for the No. 8 seed and past Memphis in the play-in series. 

The Lakers experienced a much different fate in the seeding games, where they finished with just a single win in their last five games. 

Lillard believes the Blazers could have a mental edge in the series since they have played with the win-or-go-home mentality, per Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.

“I think the thing that we have on our side is that we've had to be on edge since we've been here,” he said. “Every game that we've played has been down to the wire.”

Even though the Blazers have some things going in their favor, they may struggle to contain Anthony Davis and LeBron James. 

Each of Portland's last five opponents reached 120 points, and two of the last three eclipsed 130. If the Blazers' defensive limitations are on show in their matchups with the two superstars, they could fall short of their upset bid. 

If the Lakers take advantage of Portland's lackluster defense, it could extend a trend from the regular season. When they scored 120 points or more, they went 25-1, with the lone loss coming August 13 against Sacramento.

Oklahoma City At Disadvantage In Attempt Stop Harden

The Thunder could have a tough time containing James Harden, even if Russell Westbrook is sidelined for the Houston Rockets for Game 1. 

Oklahoma City head coach Billy Donovan said Monday that Luguentz Dort “likely isn't going to play” Tuesday, per The Athletic's Erik Horne. The 21-year-old was expected to be one of the main defenders on Harden, who had 86 points in three games against the Thunder this season. 

Harden averaged 34.1 points per game in seven appearances over the last two weeks. In each of those games, he knocked down at least a trio of three-point shots. 

Without Dort, the Thunder could struggle to not only contain Harden but also the Rockets' other perimeter scorers. 

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Eric Gordon, Danuel House and Robert Covington are among the options Houston has to spread out Oklahoma City's defense and create open looks. 

To overwhelm Oklahoma City from beyond the arc, the Rockets have to shoot much better than they did in their three meetings with the Thunder. 

Houston went 30-for-129 from downtown in those contests, and if they are unable to thrive off a high volume of shots, it could keep the door open for Oklahoma City.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from Basketball Reference.

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