This year's NBA playoffs unlike any other in history

It's already been an historic spring in the NBA, with all four California teams qualifying for the playoffs for the first time ever and the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat making history with their first-round series wins over the Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks respectively. The Heat became just the sixth No. 8 seed to knock off a No. 1 seed since the postseason field expanded to 16 teams in 1984 and the first since the Philadelphia 76ers did it to the Chicago Bulls in 2012.

Miami grabbed a 1-0 series lead over the fifth-seeded New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals with a road win on Sunday.

The top-seeded Denver Nuggets took care of the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs and earned a Game 1 win over the fourth-seeded Phoenix Suns on Saturday. The Suns earned a spot among the final eight teams after dropping their first postseason game against the Los Angeles Clippers before winning four straight.

The second-seeded Boston Celtics were pushed to six games in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks, but advanced past to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the sixth time in the last seven years. They'll start their best-of-seven set at home against the third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers (who swept the Brooklyn Nets in the first round) on Monday night, as the Sixers prepare to be without MVP finalist Joel Embiid.

The sixth-seeded Golden State Warriors kept their dynasty alive for at least one more round thanks to a masterful Game 7 performance by Stephen Curry on the road Sunday against the Sacramento Kings. Golden State and Los Angeles play Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals series on Tuesday night.