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News, Blog and GuidesAfter the Celtics completed a series whitewash against the Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Mavericks can repeat that feat against the Timberwolves in the West.
Paul RudderEnglish_ASUpdate: May 28th, 2024 13:07 EDT0
Trevor RuszkowskiUSA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
It’s the thing that no team wants to experience. Yet just what is a “sweep” in sports and where does the term come from? Let’s take a look.
The meaning of the term “sweep”
As you probably know, most North American sports use the best-of-seven format to determine the victor when it comes to the playoff end of their yearly campaigns. Be it the NBA, MLB or the NHL – the NFL just has a straight knock out format – the principle is the same: win four games and you advance or become champion. Needless to say, if you manage to win four consecutive games without taking a loss, that’s both a serious affirmation of your team as the better of the two and an even more severe condemnation of the opponent as inferior. And when a series ends 4-0, the result is commonly referred to as a “sweep”.
OTD in 1949, the Basketball Association of America and National Basketball League merged to form the @NBA. Among the 1st teams: Boston @Celtics, Minneapolis @Lakers, Philadelphia @Warriors, Rochester Royals (later KC/@SacramentoKings), and Tri-Cities Blackhawks (later @ATLHawks). pic.twitter.com/v9dGHb2IlZ
— Ajit Pai (@AjitPai) August 3, 2021
Where does the term “sweep” come from?
Simply put, it stems from the figurative language of “cleaning out” or rather “to make a clean sweep” of something. Quite literally, when one sweeps a surface, the dust/dirt is moved in the direction that you sweep in. Between the momentum of your sweeping action and the whiskers of the broom, the dust goes where you want it to. That’s to say, it’s an action which is completely dominant in nature as it leaves the dust with no option but to be moved. Similarly, when it comes to sports, that’s essentially what one team does when they “sweep” the other. They “never missed a spot” and therefore fully cleaned the floor.
