Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns combined for 54 points and shot 21-of-32 from the field, while Kyle Anderson, replacing Gobert in the starting lineup, had seven offensive rebounds and eight assists. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 20 points, while Nikola Jokić notched 16 rebounds on 5-of-13 shooting. The rest of Denver’s starters struggled, particularly Jamal Murray, finishing with eight points and four turnovers on 3-of-18 from the field. J. Washington’s 29 points each, the Mavericks improved to 3–0 following a loss this postseason and leveled the series at one game apiece.
Anthony Edwards was held to under 25 points for the first time in five games, while Karl-Anthony Towns made 4-of-5 three-pointers for the Timberwolves, who endured their largest defeat of the season. The Timberwolves stunned the Nuggets in the first half, as they jumped out to a 26-point halftime lead that they rode to take a commanding 2–0 series lead back to Minneapolis. Without Rudy Gobert, the Timberwolves still held Denver to 80 points, their fewest in any game since 2020.
- Derrick White added 20 points and four assists for Boston, which finished with six players in double-figures.
- Pascal Siakam had 17 points and nine rebounds, while Myles Turner’s playoff career-high 29 points and nine rebounds also bolstered the Pacers’ effort, as they led by as much as 19 in the first quarter.
- Dončić’s 13 assists primarily went to centers Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II, who combined for 30 points on 14-of-16 shooting.
- A hobbled OG Anunoby and Josh Hart started for New York, but Anunoby exited in the first quarter, and Jalen Brunson (17 points) left in the second half with a broken hand, adding to the Knicks’ injury woes.
Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert led Cleveland in scoring with 15 points, while the starting backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland combined for 18 points on 8-of-26 from the field. Without Jimmy Butler, the Heat hit a franchise playoff-record 23 three-pointers as Miami tied the series at one game apiece. Tyler Herro had 24 points and 14 assists, hitting 6-of-11 from beyond the arc, while Bam Adebayo finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds on 69% shooting.
Play-in tournament brackets
The 2024 NBA Finals Presented by YouTube TV, with ABC as the exclusive broadcaster, concluded with the Boston Celtics winning their 18th championship. The 2024 NBA Playoffs Presented by Google Pixel concluded with the Boston Celtics winning their 18th championship. As per the alternating rotation, ESPN/ABC had exclusive coverage of the Eastern Conference finals, while TNT had exclusive coverage of the Western Conference finals. Seeds 7 and 8 in each conference were determined via the first-stage play-in tournament, held April 16–19. We pulled together best practice from the NCETM, White Rose Maths, teacher influencers, educators in Shanghai and Singapore and from leading academics.
Playoff qualifying
The Heat, who trailed by as much as 29, struggled to find an offensive rhythm, with Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro combining on 13-of-34 (38%) from the field. With the win, the Celtics improved to 15–4 immediately following a loss this season and improved to 6–1 in their last seven road playoff games against Miami. The Mavericks, led by their trio of Dončić, Irving, and Washington, protected homecourt and secured a 2–1 series lead over the top-seeded Thunder. Dončić contributed 22 points and 15 boards while Irving finished with 22 points and seven assists, as the pair made key plays down the stretch. Washington scored 27 points and spearheaded a 16–0 run in the third quarter that gave Dallas a lead they wouldn’t relinquish, while rookie Dereck Lively II, being fouled intentionally in the fourth quarter, finished 8-of-12 on free throws.
Player statistics
After suffering a demoralizing blowout loss in game 4, the Knicks responded with a 30-point victory to move one win away from their first conference finals appearance in 24 years. Jalen Brunson led the charge with 44 points and seven assists, marking his fifth 40-point game of the postseason. Josh Hart recorded 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Miles McBride and Alec Burks combined for 35 points on 8-of-15 from beyond the arc. New York dominated the glass, outrebounding Indiana 53–29 and securing 20 offensive rebounds (with 12 of them coming from Isaiah Hartenstein) that led to 26 second-chance points. Pascal Siakam had 22 points, Myles Turner scored 16, and Tyrese Haliburton finished with 13 points on nine shot attempts.
After playing a tightly contested game against the eighth seed in game 1, the Thunder routed the Pelicans 124–92 to seize a 2–0 series lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Oklahoma City onslaught with 33 points on 13-of-19 from the field, while rookie Chet Holmgren had 26 points and seven rebounds on 9-of-13 shooting. Jalen Williams added 21 points and seven assists for the Thunder, who shot 59% from the field and made 14-of-29 three-pointers. On the defensive end, they held New Orleans to under 95 points for the second straight game and forced 18 turnovers, converting them into 22 points. Jonas Valančiūnas led the Pelicans in scoring with 19, while Brandon Ingram and Herbert Jones both finished with 18 points. With the Knicks’ starters struggling, the New York bench outscored the 76ers’ bench 42–7, with Miles McBride, Bojan Bogdanović and Mitchell Robinson leading the way to win Game 1.
- Despite the win, the Celtics lost Kristaps Porziņģis in the first half to a calf injury, from which he would not return until the NBA Finals.
- Pascal Siakam finished with 25 points and seven rebounds, Myles Turner posted 17 points and eight rebounds, and the Pacers improved to 6–0 at home this postseason to force a decisive game 7.
- Paolo Banchero scored nine of his 27 points during a 14–7 Orlando run to end the game, Franz Wagner had 26 points, and Jalen Suggs made six three-pointers and finished with 22 points for the Magic.
- Jamal Murray, who scored two total points in the first half coming into game 3, had 18 of his 24 points in the first two quarters and set the tone for Denver, who led by as much as 34 points.
Although Cleveland had a significantly higher field goal percentage, they were outrebounded and shot 7-of-28 from deep, as center Jarrett Allen missed his second straight game. Again, Milwaukee entered game five without Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, looking to extend their season. Indiana held an eight point lead after the first quarter, but Milwaukee’s defense responded by holding the Pacers to only 17 points in the second quarter, helping the Bucks take a 53–48 halftime lead. Milwaukee carried this momentum throughout the rest of the game, cutting Indiana’s series lead 3–2 behind Khris Middleton’s 29 points and 12 rebounds, as well as Bobby Portis’ 29 points and 10 rebounds. Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 16 points and six assists, while Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam were held to 13 and 12 points respectively.
Mitchell Robinson also had seven rebounds before getting injured following a controversial flagrant foul from Embiid. Jayson Tatum recorded his first playoff triple-double, leading the Celtics to a 114–94 Game 1 victory over the defending Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. Tatum’s performance of 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists was complemented by his teammates, as they knocked down 21 of Boston’s 22 three-pointers.
( Denver Nuggets vs. ( Los Angeles Lakers
In a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Finals, the Nuggets won their ninth consecutive game against the Lakers, fueled by Nikola Jokić’s 32 points and 12 rebounds on 65% from the field. Jamal Murray contributed 22 points and 10 assists, as the two-man game of Jokić and Murray yielded 17 assists to zero turnovers. Aaron Gordon secured a double-double while Michael Porter Jr. finished with 19 points and eight rebounds. On the Lakers’ side, LeBron James scored 27 points and Anthony Davis added 32, as Los Angeles led for the majority of the first half. But a 13–0 run late in the third quarter by the Nuggets, which included three Kentavious Caldwell-Pope three-pointers, allowed them to seize control of the game.
Jalen Brunson scored 47 points, setting a Knicks franchise playoff record en route to securing a commanding 3–1 series lead back to New York. Brunson shot 18-of-34 from the field and finished with an assist-turnover ratio of 10 to 1, as he surpassed the 46 points scored by Bernard King in 1984. Josh Hart had zero field goals but finished with a playoff career-high 17 rebounds, while OG Anunoby had a double-double of 16 points and 14 boards. Joel Embiid had 27 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, but shot 0-of-5 from the field in the fourth quarter and finished the game 7-of-19. Tyrese Maxey scored 23 and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 19 points as the Sixers shot 29-of-82 (35%) from the floor, their second-lowest percentage of the season.
( Oklahoma City Thunder vs. ( Dallas Mavericks
Evan Mobley and Caris LeVert each provided 15+ points, while the rest of Cleveland’s starters (Garland, Strus, and Okoro) shot a combined 30% (9-of-30) from the field and 19% (3-of-16) from beyond the arc. Jaylen Brown scored 32 points on 12-of-18 from the field, while Derrick White made 7-of-12 three-pointers and finished with 25 points as the Celtics cruised to a 120–95 victory in the series opener. Jayson Tatum added 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Payton Pritchard added 16 points off the bench as Boston improved to 20–0 this season when holding their opponent to fewer than 100 points. Donovan Mitchell provided a game-high 33 points for the Cavaliers, while Evan Mobley shot 8-of-12 from the field and finished with a double-double.
Boston Celtics
After averaging just 22 points on 39% shooting over the first four games, Luka Dončić delivered a 31-point triple-double and made 12-of-22 shots to give the Mavericks a pivotal 3–2 series lead heading back to Dallas. On the road facing a hostile crowd, the Mavericks trailed by six early but seized the lead midway through the first quarter and maintained it for the rest of the game. Derrick Jones Jr. recorded 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting, Kyrie Irving added 12 points, and both P. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points and dished out eight assists, but no one else on the Thunder scored more than 13 points, as his teammates combined to shoot 8-of-36 (22%) from deep. After missing the entire second quarter due to a foot injury and trailing by ten at halftime, Jalen Brunson’s return in the second half sparked a 21–4 run and propelled the Knicks to a 2–0 series lead.
Western Conference finals
The top-seeded Celtics responded emphatically to their home loss with a wire-to-wire 104–84 victory over the Heat, retaking the series lead. Led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s 22 points each, the Celtics improved upon their defense and held Miami to a season-low 84 points. Tatum also contributed 11 rebounds and six assists, while Kristaps Porziņģis and Derrick White added 18 and 16 points respectively.
Ivica Zubac shot 7-of-8 from the field and Bones Hyland had 11 points in garbage time for Los Angeles. Paul George and James Harden shot a combined 6-of-25 (24%) from the field and committed seven turnovers, while Russell Westbrook continued his shooting woes, going 2-of-11 and shooting a mere 6-of-35 (17%) in his last four games. Oklahoma City closed the series out on a 22–9 run as the Thunder swept a playoff opponent for the first time since their NBA Finals run in 2012. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Jalen Williams scored 11 of his 24 points in avatrade review the fourth quarter.