NBA Playoffs Articles - Page 47

As if the first-round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers was not intense enough, some players got into it early in Game 2 of the matchup Tuesday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indiana. Late in the first period of the contest, Bucks shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. and Pacers shooting guard Bennedict […]

LOS ANGELES, CA — When the Los Angeles Clippers traded for guard Kris Dunn last offseason, they were hopeful that an elite defender at the point guard position would lead to a better overall defensive team. Dunn, who had proven his two-way capabilities, was doing so on lottery teams like the Utah Jazz, Portland Trail […]

BOSTON — The Boston Celtics’ history of success runs deep. It starts with franchise legends and goes all the way down to the bench, where unsung heroes have quietly made their mark for decades. Celtics point guard Payton Pritchard joins that rich lineage of bench ballers, as he’s now the fourth player in franchise history […]

The Memphis Grizzlies looked poised to make another playoff run this season, but everything spiraled pout of control near the end of the season. A dip in play combined with a slide in the standings led the Grizzlies to fire head coach Taylor Jenkins. After sliding down all the way to the No. 8 seed, […]

Following the Orlando Magic’s 103-86 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green offered pointed criticism of Orlando’s supporting cast — specifically calling out veteran Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The Magic opened their playoff run with a tough showing against the defending champions, struggling to keep […]

The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a 117-95 loss in Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. With Game 2 set to tip off on Tuesday night, L.A. must get a victory to tie up the series. Heading into the matchup, popular sports analyst Nick Wright offered a sobering take about LeBron James and his team. During […]

Mark Daigneault made it clear he’s not chasing perfection after the Oklahoma City Thunder’s commanding 51-point victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1 of their NBA playoff series. The 40-years-young coach, in his fifth season leading Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s upstart, small-market Thunder, emphasized that basketball’s inherent flaws are part of what defines the game, even […]

The NBA Playoffs continue, and the Miami Heat will be hoping to even out the series after taking the loss in Game 1 against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers when they come into their matchup on Wednesday. It’s time to continue our NBA Playoffs odds series with a Heat-Cavaliers prediction and pick. The Cavaliers look to […]

The best series of the 2025 NBA Playoffs so far has been the battles between the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference. These two teams have a history with one another in the playoffs, and it has shown during the two tight games played in Denver, both of which came down […]

The Golden State Warriors opened their 2025 NBA Playoffs campaign with a 95-85 victory over the Houston Rockets on Easter Sunday, but head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged a key adjustment he must make heading into Game 2. Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Kerr admitted he mishandled Jimmy Butler III’s minutes in the series opener, despite Butler’s […]

The Memphis Grizzlies are shrugging off a lopsided Game 1 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, approaching Game 2 with a calm resolve that belies the 51-point deficit from Easter Sunday’s demolition. Despite the Thunder’s dominant performance, Tuomas Iisalo dismissed any notion of pressure weighing on Ja Morant’s Grizzlies, instead shifting expectations to the heavily […]

The Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic are getting ready for Game 2 of their NBA playoffs series as the two teams will meet in Boston on Wednesday night. Game 1 went down on Sunday, and the Celtics easily cruised to a 103-86 win. At one point in the game, Magic shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope committed […]

The Memphis Grizzlies were left looking for silver linings after a 131-80 blowout loss to open an NBA Playoffs first-round series versus the Oklahoma City Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was all smiles after the win while Ja Morant was making bold declarations about the future. There are still a few more meetings on the books but […]

The Rockets host the Warriors on Wednesday in Game 2! The Rockets are looking to bounce back after losing in Game 1. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series with a Warriors-Rockets prediction and pick. Since Jimmy Butler was traded, the Warriors have looked like a much different team. They finished with a 48-34 […]

Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard is ready to go, injury or not. Although Lillard has been bothered by blood clots for weeks, the guard says he’s playing in the Bucks-Pacers NBA playoff game Tuesday. “I’m playing… I’m going to give it everything I got… You gotta go out there and do what you’ve gotta do,” […]

Game 2 is Wednesday night as the Orlando Magic aim to even the series against the Boston Celtics. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series with a Magic-Celtics prediction and pick. Paolo Banchero and the Magic showed up in Boston and threatened the defending champs in the first half of Game 1. After a […]

Despite their continued rise and individual achievements, Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner remain underappreciated by many of their peers, according to The Athletic’s annual anonymous NBA player poll. The survey, which polled 158 players across the league on a variety of categories, offered a revealing look into how players perceive rising talent, underrated contributors, and […]

Minnesota Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards has been fined $50,000 by the NBA league office for what is being labeled as “directing inappropriate language and making an obscene gesture toward a fan,” the league announced on Tuesday afternoon. The incident occurred during Game 1 of the first-round series between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Lakers […]

Throughout the 2024-25 season, the main topic of discussions regarding the NBA has been the constant change in viewership and ratings. Although ratings were high during the second half of the season, the league saw a big drop in numbers near the start of the year. Now that the NBA Playoffs are here, the league’s […]

Even dream jobs have nightmare days. Fortunately, Tuomas Iisalo was able to laugh off uncomfortable questions after Ja Morant’s Memphis Grizzlies suffered through a 51-point blowout loss (131-80) to open the NBA Playoffs. A first-round Game 1 against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Oklahoma City Thunder did not go as planned but there are brighter days ahead according […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to respond after a disappointing 117-95 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series. Ahead of Game 2, which tips off Tuesday at 10:00 p.m. ET on TNT, former NBA player Marcus Morris issued a stark warning on ESPN’s First Take, emphasizing the stakes […]

The Memphis Grizzlies will not be caught off guard by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in an NBA Playoffs Game 2 tilt. At least, that is what Scotty Pippen Jr. stated after the Grizzlies took a historically bad loss on the chin Easter Sunday. Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Zach Edey talked about […]

A group of NBA players are tired of having to deal with angry sports bettors. Forty-six percent of pro players think gambling partnerships are bad for the league, according to a poll in The Athletic. The betting question was one of several posed to NBA players as a way to get the opinions of league […]

The Denver Nuggets dropped Game 2 of their first-round playoff series to the Los Angeles Clippers, and one play, in particular, sticks out as a massive missed opportunity. With less than three minutes to go in the game, the Nuggets trailed the Clippers 98-97. And then Aaron Gordon came into the picture, driving into the […]

The Boston Celtics have emerged as the overwhelming favorite among NBA players to win the 2025 NBA Finals, according to The Athletic’s annual anonymous player poll released Tuesday. Out of 137 votes cast, the Celtics received 57.7% of the total, far ahead of their closest competition. The Oklahoma City Thunder were next with 17.5% of […]

The New York Knicks started Game 2 out poorly. Other than Karl-Anthony Towns, everyone played below what they are capable of through the first quarter—and the Knicks shot an atrocious 0-for-8 on 3-pointers in that period. The poor play continued for most of the remainder of the game. Save for a run that came up […]

NBA players are not getting behind the idea of shortening the basketball season, and there’s a big reason why. An anonymous poll taken with players showed more than 80 percent of guys were against the idea of shortening the season, per The Athletic. That was because a shorter season would also mean a smaller salary […]

The Los Angeles Clippers evened up their series with the Denver Nuggets on Monday night with a win in a back-and-forth affair. These two teams have delivered two great games so far as Game 1 went to overtime, and Game 2 came down to the final possessions as well. Nikola Jokic had a big game […]

The Denver Nuggets missed a golden opportunity to get to a 2-0 series lead in their first-round matchup versus Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers Monday night. Denver ended up absorbing a 105-102 loss at their home, Ball Arena, but the result could have been a different and more favorable one for the home […]

Kawhi Leonard put the Los Angeles Clippers on his back and led them to a much-needed Game 2 victory over the Denver Nuggets in their first round playoff series. Leonard’s performance was so incredible, James Harden said that all he could do was watch. Leonard’s performance was one for the history books, and another game […]

The Denver Nuggets dropped Game 2 of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers 105-102 on Monday night, but the spotlight shifted postgame to Michael Porter Jr.’s shoulder injury and its potential impact moving forward. Porter bounced back from a quiet Game 1 — where he finished with just three points and four rebounds […]

The Eastern Conference battle between the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks is quickly becoming must-watch basketball. After pulling off a clutch victory in Game 1, the Knicks couldn’t keep pace in Game 2, falling to a determined Pistons squad. With the series now knotted at 1-1, both teams head to Detroit looking to seize […]

Through three-and-a-half quarters, Monday night’s Game 2 between the LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets felt eerily similar to Game 1 two nights ago. Except this time, Kawhi Leonard put on his superhero cape and willed his Clippers to a win on the backs of a historic performance. But this was nothing new for Leonard and […]

The Milwaukee Bucks have their backs against the wall early in their series in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers. In Game 1 last Saturday, Milwaukee got crushed by Tyrese Haliburton in a 117-98 loss at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indiana. It was glaring evidence of how much the Bucks […]

The Memphis Grizzlies were embarrassed by the Oklahoma City Thunder 131-80 in Game 1 of their NBA Playoffs first-round face-off. After a lopsided, historically bad loss on Easter Sunday, Ja Morant is making guarantees for the regrouping Grizzlies. Scotty Pippen Jr. is being more practical, emphasizing a forward-focused mindset. Adapting to how Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder […]

The Sacramento Kings saw their season come to an end after they conceded to the 10th-seeded Dallas Mavericks, 120-106. Let’s not forget that the Mavericks also had their fair share of struggles this year. It was a rough 2024-25 season for Sacramento, as the foundation of the very team that ended the franchise’s playoff absence is slowly withering […]

The Los Angeles Lakers were humbled in Game 1 of their first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Despite getting a strong outing from Luka Doncic, the Lakers’ defense couldn’t hold down the Timberwolves as Minnesota exploded for 21 made three-pointers on 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc to take a 117-95 win on the […]

Kawhi Leonard has long been one of the greatest playoff risers in the history of the NBA. Leonard seems to always flip a switch when the postseason begins, although over the past half-decade or so, injuries have limited his postseason impact significantly, dashing the Los Angeles Clippers’ championship hopes over and over again. But on […]

Nikola Jokic does everything in his power to win, especially in the playoffs. This is what makes him the best player in the world and the main reason why the Denver Nuggets, despite their topsy-turvy 2024-25 campaign, must be taken seriously as a threat to make a deep playoff run. But on Monday night, the […]