2025 NBA playoffs


The 2025 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2024–25 season. The Oklahoma City Thunder, led by the reigning MVP and scoring leader Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, finished the season with a league-best record, giving them the first seed in the Western Conference. The Eastern Conference's best record was held by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who finished with a record under their star Donovan Mitchell. The defending champion Boston Celtics, with their scoring duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, clinched the second seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of. The Thunder, Cavaliers, and Celtics were widely seen as the championship contenders heading into the playoffs. The tournament began on April 19 after the conclusion of the play-ins.
In the first round, the Cavaliers swept the eighth-seeded Miami Heat, who had just made it through the play-in. The Celtics defeated the seventh-seeded Orlando Magic in five games, while the third-seeded New York Knicks, led by Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, took six games to dispatch the sixth-seeded Detroit Pistons. The fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers, with Tyrese Haliburton, defeated the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Milwaukee Bucks, the fifth seed, in five games after Haliburton's game-winning shot in game 5. The Western Conference saw the Thunder sweep the Memphis Grizzlies, while the seventh-seeded Golden State Warriors defeated the second-seeded Houston Rockets in seven games. The sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, led by Anthony Edwards, overcame the Luka Dončić-led Los Angeles Lakers in five games, and the Nikola Jokić-led fourth-seeded Denver Nuggets defeated the fifth seed, the Los Angeles Clippers, in seven games.
The second round, the conference semifinals, saw Haliburton's Pacers upset Mitchell's Cavaliers in five games, while the Knicks unexpectedly defeated the Celtics in six games after Tatum suffered an Achilles tendon rupture. The Thunder–Nuggets series went to seven games, with the Thunder prevailing, and the Timberwolves defeated the Warriors in five games after Golden State's star Stephen Curry had an injury. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pacers unexpectedly triumphed over their rival Knicks in six games, while the Western Conference Finals saw the Thunder defeat the Timberwolves in five games.
The 2025 NBA Finals was expected to be an easy victory for the Thunder, who had won 18 more games than the Pacers, but at the end of the first six games, the series was tied 3–3, requiring a decisive game seven, the first in the Finals since [Game 7 of the 2016 NBA playoffs|2016 NBA Finals|2016]. The Thunder won the game 103–91 after Haliburton tore his Achilles tendon in the first quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander was named Finals MVP after averaging 30 points per game during the playoffs. The Thunder's championship was their first since 1979, when they were known as the Seattle SuperSonics. The Pacers' postseason run, which included five 15-point comebacks and four game-tying or game-winning shots by Haliburton, is considered one of the most surprising in NBA history.

Overview

Updates to postseason appearances

  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Oklahoma City Thunder season|Oklahoma City Thunder season|Oklahoma City Thunder] entered the playoffs with the best record in the Western Conference for the second consecutive season and also finished with their best regular-season record in franchise history. They also won the Maurice Podoloff Trophy for clinching the best record in the NBA for the first time in franchise history.
  • The [2024–25 2016–17 Cleveland Cavaliers season|Cleveland Cavaliers season|Cleveland Cavaliers] entered the playoffs for the third consecutive season and also clinched the number one seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2016, and the first time without LeBron James on their roster.
  • The Boston Celtics entered the playoffs for the eleventh consecutive season, the longest such streak in the NBA.
  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Milwaukee Bucks season|Milwaukee Bucks season|Milwaukee Bucks] entered the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season.
  • The Denver Nuggets entered the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season.
  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Miami Heat season|Miami Heat season|Miami Heat] entered the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. They also became the first 10-seed to advance from the play-in tournament into the playoffs.
  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Minnesota Timberwolves season|Minnesota Timberwolves season|Minnesota Timberwolves] entered the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
  • The New York Knicks, [2024–25 2024–25 Los Angeles Lakers season|Los Angeles Lakers season|Los Angeles Lakers], and [2024–25 2024–25 Los Angeles Clippers season|Los Angeles Clippers season|Los Angeles Clippers] entered the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
  • The Indiana Pacers and [2024–25 2024–25 Orlando Magic season|Orlando Magic season|Orlando Magic] entered the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Golden State Warriors season|Golden State Warriors season|Golden State Warriors] returned to the playoffs after losing in the play-in tournament the previous year.
  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Memphis Grizzlies season|Memphis Grizzlies season|Memphis Grizzlies] returned to the playoffs after missing the postseason the previous year.
  • The Houston Rockets entered the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
  • The [2024–25 1987–88 Detroit Pistons season|Detroit Pistons season|Detroit Pistons] entered the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
  • The New Orleans Pelicans and [2024–25 2024–25 Dallas Mavericks season|Dallas Mavericks season|Dallas Mavericks] missed the playoffs after making the postseason the previous year.
  • The Phoenix Suns missed the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
  • The Philadelphia 76ers missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
  • The Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings, and [2024–25 2024–25 Atlanta Hawks season|Atlanta Hawks season|Atlanta Hawks] missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
  • The Utah Jazz, Toronto Raptors, and Chicago Bulls missed the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
  • The Washington Wizards and Portland Trail Blazers missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
  • The San Antonio Spurs missed the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season.
  • The Charlotte Hornets missed the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season, currently the longest active playoff drought in the NBA.

Play-in tournament

  • The [2024–25 2024–25 Atlanta Hawks season|Atlanta 2007–08 Atlanta Hawks season|Hawks season|Atlanta Hawks] competed in the play-in tournament for the fourth consecutive season.
  • The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat competed in the play-in tournament for the third consecutive season.
  • The Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors competed in the play-in tournament for the second consecutive season.
  • The Memphis Grizzlies competed in the play-in tournament for the first time since 2021.
  • The Orlando Magic and [2024–25 2024–25 Dallas Mavericks season|Dallas Mavericks season|Dallas Mavericks] competed in the play-in tournament for the first time in franchise history.

Notable occurrences

  • With their overtime road victory over the Atlanta Hawks in the No. 8 seed game, the Miami Heat became the first-ever 10-seed to advance from the play-in to the playoffs.
  • The Dallas Mavericks became the first team since the 2019–20 Golden State Warriors to miss the playoffs after reaching the NBA Finals the previous season.

First round

  • The Thunder's 51-point victory against the Grizzlies was the largest margin of victory in a Game 1 in NBA history.
  • The Pistons' Game 2 victory over the Knicks was their first playoff win since 2008, ending a 15-game postseason losing streak, the longest in NBA history. The Pistons, however, now own the record for the most consecutive home defeats in playoffs history at 10 straight with their three home losses in the first round.
  • The Cavaliers made 11 three-pointers in the second quarter of their Game 2 victory over the Heat, setting a postseason record.
  • The Thunder overcame a 26-point halftime deficit in their Game 3 victory over the Grizzlies, the largest such comeback in NBA postseason history.
  • With the Thunder sweeping the Grizzlies, this marks the 49th straight playoffs where a sweep occurred; the last time this did not happen was in 1976.
  • The Cavaliers' 55-point victory over the Heat in Game 4 was the largest series-clinching win in NBA history.
  • The Cavaliers' 122-point differential in their series against the Heat was the largest in NBA history.
  • By defeating the Lakers, the Timberwolves won a playoff series in consecutive seasons for the first time in franchise history.
  • After losing to the Timberwolves, the Lakers were eliminated in the first round as a third seed or higher for the first time in franchise history.
  • The Knicks–Pistons series was the second playoff series in NBA history to feature four consecutive games decided by 3 or fewer points.
  • The Nuggets–Clippers series was the first of the 2025 playoffs to have a Game 7, making it the 26th consecutive NBA postseason to feature a Game 7. The last time a Game 7 did not occur in the playoffs was 1999. This was the 154th game 7 in NBA playoffs history.
  • With the Rockets forcing a Game 7 against the Warriors, this is the first playoffs since 2020 to feature two Game 7's in the first round.
  • This is the third postseason where LeBron James was eliminated in the first round.
  • The seventh-seeded Warriors defeated the second-seeded Houston in seven games, marking the seventh instance in NBA history of a 7th-seeded team defeating a 2nd-seeded team in the first round, following previous instances in 1987, 1989, 1991, 1998, 2010, and 2023. Additionally, this was only the third time and the second time in three seasons that such an upset occurred in a best-of-seven series, as well as the first time it occurred in seven games and the second time it occurred within the maximum number of games.
  • The Warriors became the first team to defeat the second-seed team three times as the seventh-seeded team, following previous instances in 1989 and 1991.

Conference semifinals

  • In the Eastern Conference, the same teams from the previous playoffs represent the final four teams this year. However, the match-ups are different, with the Cavaliers playing the Pacers and the Celtics facing the Knicks. Last year it was the Celtics facing the Cavaliers and the Knicks versus the Pacers.
  • The Western Conference Semifinals match-up between Oklahoma City and Denver features the top two MVP favorites in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokić. The last time this occurred was in the 2017 first round when James Harden's Rockets defeated Russell Westbrook's Thunder in five games. Westbrook won the MVP that season, while Harden finished a close second.
  • This is just the third time in NBA history a sixth seed is facing a seventh seed in the Conference Semifinals. The other times this occurred were in the 1987 WCSF between the Rockets vs SuperSonics and the 2023 WCSF between the Warriors vs Lakers.
  • In Game 1 against the Knicks, the Celtics set the NBA playoff record for most missed 3-point shots in a game.
  • With his Game 1 game-winner, Aaron Gordon became the first player in the play-by-play era to hit a game-winning shot in the final five seconds of a game on the road multiple times in a single playoff run.
  • All four Game 1's of the Conference Semifinals were won by the road team, the first time this has happened in NBA history.
  • In Game 1 and 2 in their series vs. the Celtics, the Knicks were the first team to comeback from 20 points or more in back-to-back playoff games in NBA history. In addition, the Celtics were the first team to blow back-to-back 20 point leads in the playoffs.
  • The Cavaliers and the Celtics became the first teams since the 1992–93 Phoenix Suns to trail 0–2 before the conference finals as a 60-win team.
  • The Thunder scored 87 points in the first half of Game 2 against the Nuggets, setting an NBA playoff record for most points scored in a first half, and tying the NBA playoff record for points in a half set by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1978 WCSF.
  • The Pacers led by 41 points at halftime of Game 4 against the Cavaliers, tying the playoff record set by Cleveland in Game 2 of the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals.
  • The Cavaliers were the first Eastern Conference team to win 62 games or more and not make the Eastern Conference Finals.
  • With the Cavaliers and Celtics both eliminated, this marked the first time since 2007 that two 60-win teams failed to reach the conference finals.
  • The elimination of the Boston Celtics guarantees that there would be a 7th different NBA champion in the last 7 years, the first time this has happened in NBA history.
  • The Nuggets-Thunder series was the second-most lopsided series to go seven games in NBA history, following the Celtics-Hawks first round series in 2008.

Conference finals

  • With the Boston Celtics losing to the New York Knicks in the preceding conference semifinals, this was the sixth straight conference finals without the defending NBA champions.
  • Neither the first-seeded team nor the second-seeded team made the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2021.
  • The conference finals featured teams that had a chance to win their first championship or hadn't won a championship in over four decades:
  • This is the first Western Conference Finals since 1996 to not feature a team from California or Texas.
  • In Game 1 against the Knicks, the Pacers became the first team since play-by-play records began in 1998 to win after trailing by 9+ points in the final minute of a playoff game. Also in the game, Aaron Nesmith became the first player in NBA history to make six 3-pointers in the fourth quarter of a playoff game.
  • Oklahoma City surpassed the 2019 Toronto Raptors' +79 turnover differential for largest in a single-playoff in NBA postseason history. It took Toronto 24 games to accomplish this feat, while Oklahoma City surpassed this mark in their 12th game.
  • In Game 4, Tyrese Haliburton became the first player in NBA playoff history to record 30 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds with no turnovers in a game.
  • For the first time since 2015, both the Eastern Conference champions and the Western Conference champions clinched their NBA Finals berth on their home court.

NBA Finals

Format

Eight teams from each conference participate in the playoffs. The top six teams in each conference, based on winning percentage, directly qualify for the playoffs; the seeding order of those teams is also based on winning percentage. If two or more teams had the same record, standard NBA tiebreaker rules are used.
The NBA Board of Governors adopted a format starting in 2021 to have a play-in tournament involving the teams ranked 7th through 10th in each conference. The 7th-place team and 8th-place team participate in a "double-chance" game, with the winner advancing to the playoffs as the 7-seed. The loser then plays the winner of the elimination game between the 9th-place and 10th-place teams to determine the playoff's 8-seed. The NBA's regular playoff format then proceeds as normal. Furthermore, the winner of the match between the loser of the 7/8 game and the winner of the 9/10 game always plays on day 2 of the NBA playoffs to allow that team at least a day of rest.
Each conference's bracket is fixed with no reseeding. All rounds are a best-of-seven series; a series ends when one team wins four games, and that team advances to the next round. All rounds, including the NBA Finals, are in a 2–2–1–1–1 format with regards to hosting. In the conference playoffs, home-court advantage goes to the higher-seeded team. For the NBA Finals, home-court advantage goes to the team with the better regular season record, and, if needed, ties are broken based on head-to-head record, followed by inter-conference record.

Playoff qualifying

On March 5, 2025, the Cleveland Cavaliers became the first team to clinch a playoff spot. While noted in the below tables, division titles have no bearing on seeding.
''Seeds 7 and 8 in each conference were determined via the first-stage play-in tournament, held April 15–18.''

Eastern Conference

Atlanta and Chicago also secured play-in berths but did not advance to the playoffs.

Western Conference

Sacramento and Dallas also secured play-in berths but did not advance to the playoffs.

Bracket

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Teams with home court advantage, the higher seeded team, are shown in italics.


First round

Eastern Conference first round

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (8) Miami Heat

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points as the top-seeded Cavaliers cruised to a 121–100 victory in the series opener. Mitchell also tallied four steals, Darius Garland finished with 27 points, and Jarrett Allen notched a double-double for Cleveland. Although the Heat tried to rally in the second half, Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome came off the bench and scored 28 points in his playoff debut, including 16 points in the fourth quarter to keep Miami at bay. Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro both finished with over 20 points for the Heat, while reserve guard Davion Mitchell shot 8-of-12 and dished out a game-high nine assists.
Cleveland fought off a late Miami rally, securing victory and establishing a 2–0 series advantage. Donovan Mitchell had another 30-point performance, including 7 3-pointers, while also logging 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Darius Garland added 21 points and 9 assists, whereas Evan Mobley contributed 20 points and 6 rebounds. Tyler Herro carried the Heat on scoring, notching 33 points and dishing out 5 assists. Bam Adebayo tallied 11 points, 14 rebounds and 9 assists, finishing one assist shy of a triple-double. Haywood Highsmith came off the bench and shot 5-of-6 from beyond the arc en route to 17 points, as the Heat conceded 121 points for the second game in a row.
Cleveland rolled to a 124–87 victory to take a commanding 3–0 series lead. It was a balanced team effort for the Cavaliers — Jarrett Allen scored 22 points, De'Andre Hunter added 21 points, defensive player of the year Evan Mobley added 19 points, and Max Strus contributed 18 points. Ty Jerome had 13 points and 11 assists in 22 minutes — he was +33. This was the Heat's worst playoff loss in franchise history, which only lasted one game after Game 4's blowout loss. The Cavs took control with a 33–5 run early, outrebounded Miami 46–29, and outscored the Heat 60–30 in the paint.
Cleveland advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight season after a 55 point victory, the fourth-biggest playoff win ever. Cleveland won the series by a combined 122 points, one more than the previous record for series margin set by Denver over New Orleans in 2009. Miami was also the first team ever to lose by 30+ points in the playoffs in back-to-back games. All-star point guard Darius Garland missed the final two games of the series for the Cavs with a toe injury.
The series also marked the Cavaliers' first-ever playoff series sweep in franchise history without LeBron James on the roster.
Cleveland won 2–1 in the regular-season series


This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

(2) Boston Celtics vs. (7) Orlando Magic

After Orlando held a slim 1-point lead at halftime, Boston dominated the second half, winning 103–86 at home. Derrick White was the main contributor for the Celtics on offense, knocking down 7 3-pointers en route to 30 points. Jayson Tatum notched a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds, albeit going 1-of-8 from beyond the arc. Payton Pritchard added 19 points on 75% field goal percentage as a substitute. For the Magic, Paolo Banchero scored a game-high 36 points, while also logging 11 rebounds. Franz Wagner finished with 25 points and 5 assists, while Wendell Carter Jr. grabbed 13 boards.
The defending champions secured 2–0 series lead with a 109–100 victory in Game 2. Jaylen Brown led the way for the Celtics, logging 36 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Kristaps Porziņģis notched 20 points and 10 rebounds. Al Horford also grabbed 10 boards, as the Celtics outrebounded their opponents 46–34. The Magic were again reliant on Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, with the former contributing 32 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists, while the latter scored 25 points. Wendell Carter Jr. added 16 points and 8 rebounds, as Orlando were limited to no more than 100 points for the second consecutive game. Boston's star forward Jayson Tatum did not play in the game due to a wrist injury suffered in Game 1; it was the first playoff game he missed in his career.
Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero efforts were enough for the Magic to outlast the Celtics in a close Game 3 victory. A returning Jayson Tatum scored 36 points and had 9 rebounds, but committed 7 turnovers, while co-star Jaylen Brown also had 6 turnovers. Altogether, the Celtics committed 20 turnovers in the game. After a stellar Game 2, Kristaps Porziņģis scored just 7 points on 3-of-10 shooting, with a team-worst -16 plus-minus. In the fourth quarter, the duo of Wagner and Banchero scored 18 of the Magic's 22 points.
Jayson Tatum scored 37 points and pulled down 14 rebounds and Jaylen Brown added 21 points and 11 rebounds, as the Boston Celtics took a 3–1 lead over the Orlando Magic in Game 4. Kristaps Porziņģis scored 19 points, including a dunk of his own missed layup that put Boston ahead for good with 3:58 left. Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 31 points.
The Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals behind Jayson Tatum's 35 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds effort. The game was tied at 53 when Magic star Paolo Banchero went to the bench with five fouls early in the third quarter. When he came back into the game at the start of the fourth quarter, the Celtics were up 83–62 and they never looked back, cruising to a 120–89 win.
Orlando won 2–1 in the regular-season series


This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 2010, with the Magic winning two of the first three meetings.
Orlando leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series


(3) New York Knicks vs. (6) Detroit Pistons

After three tightly contested quarters, New York strung together a 21–0 run in the fourth, propelling them to a 123–112 victory over Detroit. Jalen Brunson led the scoring for the Knicks, finishing with 34 points, along with 8 assists. Karl-Anthony Towns put up an all-rounded performance, logging 23 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks, while OG Anunoby added another 23 points, 7 rebounds and 5 steals. For the Pistons, Cade Cunningham scored 21 and dished out 12 assists in his playoff debut, whereas Tobias Harris shot 80% from beyond the arc en route to 25 points. Malik Beasley came off the bench and made 6 3-pointers, contributing 20 points, as Detroit were denied their first playoff win since 2008.
In just his second playoff game, Pistons' star Cade Cunningham led his team to a victory with 33 points on 11-of-21 shooting and 12 rebounds performance. Detroit led for most of the game, but a late 4th quarter New York rally was halted by a Dennis Schröder three-point shot with 55.1 seconds to break the tie and give Detroit the eventual win. Jalen Brunson had another 30-point effort with 37 in total, as well as 7 assists. With the victory, Detroit ended an NBA record 15-game playoff losing streak, which spanned 17 years.
Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns starred in a close Game 3 victory to take a 2-1 series. Towns was aggressive early and Jalen Brunson was effective late. Towns scored 11 of his 31 points in the first quarter while Brunson had 12 of his 30 in the fourth. In addition, OG Anunoby scored 22 points and Mikal Bridges added 20 points for the Knicks. Detroit's Cade Cunningham scored 24 points and had 11 assists, but missed 15-of-25 shots and had six turnovers. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 24 points, making a career playoff-high seven 3-pointers. Dennis Schroder scored 18 points off the bench and Jalen Duren had 16 for the Pistons. The Pistons pulled within one point twice in the third, but the Knicks went on another surge to take a 10-point lead into the final quarter and the cushion was comfortable enough to hold off Detroit's attempts to rally.
Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns would again star for the Knicks in a thrilling Game 4 victory. The game was close throughout and a Karl-Anthony Towns go-ahead 3-pointer with 46.6 seconds left would ultimately be the difference. Game 4 was a physical game with few whistles as seen on the last possession of the game. On the play, Tim Hardaway Jr. shot a 3-pointer just before the buzzer and drew contact from New York’s Josh Hart that wasn’t called a foul. David Guthrie, the crew chief for the game, said afterward that the officials made a mistake. “After postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr. and a foul should have been called,” Guthrie said. Had the foul been called, Hardaway would have gone to the foul line for three free throws that could have given Detroit the lead and win.
In addition, the Pistons have lost nine straight home playoff games since 2008, tying an NBA record set by Philadelphia 76ers from 1968 to 1971. Cade Cunningham finished with the Pistons first playoff triple double since Isiah Thomas in 1989.
The Pistons spoiled the Knicks chance to clinch their first playoff series victory at Madison Square Garden since the 1999 conference finals, with a 106–103 win. Ausar Thompson’s athleticism was on full display on offense and defense. Cade Cunningham led the Pistons in scoring again with 24 points, plus 8 rebounds and assists. Tobias Harris had 17 points, 8 rebounds, and made three 3-pointers. In defeat, six Knicks were in double figures in scoring.
Jalen Brunson's game-winning 3-pointer with 4.3 seconds left finished off the Pistons in another hard-fought playoff game in this series. Detroit did not get a shot off to potentially tie the game and send it to overtime because Malik Beasley fumbled a pass with 0.4 second left. With 2:35 left, Brunson and the Knicks went on a 11–1 run to seal to the game, 116–113. Brunson scored 40 points, Mikal Bridges had 25 points, and OG Anunoby added 22 for the Knicks. Cade Cunningham had 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, but went 0-for-8 on 3-pointers. The Pistons as a team were just 9-for-24 from three. Jalen Duren scored 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 9-of-10 from the free thrown line. The Pistons now own the record for most consecutive playoff home losses, with 10. The final average margin for the series was 4.3, which was the lowest in a series of 5+ games in 25 years.
Detroit won 3–1 in the regular-season series


This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 1992, with the Knicks winning two of the first three meetings.
New York leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series


(4) Indiana Pacers vs. (5) Milwaukee Bucks

Leading by as much as 28 points, Indiana cruised to a 117–98 win over their Central Division rivals. Pascal Siakam scored 25 and grabbed 7 rebounds for the Pacers, while Myles Turner added 19 points on 4-of-6 3-point shooting. Tyrese Haliburton notched a double-double of 10 points and 12 assists, albeit missing all 7 of his 3-point attempts. The Bucks, without Damian Lillard, were heavily reliant on Giannis Antetokounmpo for scoring. Antetokounmpo logged 36 points and 12 rebounds in the losing effort. Notably, Kyle Kuzma, as a starter, recorded a stat line of 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks and 2 fouls in 21 minutes, ending with a team-worst plus-minus value of –24.
Indiana held off a late Milwaukee fourth quarter surge to take a 2–0 lead in the series. The Pacers played another efficient game on offense led by Pascal Siakam, Tyrese Haliburton double-double efforts. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way for the Bucks with 34 points on 14-of-20 shooting, 17 rebounds, and 7 assists. Milwaukee also received a lift from Damian Lillard, who was playing in his first game since March 18.
Milwaukee dominated the game in the second half and cut Indiana's series lead to 2–1. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Gary Trent Jr. each scored 37 points, with the latter also making a franchise-record nine three-pointers. Pascal Siakam had 28 points and Aaron Nesmith scored 18 for the Pacers. Tyrese Haliburton finished with 14 points and 10 assists.
The Pacers shot 60% from the field and 46% from three to take a commanding 3–1 series lead. Eight Pacers players scored 12 points or more, led by Myles Turner, Andrew Nembhard, and Tyrese Haliburton. Giannis Antetokounmpo continued to carry Milwaukee, with 28 points, 15 rebounds, and 6 assists; however, only two other Bucks players scored 10 points or more. Damian Lillard tore his Achilles tendon in the first quarter of the game, ending his season.
The Bucks' season ended in stunning fashion, blowing a 4-point lead with 60 seconds in the fourth quarter and a 7-point lead with 45 seconds in overtime. Gary Trent Jr. took over for Milwaukee in overtime, scoring 12 points in overtime, but his fumble and turnover out of bounds gave the ball to Indiana with 10.1 seconds left. From there, a Tyrese Halliburton crossover and layup over Giannis Antetokounmpo gave the Pacers the 119–118 lead with 1.1 seconds left. With no more timeouts, the Bucks could not advance the ball and a Trent Jr. half court heave was not close, thus giving the Pacers the win and series victory. Postgame, two incidents occurred: between Antetokounmpo and Tyrese Haliburton’s father, and between Antetokounmpo and Bennedict Mathurin.
Milwaukee won 3–1 in the regular-season series


This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams and a rematch of the previous season's first round matchup, with the Pacers winning the first three meetings.
Indiana leads 3–0 in all-time playoff series


Western Conference first round

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (8) Memphis Grizzlies

The Thunder won by a heavy landslide, outscoring the Grizzlies in every quarter, as they secured a 51-point win following a 32-point lead at halftime. This was the largest-ever point differential in Game 1 of an NBA playoff series and the fifth largest in any playoff game. Six Oklahoma City players scored double-digit points, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played 23 minutes and scored 15 points, his lowest-scoring game of the season. Desmond Bane emerged from the game with the ignominy of being the first NBA player in the 21st century to have a plus-minus lower than -50, with -51.
Fresh off their blowout victory in Game 1, the Thunder dominate yet again in Game 2 to take a commanding 2–0 series lead. The Thunder opened the game with a 9–0 run, and never trailed throughout the game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 27 points, while Jalen Williams added 24 points, and Chet Holmgren put up a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double. For the Grizzlies, Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 26 points, and Ja Morant added 23 points, both in a losing effort. For the second straight game, Memphis was held to under 100 points, and was scoreless in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter.
After trailing 51–77 at halftime, the Thunder came back from a 29-point deficit to move on the verge of a sweep. It tied a record for the second largest comeback in an NBA playoff history, only behind the April 15, 2019, game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 31 points, while Jalen Williams added 26 points, and Chet Holmgren scored 23 of his 24 points in the second half. Scotty Pippen Jr. led the Grizzlies with 28 points. Ja Morant had 15 points and five assists, but left the game early after a hip injury; on the play, Morant attempted to jump over Luguentz Dort on a contested dunk attempt.
Oklahoma City advanced to the Western Conference semifinals after a close 117–115 Game 4 victory. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points on 13-of-24 shooting and 11-of-13 from the free throw line, while Jalen Williams added 23 points on 10-of-21 shooting. Joining them in double figures for the Thunder were Isaiah Hartenstein, Chet Holmgren, and Aaron Wiggins off the bench. With no Ja Morant due to injury, Memphis received big contributions from role-players Scotty Pippen Jr. and Santi Aldama. Desmond Bane added 23 points, but also had 5 turnovers. Overall, Memphis turned the ball over 21 times. With the Thunder's victory, it extended their win streak over the Grizzlies to 12 games.
Oklahoma City won 4–0 in the regular-season series


This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 2014, with the Thunder winning two of the first three meetings.
Oklahoma City leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series


(2) Houston Rockets vs. (7) Golden State Warriors

Despite a late rally in the 4th quarter from Houston, Golden State took lead early in the 2nd quarter and never relinquished it in a 95–85 victory. They were led by their dynamic duo of Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry. Houston, playing in their first postseason game since 2020, were held to the lowest scoring output of the season. Houston’s Alperen Şengün had 26 points, which included a poster dunk on Draymond Green in the 1st quarter, and 9 rebounds. This was the Warriors' first road playoff win since Game 7 of the first round against Sacramento in 2023. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr became the seventh head coach to win 100 playoff games, tying Larry Brown for sixth place in the list.
Houston never trailed in this game, producing a dominant 109–94 win to even the series. Jalen Green made 8 3-pointers, finishing with 38 points, 6 assists and 3 steals. Alperen Şengün came up with a double-double, notching 17 points and 16 rebounds, while Tari Eason came off the bench to score 14 points on 6-of-9 field goal shooting. Nobody on the Warriors scored over 20 points, with Stephen Curry scoring exactly 20, along with 9 assists and 5 rebounds, but also 6 turnovers. Moses Moody and Quinten Post each added 12 points. Jimmy Butler exited the game with 2:28 remaining in the 1st quarter, after sustaining a heavy fall while trying to get a defensive rebound. He was later diagnosed with a pelvic contusion.
After being limited to below 100 points for two straight games, Golden State finally got past that mark with a 104–93 victory over Houston. Stephen Curry led the Warriors in the absence of co-star Jimmy Butler, tallying 36 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds. Buddy Hield had 17 points off the bench with five 3-pointers as the Warriors won their sixth straight Game 3 in the opening round. Gary Payton II scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter. Like Game 1, it was another inefficient game for the Rockets on offense, shooting just 39% from the floor. Fred VanVleet's shooting struggles continued, as he is now shooting 11-41 and 6-29 from three for the series. With the win, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr officially earned his 101st playoff win, passing Larry Brown for the 6th place on the NBA's all-time playoff victories as head coach.
Coming off an injury in Game 2, Jimmy Butler returned and put up 27 points, leading the Warriors in a 109-106 victory over Houston. Brandin Podziemski started, putting up 26 points, ahead of Stephen Curry and Buddy Hield, who continued his good form with 15 points off the bench. The Rockets, spearheaded by Alperen Şengün with 31 points and 10 rebounds, lagged behind the Warriors in the first, third, and fourth quarters as they only made 61.3% of their free throws at 19–31. Fred VanVleet made a return to shooting form as he added 25 points while going 8–11 from the three-point line. In the fourth quarter, it was a tight game as the Warriors slightly edged Houston at 107–106 with 13 seconds left; Butler ultimately made two free throw shots to take the Warriors home.
The Rockets kept their season alive with a blowout win in Game 5 at home. Fred VanVleet scored 26 points on 8-of-13 shooting to lead the Rockets, while Amen Thompson had a breakout performance with 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting, 5 steals, 3 blocks. Dillon Brooks also added 24 points in the 131–116 win. Overall, the Rockets shot 55% from beyond the arc. Warriors coach Steve Kerr threw in the towel early with the game out of hand. A layup by VanVleet midway through the third quarter made it 93–64, and Kerr called a timeout and cleared his bench. The Warriors' reserves got the lead to just a 14-point deficit, but it never got any closer than that.
Fred VanVleet had 29 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, Alperen Şengün contributed 21 points and 14 rebounds, and the Houston Rockets kept their season alive once again by beating the Golden State Warriors, 115–107. The Warriors only trailed by two points entering the fourth quarter, but they went cold, missing 13 straight shots between Draymond Green's basket with 10:12 left and a 3-pointer by Stephen Curry at the 3:35 mark. Throughout the second half, the Warriors utilized the Hack-a-Shaq strategy on Steven Adams, resulting in 16 free throw attempts by Adams, of which he made 9.
Led by Buddy Hield's 33 points, including a record-tying nine three-pointers, the Warriors prevented the Rockets from becoming the first team to overcome a 3–1 series deficit since the 2019–20 Denver Nuggets. Stephen Curry, who played in his second game seven in three years, added a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds, while also scoring 14 of his points in the fourth quarter. During the first half, Hield scored 22 points and six three-pointers, being 9 of 11 from 3-point range. Amen Thompson led the Rockets with 24 points, but Fred VanVleet was limited to 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting. With the victory, the Warriors become the second 7-seed in three seasons to eliminate a 2-seed in the first round, after the 2022–23 Los Angeles Lakers. They also remain undefeated in the playoffs over the Rockets, moving up to 5–0, with all series victories coming during Stephen Curry and Draymond Green's tenure with the team. Per ESPN, this is the 4th series in NBA history to go a full seven games, and have both teams score an identical number of points.
Golden State won 3–2 in the regular-season series


This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 2019, with the Warriors winning the first four meetings.
Golden State leads 4–0 in all-time playoff series


(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Minnesota Timberwolves

The Timberwolves cruised to a win against the Lakers in the opening game of the series, dominating from the second quarter onwards. Anthony Edwards recorded a near-triple-double stat line of 22 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists, despite making only 8 of his 22 field goal attempts. Jaden McDaniels added 25 points and 9 rebounds, while Naz Reid came off the bench to score 23 points on 6-of-9 3-point shooting. In his Lakers playoff debut, Luka Dončić carried the team with 37 points and 8 rebounds but finished with just one assist. None of his teammates scored above 20, although LeBron James came close with 19, along with 5 rebounds and 3 blocks, as the home team endured a night of bad shooting, going 33-of-83 overall.
While the game got within single-digits in the fourth quarter, Los Angeles rode a 34–15 first quarter and never gave up the lead to tie the series on their home floor. Luka Dončić led Los Angeles in scoring with 31 points on 9-of-20 shooting with 12 rebounds and 9 assists, while LeBron James chipped in with 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. Julius Randle led the Timberwolves in scoring with 27 points, while Anthony Edwards scored 25, including a poster dunk on Jaxson Hayes in the beginning of the third quarter. However, no other player on the Timberwolves reached double figures in scoring, with the team shooting just 20% from 3-point range following their 21 made 3-pointers in Game 1.
After trailing by just four points at halftime, the Timberwolves outscored Lakers 62–46 in the second half, including a 13–1 run in the closing four-and-a-half minutes, to spoil a 38-point, 10-rebound performance from LeBron James. Jaden McDaniels led the Timberwolves with 30 points, while Anthony Edwards added 29, including a dagger 3-pointer to seal the Timberwolves' 2–1 series lead. For the Lakers, Austin Reaves scored 20 points and 7 rebounds, while Luka Dončić, who was reportedly sick, added 17 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists.
Jaden McDaniels converted a three-point play with 39.5 seconds left to take the lead and stole the ensuing inbounds pass from LeBron James, leading a late game rally by the Timberwolves for a 116–113 win over the Lakers that put them on the brink of advancing. Anthony Edwards, who had 43 points to lead Minnesota in scoring, drew a foul on James during a drive to the lane with 10 seconds left and hit both free throws to put them up three. On the last possession of the game, Austin Reaves missed a three that would have tied the game. LeBron James had 27 points and 12 rebounds for his 144th career double-double in the playoffs, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain for the third-most in history behind Tim Duncan and Magic Johnson. James also went 15 for 18 from the free-throw line and had multiple excellent defensive stops in the fourth quarter, but did not score in the quarter, the first time he went scoreless in a fourth quarter since 2017. Luka Dončić bounced back from a stomach bug in Game 3, with 38 points on 13-for-28 shooting. Rui Hachimura played his best game of the series thus far with 23 points, while Austin Reaves scored all 16 of his points in the second half. Julius Randle added 25 points and McDaniels had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Wolves, who trailed for much of the second half before the late game surge. The game was also notable for Lakers coach JJ Redick playing a five-man combo of Reaves, Dončić, Dorian Finney-Smith, James, and Hachimura the whole second half, the first coach in the play-by-play era to play five players for an entire half in the playoffs.
Minnesota completed the series upset over the Los Angeles Lakers, behind Rudy Gobert’s personal playoff highs with 27 points and 24 rebounds, against a center-less Lakers line-up. Minnesota won the game despite shooting 7-for-47 from three. This was the first time in franchise history the Lakers have lost in the first round when they were a 3-seed or better. Per OptaSTATS, just 16.9% of the Lakers' points in the series came in the fourth quarter, which is now the lowest percentage by any team in any playoff series in NBA history.
Series tied 2–2 in the regular-season series


This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 2004, with the Lakers winning the first two meetings.
LA Lakers lead 2–0 in all-time playoff series


(4) Denver Nuggets vs. (5) Los Angeles Clippers

Falling into a 15-point deficit halfway through the second quarter, Denver rallied and ultimately prevailed in overtime. Nikola Jokić once again showed his dominance, racking up 29 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists, one rebound shy of a triple-double. Jamal Murray finished with 21 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists, while Aaron Gordon added another 25 points, including 6 in overtime, and 8 rebounds. The Clippers had two players with a double-double, with James Harden scoring 32 and dishing out 11 assists, while Ivica Zubac logged 21 points and 13 rebounds. Kawhi Leonard contributed 22 points, but also had 7 turnovers. With 10 seconds left in overtime and the Nuggets up by 3, Clippers had an inbound opportunity, but Russell Westbrook made a key defensive play to force a turnover, sealing the victory over his former team.
Kawhi Leonard scored 39 points on 15-of-19 shooting as the Los Angeles Clippers evened their first-round playoff series against the Nuggets. It was another thrilling game that saw 18 lead changes and 12 ties. Despite the win, the Clippers saw no one, aside from Leonard, score over 20, with James Harden going just 7-of-17 on field goals, finishing with 18 points. Ivica Zubac notched another double-double, with 16 points and 12 rebounds. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokić achieved his first triple-double of the postseason, tallying 26 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Jamal Murray added 23 points for the Nuggets, who also got a bounce-back game from Michael Porter Jr. after his 3-point performance in Game 1.
In Game 3, the Clippers had a 23–2 run that lasted through the first and second quarters that helped them take a commanding lead and ultimately win the game. This run included a stretch where the Clippers made 14 of their 28 three-pointers. The Clippers win was a balanced effort, with Kawhi Leonard finishing with 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists; Norman Powell broke out of a mini-slump with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting; Ivica Zubac scored 20 points to go along with 9 rebounds; James Harden had 19 points, 9 assists, and 6 rebounds; and Nicolas Batum provided 12 points off the bench with 4 three-point makes. In the defeat, Nikola Jokić had another playoff triple double, with 23 points, 13 rebounds, and 13 assists on 9-of-14 shooting. Jamal Murray added 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting. This was the first playoff game at Intuit Dome.
The Nuggets evened the series at 2–2, behind 36 points, 21 rebounds, and 8 assists from Nikola Jokić and a game-winning, buzzer-beating dunk from Aaron Gordon. The Nuggets led the game by a slim two points at halftime, which eventually became a 85–65 lead entering the fourth quarter. The Clippers tried to erase a 22-point deficit, outscoring the Nuggets with a 32–9 run to take a 97–96 lead with one minute and eleven seconds left in regulation, with Bogdan Bogdanović's offensive rebound and basket. A three-point play from Jokić gave the Nuggets a 99–97 lead, before Ivica Zubac tied the game with exactly eight seconds remaining. Gordon dunked the missed three-pointer from Jokić to seal the victory; officials concluded that the ball came out of Gordon's hands before the red light came out, thus resulting in a Nuggets victory. According to the NBA, it was the first known game-winning buzzer-beater putback dunk in NBA playoff history.
Michael Porter Jr. and Christian Braun each scored 17 points for the Nuggets. Kawhi Leonard was the leading scorer for the Clippers with 24 points; Norman Powell added 22.
Jamal Murray exploded for 43 points on 17-of-26 shooting and 8-of-14 beyond the arc, as Denver took a 3-2 series lead at their home floor. Russell Westbrook returned after missing Game 4 with an injury and gave the team 21 points off the bench. Aaron Gordon provided 23 points, while Nikola Jokić notched his third triple double of the series. As a team, the Nuggets shot 52% from three. Ivica Zubac scored 27 points on 11-of-15 shooting, a playoff career-high for the Clippers center. Kawhi Leonard scored 20 points, hauled 11 rebounds, and was one assist short of a triple double. This was the Clippers first back-to-back losses since they lost three straight from March 2–5.
A balanced effort from James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Norman Powell helped the Clippers force a pivotal Game 7 in their series with the Nuggets. Los Angeles led by 15 with less than six minutes to play, but Denver made an 11–2 run to trim the Clippers’ lead to 107–101, but Russell Westbrook missed a layup and Powell buried a 3-pointer with 1:47 left to put the Clippers back up 9. Nicolas Batum would also continue his excellent series on defense with 3 steals and 2 blocks on Nikola Jokić. Leading the Nuggets was Jokić, who scored 20 of his 25 points in the first half, and Jamal Murray, who finished with 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. The Nuggets are looking to atone for their Game 7 upset loss at home from last year's playoffs against the Timberwolves, while the Clippers are looking to avenge their Game 7 defeat by the Nuggets from the 2020 Western Conference semifinals.
A dominant 37–21 second quarter and a 35–19 third quarter was enough for the Nuggets to defeat the Clippers and advance to the Western Conference semifinals for the sixth time in seven seasons. The Nuggets led by as many as 35 and had six players in double figures in scoring ; Westbrook also added 5 steals. Kawhi Leonard was the only Clipper to score over 20 points, as he scored 22 on 6-of-13 shooting. This was Tyronn Lue's first Game 7 loss as a head coach, after going 4–0 prior to this game. After winning 18 of their last 21 regular season games and two of the first three in this series, the Clippers lost three of their last four games.
Series tied 2–2 in the regular-season series


This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams and the first since 2020, with each team winning one series.
Series tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series


Conference semifinals

Eastern Conference semifinals

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (4) Indiana Pacers

The Pacers stunned the top-seeded Cavaliers in Game 1, fighting off a late Cleveland rally to win 121–112. All five Indiana starters scored in double figures; Andrew Nembhard led the scoring with 23 points on 5-of-6 3-point shooting. Tyrese Haliburton notched a double-double with 22 points and 13 assists, along with 3 blocks. Aaron Nesmith and Pascal Siakam had 17 points apiece, while Myles Turner tallied 13 points and 11 rebounds. On the other hand, Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 33 points and broke Michael Jordan’s NBA playoff record with his eighth straight game of at least 30 points in a series opener, albeit making only 1 of his 11 3-point attempts. Evan Mobley, the newly crowned Defensive Player of the Year, added 20 points and 10 rebounds. Darius Garland remained absent for the third straight playoff game due to a sprained left big toe.
Despite trailing by 20 points in the 3rd quarter, the Pacers stormed back and won Game 2 on a game-winning three by Tyrese Haliburton, taking a 2–0 series lead. Indiana once again had six players score 10+ points, with 23 from Nesmith and Turner while Haliburton and Mathurin scored 19 each. Donovan Mitchell led the way for Cleveland in the absence of Darius Garland and Evan Mobley, scoring a playoff-high 48 points along with 9 assists. This was the second time this postseason the Pacers came back from 7 points or more with a minute or less in regulation. Coincidentally, this was also nearly the 30 year anniversary of Reggie Miller's 8 points in 9 seconds comeback against the Knicks in Game 1 of the ECSF in 1995.
Donovan Mitchell became the first Cavs player since LeBron James in 2016 to score 40 points in back-to-back playoff games, as Cleveland got back in the series with a road blowout win over the Pacers in Game 3. Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers with 23 points. Pascal Siakam had 18, and Tyrese Haliburton finished with just four points and five assists in his first career home loss in a postseason game he's appeared. Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley, All-Star guard Darius Garland, and key backup De'Andre Hunter all suited up for Cleveland after missing Game 2. Max Strus made four 3-pointers and finished with 20 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Three other Cleveland players also scored in double figures on a night the Cavs led by as much as 26, never trailed, and managed to protect their late lead when the Pacers cut the deficit to 11 early in the fourth.
Indiana struck back with a dominant offensive performance, tying playoff records with a 41-point lead at halftime and taking a commanding 3–1 series lead over Cleveland. Despite the ejection of Bennedict Mathurin, the Pacers dominated the Cavaliers in the first half, shooting 60% from the field while holding Cleveland to 8 made shots; Indiana led 80–39 at the half, closing the half with a 19–2 run, culminating with Aaron Nesmith's buzzer-beating midrange jumper. Pascal Siakam led the scoring for the Pacers with 21 points on 9/10 shooting, while Myles Turner put up 20 points and 7 rebounds, while Obi Toppin added 20 points off the bench. Darius Garland led the Cavaliers with 21 points and 6 assists, while Donovan Mitchell exited after the first half with an apparent ankle injury during warm-ups. The Cavaliers' 70–49 second half was not enough to win, and they ended up on the brink of elimination.
The Pacers advanced to their second straight Conference Finals after a crucial upset over the Cavaliers. Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 31 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, while Pascal Siakam added 25 in the road win. Donovan Mitchell, who played through a sprained ankle from Game 4, led the Cavaliers with 35 points in a losing effort, but shot only 8-for-25 from the floor. Evan Mobley tallied a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds.
The Cavaliers opened the game with a dominant 31–19 first quarter and led by as many as 19 points before the Pacers cut the lead to 56–52 at halftime, with Haliburton making all but one of his six three-pointers in the second quarter. The Pacers used a 17–2 run to take an 85–76 lead at the end of the third quarter, and never trailed in the fourth, while fending off a late rally from the Cavaliers and scoring eight of the game's final 10 points, to seal the comeback victory. The Cavaliers struggled to keep up, being 9-for-35 from the three-point range, with Mitchell and Darius Garland scoring only a combined 12 three-pointers on 41 attempted shots.
With the win, the Pacers advance to back-to-back Conference Finals for the first time since 2013 and 2014. They also became the first team to reach consecutive Conference Finals series as a 4-seed or lower. For the first time since 2005, they won three games in a playoff series as the road team. For the first time in franchise history, the Cavaliers lost three home games in a playoff series. Notably, Cleveland went 0-5 at Rocket Arena against the Pacers throughout the regular season and playoffs, going 36-5 against every other opponent, with all 5 losses being attributed to unique teams.
Indiana won 3–1 in the regular-season series


This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with Cleveland winning two of the past three.
Cleveland leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series


(2) Boston Celtics vs. (3) New York Knicks

After trailing by 20 points midway through the 3rd quarter, the Knicks would slowly rally from the deficit and re-take the lead in the 4th quarter. With the score tied 100–100, Jalen Brunson, who had previously hit two back-to-back 3s, missed a potential game-winning layup, which sent the game to overtime. In the OT, Mikal Bridges had 2 crucial steals, including the game-winning strip from Jaylen Brown to give New York a 108–105 victory and a 1–0 series lead. Brunson and OG Anunoby both scored 29 points, whereas Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 46 points, but shot 14-43 from the field, including 5-25 from 3-point range. The Celtics also set an NBA playoff record for the most missed 3-pointers in a single game with 45, shooting 15-60 from 3-point range overall.
The Knicks made history as the only team to come back from 20-point deficits in back-to-back playoff games, as they took a commanding 2–0 series lead in Game 2. Jalen Brunson only scored 17 points for New York, but made two free throws with 12.7 seconds left to give his team the 91–90 lead. On the last possession of the game, Jayson Tatum then couldn't get to the rim and Mikal Bridges moved in to bat the ball away and recover it, securing his 2nd game-ending steal in as many games. Bridges also scored all of his 14 points in the fourth quarter. Josh Hart had 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks. The Celtics, who led by 20 points multiple times in the game, had another off night shooting the three, going 10-for-40. Jaylen Brown and Derrick White scored 20 points apiece, while star forward Jayson Tatum was limited to 13 points on 5-for-19 shooting for the Celtics. Kristaps Porziņģis did not start after sitting out the second half of Game 1 with an illness. He came off the bench for just the fifth time in his NBA career and finished with eight points and four rebounds in 14 minutes. In the fourth quarter, the Celtics went eight minutes without a field goal made. The Knicks improved to 5–0 on the road in these playoffs, with each of their wins coming by 3 points or less.
In the most expensive Knicks playoff game in Madison Square Garden history, the Celtics managed to avoid a 3–0 deficit on the road with a 115–93 rout of the Knicks, never trailing and dominating the game throughout all 4 quarters, leading by as many as 31 points. The Celtics started off the 1st quarter 36–20 and never looked back, as they finally had an efficient game from beyond the arc. Payton Pritchard led Boston with 23 points to lead Boston in scoring, and Jalen Brunson led New York with 27 points and 7 assists. Karl-Anthony Towns had a double-double of 21 points and 15 rebounds, but had an inefficient shooting just 5-18 from the field. With this loss, this also resulted in home teams in the Eastern Conference semifinals having a 0–6 record at home in the semifinals so far.
Following a rough Game 3, the Knicks broke their losing streak against the Celtics in Madison Square Garden as they rallied for a 121–113 win. Despite the Knicks trailing by 14 in the 3rd quarter, Jalen Brunson scored 18 of his 39 points in the 3rd to retake the lead. In the dominant bounce-back effort, the trio of Mikal Bridges, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby combined for 66 points. The Knicks also trailed by 11 at halftime, as they outscored Boston 70–51 in the 2nd half, including a 37–23 run in the 3rd quarter. In the losing effort, Jayson Tatum had 42 points with 7 made 3-pointers, but would leave the game with 3 minutes remaining with a severe non-contact injury. Forced to take Tatum out, Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla used his final timeout, sealing the Knicks' victory. A day later, an MRI revealed that Tatum had suffered an Achilles tendon rupture, effectively ending his season and putting question into his availability for the 2025–26 season.
The Celtics connected on 22 3-pointers to post their first home victory of the series and keep their season alive in a 127-102 rout. Derrick White had 34 points, including seven 3-pointers, Jaylen Brown added 26 points and 12 assists, and Payton Pritchard scored 17 points and five 3-pointers. Luke Kornet finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and seven blocks. He started the second half for Kristaps Porzingis, who played just 12 minutes. Josh Hart led the Knicks with 24 points despite briefly leaving the game late in the first quarter to close a bloody gash over his eye after he took an inadvertent elbow. Jalen Brunson added 22 points before fouling out with 7:19 to play in the game.
Back at Madison Square Garden, the Knicks blew out the Celtics to clinch their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years. The Knicks set the tone early, expanding their lead to 27 at halftime, expanding to as much as 41 in the 3rd quarter. Jaylen Brown led the way for Boston with 20 points, but fouled out in the 3rd quarter, also finishing with 7 turnovers. For the Knicks, 4 players scored over 20 points in the 119–81 win; Josh Hart also had the Knicks third ever playoff triple-double and first since 1972. It was the Knicks first time clinching a playoff series at home since the 1999 Eastern Conference Finals. With Boston's loss, and the Nuggets' loss to the Thunder in Game 7 just a few days later, this would mark the 7th straight NBA season with a unique champion, and the 6th straight year in which the defending champions failed to advance past the conference semifinals.
Boston won 4–0 in the regular-season series


This was the 16th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning eight of the first 15 meetings.
Boston leads 8–7 in all-time playoff series


Western Conference semifinals

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (4) Denver Nuggets

After spending the vast majority of the second half trailing, the Nuggets orchestrated a massive comeback to win 121–119, stealing homecourt advantage from the Thunder. MVP candidate Nikola Jokić was once again dominant, dropping an all-rounded stat line of 42 points, 22 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks. Aaron Gordon finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds. Jamal Murray added 21 points and 6 assists, Christian Braun had 11 points and 13 boards, and former Thunder player Russell Westbrook contributed 18 points off the bench. In total, the Nuggets had 72 rebounds, the third most in a playoff game since the ABA–NBA merger. For the top-seeded Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 33 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists, finishing 2 assists shy of a triple-double. Alex Caruso, as a substitute, shot 5-of-9 from beyond the arc en route to 20 points. None of the other Thunder players scored above 20. With the Thunder up by 1 with 10 seconds remaining, Chet Holmgren was awarded 2 free throws, but he missed both; Braun took the rebound and after a cross-court pass from Westbrook, Gordon proved to be Denver's hero by scoring the game-winning three-pointer with 4 seconds left on the clock.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points in three quarters, and the Oklahoma City Thunder set league and team records in a 149–106 rout over the Denver Nuggets to tie the series at 1–1. Oklahoma City set an NBA playoff record for first-half points with 87, surpassing the 86 scored by the Cleveland Cavaliers against the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on June 9, 2017. The 149 points were also the most OKC ever scored in a playoff game. Gilgeous-Alexander made 11 of 13 field goals, all 11 of his free throws, and had eight assists. He led eight players who scored in double figures. Nikola Jokić could not replicate his dominant performance in Game 1, tallying just 17 points and 8 rebounds before fouling out late in the third quarter.
The Nuggets dominated in overtime to take a 2–1 series lead, while also limiting the Thunder to just two points in that period. Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 27 points, while Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. added 22 and 21, respectively, while also overcoming an off-night for Nikola Jokic, who scored 20 points, 16 rebounds, and 6 assists, but missed 17 of his 25 field goals and all 10 three-point attempts, including a potential game winner. Jalen Williams scored a game-high 32 points for the Thunder, who came on the road after their 43-point blowout victory in Game 2. Chet Holmgren added 18 points in a losing effort. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also scored 18, but struggled throughout the game, missing 15 of his 22 shots, and also missed a potential game-winner that would have given the Thunder a 2–1 series lead.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored nine of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, pulling the top-seeded Thunder from the brink of a 3–1 deficit against Denver in another close game. About 36 hours after an exhausting overtime Game 3 Friday night, the early Mother’s Day tip-off produced an ugly first half that featured a combined 25 points in the first quarter and ended with OKC up 42–36 at halftime. Down by eight points early in the fourth quarter, the Thunder used an 11–0 run fueled by reserves Cason Wallace, who had a pair of 3-pointers, and Aaron Wiggins, who added another, to wrest control; Wallace's second 3-pointer put Oklahoma City ahead for good at 75–73 with 8:35 left in the game. Nikola Jokić had 27 points and 13 rebounds, but his three assists were a low for this playoff run, and his 4 turnovers gave him 22 assists to go with 23 turnovers in this second-round series. Aaron Gordon added 15 points and 16 rebounds, but also had 4 turnovers.
Oklahoma City overcame a 44-point, 15-rebound night from Denver's star Nikola Jokić and a 9-point deficit in the middle of the fourth quarter to take a 3–2 lead on their homecourt. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made 12 of 23 field goals and bounced back from a slow start to lead six players in double figures. One of those six players was Luguentz Dort, who scored three total points in the first three quarters, but hit a trio of 3-pointers in a two-minute span to cut Denver's lead to 92–90 midway through the fourth. Jamal Murray scored 28 points, but he made just 10 of 27 shots. No other Denver player scored more than 13 points.
Denver played their best full game of the series in a 119–107 victory to force a Game 7. Nikola Jokić scored 29 points, 14 rebounds, and 8 assists. A sick Jamal Murray, who was listed as “questionable” for the game, added 25 points, and Christian Braun had a career playoff-best 23 points. The game was tied deep into the third quarter when Julian Strawther had a pair of threes and a driving layup to gain the momentum during a 10-0 run. Strawther finished with 15 points, all coming in the second half. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points on 11-for-16 shooting and Chet Holmgren scored 19 points and had 11 rebounds. Denver made their third quarter run when Gilgeous-Alexander was on the bench with foul trouble. Jalen Williams dished out 10 assists, but again struggled with his shot, going 3-for-19 for 6 points, including missing a wide open three that would have gotten Oklahoma City within two possessions with 1:35 left in the game. In the series thus far vs. Denver, Williams is shooting just 33% from the floor and 21% on 3-pointers.
The Nuggets go into Game 7 with years worth of experience, as this is their seventh Game 7 since 2019; however, this is their first on the road since their 2012 defeat to the Lakers. The Thunder have not played in a Game 7 since losing to the Rockets in the First Round in 2020. The only two players left from that 2020 Game 7 are Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort.
After a competitive first half, Oklahoma City routed Denver in the second half to advance to their first Western Conference Finals since 2016. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points on 12-of-19 shooting, while Jalen Williams broke out of his series-long slump with 24 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Off the bench, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace were a +40 and +38, respectively. Caruso particularly played excellent defense on the much taller and bigger Nikola Jokić. Denver came into the game battered with Aaron Gordon hampered due to a Grade 2 hamstring injury and Michael Porter's shoulder injury. Jokić was able to score 20 points, but only took 9 shots and had 5 turnovers. As a team, the Nuggets shot 39% from the floor and 22% from three, compared to the Thunder, who made 49% of the shots from the floor and shot 30% from three.
Tied 2–2 in the regular-season series


This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning two of the past four; the first three series were played when the Thunder were the Seattle SuperSonics.
Tied 2–2 in all-time playoff series


(6) Minnesota Timberwolves vs. (7) Golden State Warriors

With Stephen Curry sidelined for most of the game with a hamstring injury, Jimmy Butler and Buddy Hield led the Warriors past the Timberwolves in Game 1. Hield picked up where he left off in the Game 7 win at Houston that finished the first round by scoring 24 points on 5-for-8 shooting from 3-point range. Jimmy Butler had 20 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists and Draymond Green had four first-half 3s on his way to 18 points, as Steve Kerr used 12 players in the game. Anthony Edwards had 23 points and 14 rebounds after the rough start, finishing 9-for-22 from the floor. Naz Reid had 19 points and Julius Randle added 16 points for the Wolves. Minnesota finished 5-for-29 from behind the arc and trailed by 23 points late in the third.
The Timberwolves, while never trailing in the game, bounced back after their tough Game 1 loss with a 24-point blowout victory to tie the series at 1–1. Minnesota also scored the first 13 points of the game, starting strong with a 29–15 1st quarter. Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with a double-double of 24 points and 11 assists, while Anthony Edwards added 20 in the victory. The Warriors were without Stephen Curry, who was sidelined due to a left hamstring strain. Despite the Warriors cutting the lead to 7 in the third quarter, they never came close again as Minnesota quickly regained momentum.
Anthony Edwards's 36 points, a triple-double from Julius Randle, and a 33–24 fourth quarter propelled the Timberwolves to a 2–1 series lead over the Warriors. Still without Stephen Curry, the Warriors missed all of their five three-point attempts during the first half, but led 42–40 at halftime. Jimmy Butler led the Warriors with 33 points, while Jonathan Kuminga scored all of his 30 points off the bench. Trayce Jackson-Davis was promoted as a starter for the game, though scoring only 11 points. Draymond Green was fouled out with 4:38 remaining, while attempting to block a shot by Jaden McDaniels.
The Timberwolves dominated the game once again in the second half, outscoring the Warriors 39–17 and making a 17–0 run in the third quarter, to take a commanding 3–1 series lead for the second straight series. Julius Randle and Anthony Edwards both led the Timberwolves with 31 and 30 points, respectively. Jonathan Kuminga came off the bench once again and followed up his 30-point Game 3 performance by scoring 23 points in a losing effort, while Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green, and Buddy Hield were all limited to 41 points total. With the win, the Timberwolves are one win away from their second consecutive and third overall Conference Finals appearance. Meanwhile, the Warriors face a 3–1 series deficit after leading 3–1 in the first round against the Houston Rockets, and are on the brink of elimination.
Julius Randle continued his excellent form this series, scoring 29 points on 13-for-18 shooting, as the Timberwolves punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals for the second year in a row. Anthony Edwards added 22 points and a career playoff high 12 assists, with the other Timberwolves starters all finishing in double figures, as well as Donte DiVincenzo off the bench. Brandin Podziemski had a playoff career-high 28 points for the Warriors, while Jonathan Kuminga provided 26 points off the bench in 29 minutes. Including regular season and playoffs, the Timberwolves have won 26 of their last 31 games. For the third time in their history, the Timberwolves advanced to the conference finals; Minnesota has also never lost a series in the second round.
Golden State won 3–1 in the regular-season series


This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

Conference finals

Eastern Conference finals

(3) New York Knicks vs. (4) Indiana Pacers

The Pacers orchestrated their third improbable comeback this playoffs, with a stunning 138–135 comeback win against the Knicks in Game 1. The Knicks led by 14 points with 2:51 minutes left, but Aaron Nesmith kept the Pacers in the game with a flurry of 3-pointers, becoming the first player in NBA history to make six 3-pointers in the fourth quarter of a playoff game. Still with a slim lead, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby proceeded to go 1-for-2 each at the free throw line with less than 15 seconds left. After Anunoby's free throw make with 7.1 seconds left to put the Knicks up two, Tyrese Haliburton dribbled the ball up the court, attacked the rim, dribbled back out toward the 3-point line and fired up a jumper over Mitchell Robinson. The ball bounced high above the shot clock and went in. Haliburton did a choke signal towards the crowd, harking back to Pacers Hall of Famer Reggie Miller's choke sign in Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals. While the Pacers rushed towards Haliburton in celebration thinking they had won the game, officials reviewed the last play and Haliburton's foot was on the 3-point line, which took the game to overtime; the Pacers outscored the Knicks 20–6 from 2:51 in the fourth quarter until the end of regulation.
In overtime, the Pacers held a slight three-point edge with 10.1 seconds left; Brunson and Towns missed threes that would have tied the game, thus giving Indiana the win. Haliburton and Nesmith starred in the Pacers victory. The Knicks, who had a 99.7% chance of winning the game deep in the fourth quarter, were led by Brunson and Towns.
Following an unbelievable comeback by the Pacers the previous game, neither team led by more than 10 points in Game 2. However, Indiana saw a huge performance by Pascal Siakam, who finished with 39 points on 15-23 shooting, including 16 in the 1st quarter. Despite Tyrese Haliburton contributing just 14 points on 5-16 shooting, he finished with a near triple-double with 8 rebounds and 11 assists. For New York, Jalen Brunson led the way with 36 points and 11 assists, but missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer as the Knicks failed to complete a late rally. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds, but was a team-low -20 in +/- and sat most of the fourth quarter. With this win, Indiana also took a 2–0 series lead on the road for the 2nd straight series, improving their road record to 6–1. Meanwhile, the Knicks dropped to a 3–5 record at Madison Square Garden in these playoffs.
With a looming 3–0 deficit, Karl-Anthony Towns scored 20 of his 24 points in the final quarter to will the Knicks to a 106–100 come-from-behind win on the road. It was the third time in the postseason where New York overcame a 20-point deficit during a game. The Pacers established their lead early on, expanding it to as much as 20 points in the second quarter before it was cut to 13 by half. The Knicks were still trailing by 16 midway through the third quarter and 10 entering the fourth, with Jalen Brunson in significant foul trouble. It was there when Towns scored seven quick points to bring New York within three. Brunson made a layup to give the Knicks the lead later on, which was then swapped between New York and Indiana twice before the Knicks pulled away.
With his father, John Haliburton, back in Gainbridge Fieldhouse after a suspension from the NBA following his altercation with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyrese Haliburton became the first player to score 30 points, 10 rebounds, 15 assists, and no turnovers in a playoff game, since turnovers were first tracked in the 1977–78 NBA season as he carried the Pacers to within a victory of their second trip to the NBA Finals. Jalen Brunson scored 31 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns had 24 points and 12 rebounds, and OG Anunoby finished with 22 points, but the Knicks fourth quarter rally fell short. Pascal Siakam added 30 points while Haliburton had four steals in his second career postseason triple-double. Former Knick Obi Toppin's 3-pointer with 46 seconds left put the Pacers up by 10 and sealed the game; it was his first three-point make of the series after going 0-of-6.
The Knicks won at home for the first time in the series to stave off elimination and force a Game 6 in Indiana. They became the first team during the postseason to keep the Pacers below 100 points in a game in part due an effective, swarming defensive performance which forced 19 turnovers from Indiana. The Knicks were led by Jalen Brunson, who scored the first six points for the team and finished with 32 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns who contributed 24 points and 13 rebounds. Coming off a monster Game 4, Tyrese Haliburton was limited to 8 points on 2-of-7 made field goals, while Benedict Mathurin scored a team-high 23 points off the bench. The game remained close throughout the first half, but a 20–0 run by New York midway through the third quarter allowed them to power through the rest of the game in control.
After being swept by the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals last year, the Pacers avenged by dominating the game, particularly in the second half, to clinch their second NBA Finals appearance, after the 2000 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. The game was close at halftime with the Pacers leading 58-54, but from then on they took full control of the game to win 125-108 and eliminated the Knicks for the 2nd straight year, also their 3rd straight series win over the Knicks. Pascal Siakam led the team with 31 points, and was named the NBA Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
This was also the last NBA game televised on TNT. TNT lost broadcast rights to NBC and Amazon, but would continue to produce the studio show Inside the NBA for ESPN and ABC.
New York won 2–1 in the regular-season series


This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Pacers winning five of the first eight meetings.
Indiana leads 5–3 in all-time playoff series


Western Conference finals

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (6) Minnesota Timberwolves

After their blowout Game 7 victory against the Nuggets, the Thunder dominated the game, particularly in the second half, out scoring the Timberwolves 70–40 throughout the second half. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 of his 31 points in the second half. The Thunder took a 10–0 run in the third quarter to take a 66–60 lead, and Kenrich Williams came off the bench and hit consecutive three-pointers to extend the Thunder's lead to 71–62, and eventually lead 76–66 heading into the fourth. Julius Randle scored 28 points, but struggled in the second half as he was limited to only eight points.
The Thunder maintained their dominant form from Game 1, winning 118–103 to take a 2–0 series lead over the Timberwolves. OKC once again dominated the third quarter, including a 23–5 run late in the third to take an insurmountable 24-point lead. A day after being announced as MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had his way on offense, leading the Thunder with 38 points and 8 assists; Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams also made significant contributions for OKC. Anthony Edwards lead Minnesota with 32 points, but shot 1 of 9 from three while Julius Randle was held to only 6 points.
The Timberwolves blew out the Thunder, 143-101, to get their first win of the Western Conference Finals. Anthony Edwards scored 30 points, nine rebounds and six assists, Julius Randle added 24 points and rookie Terrence Shannon Jr. had 15 points in 13 minutes. This was the largest win by margin in Wolves playoff history.
A 40 point playoff career-high from MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was enough for Oklahoma City to secure a narrow victory and take a commanding 3–1 series lead in Game 4. Jalen Williams scored 34 points on 13-for-24 shooting, including 6-of-9 from 3-point range and Chet Holmgren added 21 points, seven rebounds and three blocks. Gilgeous-Alexander went 12 for 14 from the free-throw line, making a pair with 6.1 seconds left to stretch the lead back to three. The Thunder fouled Anthony Edwards with 3.5 seconds remaining, who had been struggling all game on 5-13 shooting, and his intentional miss of the second free throw to try to keep possession was tracked down in the corner by Gilgeous-Alexander and flung out of bounds to drain the clock. The Timberwolves were led by Jaden McDaniels, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Donte DiVincenzo, with the latter two going 5-for-8 from 3-point range. Julius Randle's uneven series continued with just 5 points on 1-for-7 shooting. The end of the game also sparked some controversy, as fans believed the clock should've been reset to at least 0.5 seconds. Instead, the officials put 0.3 seconds left on the clock, and the inbounds pass was stolen by Williams to seal off OKC's victory for good after Minnesota's constant late rallies. In their Conference Finals appearances through 2024-2025, the Timberwolves now had a 1-4 record at home.
In a series defined by blowouts, the Thunder advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012, with a 124–94 victory. The game was never close as OKC outscored Minnesota 26–9 in the first quarter, just the 2nd time the entire postseason a team has been held to single digits in a quarter, the other being the Denver Nuggets in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals, also against the Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had another 30-point effort with 34 overall, Chet Holmgren added 22 points, and Jalen Williams finished with 19. OKC moved to 8–1 in the playoffs at home thus far, with their margin of victory in those eight games being 51, 19, 43, 7, 32, 26, 15 and 30.
Tied 2–2 in the regular-season series


This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Thunder winning the first meeting as the Seattle SuperSonics.
Oklahoma City leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series


NBA Finals: (W1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (E4) Indiana Pacers

Oklahoma City won 2–0 in the regular-season series


This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

Statistical leaders

Total leaders

Points
  1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - 688
  2. Jalen Brunson - 530
  3. Jalen Williams - 492
  4. Pascal Siakam - 472
  5. Tyrese Haliburton - 399
Rebounds
  1. Karl-Anthony Towns - 209
  2. Chet Holmgren - 199
  3. Nikola Jokić - 178
  4. Isaiah Hartenstein - 173
  5. Josh Hart - 158
Assists
  1. Tyrese Haliburton - 197
  2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - 150
  3. Jalen Brunson - 126
  4. Nikola Jokić - 112
  5. Jalen Williams - 111
Steals
  1. Alex Caruso - 45
  2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - 38
  3. OG Anunoby - 36
  4. Andrew Nembhard - 35
  5. Jalen Williams / Cason Wallace - 32
Blocks
  1. Myles Turner - 46
  2. Chet Holmgren - 43
  3. OG Anunoby - 22
  4. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - 20
  5. Rudy Gobert / Aaron Nesmith - 18
Minutes
  1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - 851
  2. Jalen Williams - 796
  3. Tyrese Haliburton - 772
  4. Pascal Siakam - 771
  5. Andrew Nembhard - 769

Media coverage

Television

This was the final playoffs that games aired nationally across ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV in the United States before both Amazon Prime Video and NBC Sports replace TNT and NBA TV next season. For the second and final time, TruTV simulcasted TNT games. This was also the final year that each team's regional broadcaster were permitted to televise local coverage of first-round games, with the exception of games on ABC. In general, during the first two rounds, ABC broadcast Sunday afternoon games, TNT had Sunday through Thursday night games, and ESPN televised Friday night games. NBA TV televised selected Tuesday through Thursday night first-round games, produced by TNT Sports. Additionally this postseason, an NBA TV/ESPNU simulcast of Game 3 of Indiana–Milwaukee on Friday, April 25 was scheduled to accommodate ABC and ESPN2's coverage of the 2025 NFL draft, airing in roughly the same time slot. Saturday first-round games were split by ABC, ESPN, and TNT, ABC then aired all the Saturday second round games.
As per the alternating rotation, ESPN/ABC had exclusive coverage of the Western Conference finals while TNT had exclusive coverage of the Eastern Conference finals. ABC had exclusive coverage of the NBA Finals for the 23rd straight year.
The entire 2025 NBA postseason averaged 6.12 million viewers per game across ESPN and ABC, up 10% from 2024. In addition, the NBA generated a record-breaking 5 billion views across all social media platforms during the NBA Finals, up 215% from 2024.

Streaming

NBA TV games was available on NBA League Pass as part of its normal streaming service for that channel. TNT games streamed on Max.
ESPN+ also streamed game 7 of the NBA Finals alongside ABC.

Sponsorship

NBA has continued its sponsorship agreement with Google since 2022, with Google Pixel serving as first presenting partner of the Playoffs from 2022 through 2024. Beginning with this season, it will now be rebranded as "2025 NBA Playoffs presented by Google," giving an expansion of sponsorship for other Google brands, outside of Pixel. As part of an multi-year agreement with Google, this sponsorship provides the logo branding inside the venues and in official digital properties on-court, as well as commercial inventory during ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV's telecasts of the playoff games.