NBA News

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Denver-Minnesota rivalry took another dramatic turn in the closing seconds of Game 4 on Saturday, when Nuggets star Nikola Jokic confronted Jaden McDaniels after he took an uncontested layup with the Timberwolves on the way to victory and a 3-1 lead in the first-round NBA playoff series. After McDaniels made the unsportsmanlike basket with 2.1 seconds …

ATLANTA — A few notes on the Knicks’ performance in a do-or-die Game 4 win. HART OF THE MATTER The Knicks put Josh Hart on CJ McCollum to start the most important game of their season and Hart delivered. With Hart as the lead defender on McCollum, the Knicks limited him to eight points and three turnovers in the first …

ATLANTA (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns has long been known as one of the NBA’s best-shooting big men. On Saturday night, he showed he can be a pretty good passer, too. Towns had the fifth triple-double in his 11-year career and first in the playoffs, leading the New York Knicks to a 114-98 win over the Atlanta Hawks to tie the …

Saturday night in Minnesota was a lot. Ayo Dosunmu’s star turn was unexpected, but there he was carrying the Timberwolves on his back without two of their best players. With Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo both ruled out, Dosunmu went off for a career-high 43 points off the bench. The Wolves gutted it out for a 112-96 win and now …

MINNEAPOLIS — Ayo Dosunmu scored a career-high 43 points, stepping up after leg injuries to Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo with the highest-scoring playoff performance by a reserve in 50 years, and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Denver Nuggets 112-96 on Saturday night. The Timberwolves took a 3-1 lead in the series in a game that ended with ejections of …

ATLANTA — At the same time as New York Knicks forward Josh Hart was emphatically campaigning in the direction of an official for being too physical, his teammate Jose Alvarado, still full of energy as if he recently crushed a Celsius, paced back and forth by the bench unable to take a breather. State Farm Arena, which allegedly housed the …

The Minnesota Timberwolves picked up a 112-96 win over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday — but not before tempers flared. The Game 4 win, which gave Minnesota a 3-1 series lead, ended with a confrontation between Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels and Nuggets center Nikola Jokić in the final seconds. With seconds ticking down and Minnesota up by double digits, McDaniels …

The Los Angeles Lakers will have the opportunity to complete a sweep of the Houston Rockets after taking a 3-0 lead in the NBA playoff first-round series. The Lakers have found success in the postseason without Luka Doncic, who has missed time due to a hamstring injury. Advertisement He suffered the injury on April 2 in a blowout loss to …

This is potentially devastating news for the Timberwolves. Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo each had to leave Game 4 in Minnesota with first-half leg injuries, and neither will return to the game. DiVincenzo has suffered a torn Achilles, reports Shams Charania of ESPN, which is what it appeared to be when it happened. That injury not only ends this season …

A potentially bad injury day for the Minnesota Timberwolves might have just gotten a lot worse. All-Star guard Anthony Edwards appeared to suffer a left knee injury Saturday, April 25 late in the second quarter during Game 4 of Minnesota’s first-round series against the Denver Nuggets. At the start of the second half, Edwards was not on the floor or …

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo were injured in the first half of Game 4 of Minnesota’s playoff series against Denver on Saturday night, leaving the Timberwolves without both of their starting guards. Edwards’ left knee appeared to buckle as he landed after contesting a layup late in the second quarter. He was helped to the locker room …

New York played like a desperate team. From the opening tip, the Knicks brought a physicality and intensity to Game 4 that they had been lacking all series — and the Hawks could not match it. New York played its best defense of the series, improved its player movement and, more importantly, showed much better intentionality in how it wanted …

With the New York Knicks facing the prospect of an unprecedented 3-1 hole against the underdog Atlanta Hawks, Game 4 was a reminder of just how intense and effective they can be by dialing in defensively. The Hawks struggled to score all night in a 114-98 loss, shooting just .415 from the field and committing 18 turnovers. Karl-Anthony Towns was …

The Knicks evened the series to 2-2 after beating the Atlanta Hawks in Game 4, 114-98, on Saturday night. Here are the takeaways… — Things started out pretty evenly between both teams in the first six minutes, with neither side able to get a lead of more than four points. After Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns were responsible for New …

PHOENIX (AP) — Devin Booker briefly left the Phoenix Suns’ Game 3 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday because of a left ankle injury he sustained after tripping over Lu Dort’s foot. Booker returned a few minutes after the injury and said after the game he was “fine.” The five-time All-Star should be ready to play in Game …

With their backs against the wall, the New York Knicks have played fairly well in Game 4 against the Atlanta Hawks. Things may get a little more complicated. All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson, New York’s best player and captain, went into the locker room in the third quarter Saturday, April 25, after getting banged up on a loose ball. Advertisement …

With an uphill battle ahead, the Denver Nuggets are getting some help back on the lineup. Aaron Gordon, who missed Game 3 of the Nuggets’ series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, with a calf injury, is set to return for Game 4 on Saturday. Shortly before tipoff, the team announced that Gordon would be available for the matchup after suffering from …

Down 2–1 and stinging from back-to-back one-point losses, the Knicks return to Atlanta for a pivotal Game Four needing to clean up their own mess. Despite controlling the glass and large stretches of play, late-game breakdowns, uneven free-throw shooting, and questionable rotations have tanked winnable games. Jalen Brunson has yet to take over the series, and the supporting cast (especially …

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looked every bit the reigning and likely future MVP, dropping 42 on the Suns while shooting 15-of-18 from the floor. That’s the most any player has scored so far in the first round of the playoffs. However, he was not the real difference on Saturday in Phoenix, it was Oklahoma City’s depth. The Thunder bench scored 36 points …

The San Antonio Spurs’ kids look ready, even if Victor Wembanyama may not be. With the Spurs star unavailable, second-year guard Stephon Castle delivered 33 points and rookie Dylan Harper pitched in a career-high 27 points along with 10 rebounds in a 120-108 victory in Portland on Friday to take a 2-1 series lead. Advertisement Wembanyama, the 7-foot-4 Defensive Player …

The Cleveland Cavaliers stumbled in their first playoff game on the road. They’ll get another chance to take care of business and head back home with a 3-1 series lead over the Toronto Raptors. To do that, they’ll have to look much better than they did in Game 3. Advertisement The Cavs were thoroughly outplayed for 48 minutes on Thursday. …

If there was ever any doubt, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is arguably one of the calmest dudes to ever wear an NBA jersey. The defending regular-season and Finals MVP had his way with the Phoenix Suns on Saturday, getting to whichever spot he wanted, and converted at such a high rate, he hit his first nine shots, all coming off relaxed, patient …

What kind of game was it for Orlando? This kind. It wasn’t just lucky bounces for the Magic. It was a focused defensive effort on Cade Cunningham, holding the All-Star and heart of the Pistons to 8-of-23 shooting with nine turnovers. It was Desmond Bane setting a Magic record with seven 3-pointers in a playoff game. It was Franz Wagner …

The relationship between Klay Thompson and Megan Thee Stallion is over after less than a year of officially dating. The rap star aired out a litany of grievances on her Instagram story on Saturday, accusing the Dallas Mavericks guard of cheating on her and other assorted mistreatment during the NBA season. Advertisement The full statement, which doesn’t specifically mention Thompson …

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Orlando Magic tend not to do things the easy way. They lost seven consecutive games in March to put their playoff chances in peril. They needed to survive a play-in tournament elimination game — one that many thought they would lose — just to get into the playoffs. And on Saturday, they wasted a 17-point …