THE LINEUP 🏀
What’s inside immediately’s version?
Spicy P Ends Streak: Pascal Siakam makes historical past, as Indy turns into 1st highway crew to win this Playoffs
Luka, Mavs Rally: Doncic drops 32 as Mavs come again late vs. Clips to even sequence
Jaden, Wolves Up 2-0: Jaden McDaniels’ profession evening sends MIN to 1st 2-0 lead in 20 years
SGA & Clutch Play: How has the Kia MVP & Clutch Participant of the 12 months finalist carried out his crunch time scoring?
Boston Breaking Information: What are all of the milestones the Celtics have hit this season?
BUT FIRST … ⏰
Final evening’s scores & what to observe immediately.
Tonight’s TNT Doubleheader: The Warmth & Celtics tip off Recreation 2 at TD Backyard (7 ET), with Boston up 1-0. Pelicans-Thunder follows (9:30 ET), with OKC seeking to go up 2-0. | Playoffs Residence
1. SIAKAM, PACERS BREAK HOME STREAK
To interrupt a streak the NBA hadn’t seen since 2004, the Indiana Pacers turned to a method that had been a staple since opening evening … and a Playoff veteran who’d solely joined the crew three months in the past.
Indiana’s Pascal Siakam went for a Playoff career-high 37 pts and the Pacers set a franchise Playoff file with 38 assists to beat the Bucks 125-108 in Recreation 2
The win evened the sequence at 1-1 and made Indiana the first highway crew to win in these Playoffs, after a uncommon run by house groups. | Recap | Siakam’s Greatest
- Snapping The Streak: Together with Minnesota’s win earlier, house groups had received 12 straight video games to open the Playoffs. That hadn’t occurred since 2003-04
- See Ya Streak, Half 2: The win ended Indiana’s 10-game Playoff winless run, courting again to 2018
- Historical past For Spicy P: Siakam (11 reb, 6 ast) turned the primary participant ever to open a postseason with two straight video games of 35+ pts, 10+ reb and 60% + capturing
- Legendary Listing: Solely Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain had ever put up these quantity in back-to-back Playoff video games
38 Dimes: NBA help chief Tyrese Haliburton led the way in which with 12, with three different Pacers placing up six or extra
- Ball Management: Indy turned the one crew since turnovers have been tracked in 1970-71 to have a Playoff recreation with 35+ assists and 6 or fewer turnovers
Embracing Expertise: Indy, whose roster has the third-least postseason expertise of any Playoff crew, fell behind fast in Recreation 1, and by no means recovered.
- 508 Video games: That’s the distinction in mixed postseason expertise for the Bucks roster (701 video games) versus Indy (193), which hasn’t received a Playoff sequence since 2014
- Deja Vu: After placing up a franchise-record 35 within the first half of Recreation 1, Damian Lillard went off for 26 within the first half of Recreation 2
- Enter Siakam: This time, Lillard had someone going shot for shot with him, with Siakam exploding for 21 – together with a 3-for-4 mark from deep – within the first half and 16 extra within the second.
- Veteran Presence: Siakam, a veteran of fifty+ Playoff video games and the one member of the Pacers to have received a title (2019, Raptors), additionally offered a steadying impact on his crew
- Pacers coach Rick Carlisle: “His expertise within the playoffs is so beneficial. He’s not a man that’s going to get rattled by something. By no means has as soon as since January, since we acquired him. He’s a man that folks open up to and look as much as.”
- Stated Siakam: “Each time they made a run, we have been simply there. The composure was there. I might see it within the eyes of the blokes. Simply guys not panicking.”
Recreation 3 ideas Friday at 5:30 ET on ESPN.
2. DALLAS RALLIES, KEEPS ROAD WINS COMING
Down 6 within the fourth and going through a 2-0 sequence deficit, the Dallas Mavericks rattled off a 23-8 4th quarter run to beat the Clippers 96-93 in Recreation 2, and knot the sequence at 1-1. | Recap | Watch The Ending
Luka Doncic (game-high 32 pts) and Kyrie Irving mixed for 55 factors, because the Mavs overcame the return of LA’s Kawhi Leonard, who missed Recreation 1. | Luka’s Greatest
- Inside The Run: Luka, Kyrie and PJ Washington (Playoff career-high 18 pts) accounted for 20 of Dallas’ 23 factors through the comeback. | Watch Luka’s Large 4th
- Together with This: Watch this clutch Doncic 3 from courtside, because the Mavs go up 9 late
- Add One other One: To Luka’s checklist of all-time profession clutch buckets
- Clipper Comeback: In a recreation that noticed 10 lead modifications, Dallas held the lead for almost all of the evening, till a 22-12 Clipper run from 6:38 within the third til 9:32 within the 4th put LA up 73-67
- Stroll Off: Hit the court docket and head into the tunnel with the Mavs after they accomplished the comeback
- Stated Kyrie on journey again to Playoffs: “I believe failure will encourage you greater than you may think about.”
Leonard put up 15 pts and seven reb in his first recreation since March 31, whereas James Harden and Paul George every dropped 22.
- Historical past for LA: James Harden moved into tenth all-time in Playoff free throws and twelfth in Playoff assists, passing Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, respectively, whereas Leonard handed Hakeem Olajuwon & Dennis Johnson into 18th in Playoff steals
Recreation 3 ideas Friday at 8 ET on ESPN.
3. THE JADEN MCDANIELS GAME
Coming into the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves didn’t obtain a single vote to complete within the Western Convention’s High 4 within the NBA GM Survey. So, behind a defensive revolution that noticed them bounce from tenth to 1st in DefRtg, the Wolves spent all 12 months proving they belonged.
In Tuesday’s 105-93 Recreation 2 win over the Suns, a crew that’d put up 118 ppg in opposition to them within the common season, they only saved proving it – led this time by a participant who’s quietly helped them grind into the West’s elite. | Recap
Jaden McDaniels went for a Playoff career-high 25 factors, and helped to lock down the Suns’ star-studded offense, because the Wolves took simply the second 2-0 lead in crew historical past. | McDaniels’ Greatest
- Solely Different Time: Minnesota’s final 2-0 lead in a Playoff sequence got here in 2004, when the Wolves took down Denver, 4-1 within the First Spherical
- McDaniels Steps Up: With the Suns keyed on Anthony Edwards, the fourth-year wing took over, taking a team-high 17 photographs and posting a team-high +24 with 8 reb
- On The Different Finish: McDaniels helped lock down the Suns’ star trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, who went simply 18-for-45 from the ground
- Ant On McDaniels: “He’s the X-Issue.”
- Wolves Coach Chris Finch: “His exercise’s been one other stage up to now in these 2 video games. … I believed he had a particular efficiency tonight, actually particular.”
- Turning Level: The Suns took an 8-point lead within the 2nd, however the Wolves rattled off a 43-27 run from the midpoint of the 2Q by means of the third, powered by 13 from McDaniels and eight from Karl-Anthony Cities within the stretch
Extra On McDaniels: The ahead out of Washington has constructed a repute on the defensive finish, ending sixteenth in DefRtg this 12 months amongst starters (min 50 video games).
- This 12 months, gamers shot 1.8% worse from the ground when guarded by him
- Standout In His Class: McDaniels is the one member of the 2020 NBA Draft class to have 200+ blk & 200+ stl
- Stated McDaniels: “Being within the Playoffs is a dream come true.”
Recreation 3 ideas Friday on ESPN at 10:30 ET.
4. SGA’S ELITE CLUTCH PLAY
The Thunder led by 10 early within the 4th quarter. Then the drought started.
OKC went greater than 5 minutes with out making a shot, as New Orleans used an 18-6 run to take a two-point lead with underneath two minutes to play.
A Recreation 1 win for the No. 1 seed was slipping away.
However Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wasn’t going to let it occur.
In a span of a minute, SGA shook unfastened from defensive standout Herb Jones to tie the sport with a contested 20-footer … then, with all eyes on him, cut up the protection to hit a 13-footer And-1 to offer OKC the lead for good.
Watched The Performs? Good. As a result of these two photographs illustrate why SGA – a finalist for the Kia MVP – was additionally named a finalist for Kia Clutch Participant of the 12 months, which might be awarded on Thursday.
- Gilgeous-Alexander has delivered in closing moments all season lengthy, ending the common season with 112 factors on 58.1/35.7/89.7 capturing splits, whereas including 19 assists to simply six turnovers
- OKC went 23-11 in SGA’s 34 clutch video games, outscoring opponents by 68 factors in his 107 clutch minutes
Bear in mind these clutch photographs from Sunday? The midrange pullup and a floater within the paint?
Now have a look at SGA’s clutch shot chart in comparison with the opposite two finalists – Golden State’s Steph Curry and Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan – as every had totally different strategies for creating clutch buckets
- Whereas Steph (189 pts) and DeMar (182 pts) have the sting in complete factors due to taking (and making) extra photographs than SGA, neither shot the ball higher than Shai
- Clutch True Capturing Pct: SGA 70.7%, Curry 69.0%, DeRozan 62.5%
What’s in retailer tonight when OKC hosts New Orleans in Recreation 2? Discover out on TNT at 9:30 ET.
5. BREAKING RECORDS IN BOSTON
By the point the Miami Warmth – the Boston Celtics’ largest Playoff nemesis of the previous 5 years – scored their first factors of the 2023-24 postseason, the C’s had already made historical past.
- Roaring out to a 14-0 begin, Boston turned the primary crew of the play-by-play period to open a postseason on a 14-0 run or higher
- Forty eight minutes of hoops later, they’d set another file, sinking 22 3-pointers and changing into the primary crew in postseason historical past to have each participant who performed hit a 3.
A 12 months Of Historical past: The information added but one other set of milestones to one of many biggest seasons in historical past for one of many recreation’s most iconic franchises.
Earlier than the Cs host the Warmth in Recreation 2 (7 ET, TNT), try a couple of of the marks Boston has set this 12 months.
The Most…
- Factors in Celtics historical past (9887)
- Threes in a season in Celtics historical past (1351), 2nd in NBA behind Warriors
- Residence wins to begin a season in crew historical past (20)
- Wins in a row (11) this season, tied with the Rockets
- 50-point wins in a season (3) in NBA historical past
- 40-point wins (4) in NBA historical past, tied with OKC this 12 months
- 30-point wins (10) in NBA historical past, tied with 1971-72 Bucks
- Video games with 15 3PM video games in NBA historical past (63), 9 forward of the 2022-23 Warriors & 2018-19 Rockets
The Greatest(s)…
- Offensive ranking of the play by play period, since 1997-98 (122.2)
- Tied highest EFG% (57.8%) within the play-by-play period, 2nd in True Capturing % (60.9%)
- Highest web ranking since 2000 (11.7)
- Largest margin of victory in any 11 recreation win streak in NBA historical past (+243)
The Lowests…
- 2nd lowest defensive ranking within the NBA this season (110.6)
The Firsts…
- Crew because the 1975-76 Warriors to complete the season 14 video games forward of anybody else within the convention
- Crew to hit 1,300 threes in back-to-back seasons
- Crew to not try a free throw in a full recreation
Extra In Celtics Historical past …
- 2nd highest 3P% within the play by play period (38.8%), behind 08-09 crew
- 4th most wins (64)
- 14th time a Celtics crew has reached 60 wins
People…
- Kristaps Porzingis turned the primary Celtic with 100+ blk & 100 3PM in a season
- Jayson Tatum joined Larry Hen (1983-84 to 87-88), John Havlicek (1969-70 to 72-73) and Paul Pierce (2000-01 to 03-04) as the one Celtics to attain 1900 factors in at the very least 3 straight seasons