The domination that the Boston Celtics have shown in the Eastern Conference returned on Wednesday night as the team held off the Cleveland Cavaliers to take Game 5 of their second-round series and move on to the East Finals. That’s three straight years for Boston to head to the conference finals and six times in the last eight years. However, the conference finals are where Boston’s seasons have mostly come to an end during this strong run. They’ve only advanced to the NBA Finals once in the last eight seasons, and that came in 2022, where the C’s bowed out in the NBA Finals to Golden State, four games to two. Can they make it past the winner of Indiana and New York to get to the NBA Finals this year, and, if they do, can they get through any of the four remaining West teams (Oklahoma City, Denver, Minnesota, or Dallas) to win a title? Let’s look at where the contenders are right now as you consider sports betting on the next few rounds of the NBA playoffs.
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Western Conference Semifinals
Dallas Mavericks vs Oklahoma City Thunder, Mavericks lead, 3-2
Dallas’ Luka Doncic has developed a reputation for chirping at referees during games, but for Game 5 of the Mavs’ series with Oklahoma City, he decided to focus on basketball, and the Mavericks turned a 54-44 halftime lead into a 104-92 road win, two days after the team saw a 54-43 halftime lead turn into what could have been a crushing 100-96 loss that saw the Thunder finish the game on a 20-6 run. Doncic has dealt with a sore left ankle and a sprained right knee, as well as the stifling defense of Luguentz Dort. After the letdown of Game 4, Doncic bounced back with 31 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, his best night of the playoffs. Doncic sealed the victory with a block on Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was looking for a layup in transition with 55 seconds left. The cold-blooded shooting of P.J. Washington, the no-compromise defense of Derrick Jones Jr, and the interior presence of Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford make the Mavericks a tough opponent right now. Since Gafford and Washington came over at the trade deadline, the Mavericks went on a 16-4 run over their next 20 games and have carried that momentum into the playoffs.
The Thunder rely heavily on the pick-and-roll to generate offense, but as Draymond Green noted on the postgame show on TNT, in a seven-game series, opposing defenses have plenty of time to scout the screens and are ready for the right switches, making it tougher for the Thunder to take advantage of mistakes as a series goes forward. This wasn’t a problem for the Thunder in the first round, but Dallas’ defense has been savvy. The Thunder tried a new starting lineup in Game 5, so it will be interesting to see how they adjust for Game 6 as they hope to avoid elimination.
Denver Nuggets vs Minnesota Timberwolves, Nuggets lead, 3-2
Nikola Jokic received his third MVP trophy before Game 5 against Minnesota, and he went off for 40 points and 13 assists. In comments on TNT, Charles Barkley wondered aloud how one player could be getting so many points and so many assists, noting that players who dominate on the scoreboard don’t also generate so many chances for others; opposing defenses should either have to let him score or keeping him from scoring and force him to distribute. The answer he gave was that Jokic gets his points in the halfcourt offense and his assists in the transition game, a rare combination for a center. He also had seven boards on the night. In the thidr quarter alone, he had 16 points and four assists. Aaron Gordon put up 18 points and 10 rebounds, including some emphatic dunks, and Jamal Murray added 16. For Minnesota, Karl-Anthony Towns was the top scorer with 23 points, while Rudy Goberts and Anthony Edwards contributed 18 points apiece. Edwards went just 5 of 15 from the floor as he often faced traps and double teams. After winning the first two games of this series in surprisingly easy fashion, the Timberwolves are now riding their first three-game losing streak of the season. Something needs to change, and change quickly, for Minnesota to force a Game 7.
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Boston Celtics vs Cleveland Cavaliers, Celtics advance, 4-1 // N.Y. Knicks vs Indiana Pacers, Knicks lead, 3-2
The home team has won all five of these games, and in emphatic fashion. The Pacers had routed the Knicks in Games 3 and 4, but when the series moved back to Madison Square Garden, the Knicks rolled, 121-91, behind 44 points out of Jalen Brunson, who now has five 40-point games in these playoffs. Josh Hart added 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Deuce McBride made his insertion in the starting lineup pay off with 17 points. The Knicks are missing four of their key players, and Game 6 comes with an extra day of rest as Gainbridge Fieldhouse hosts the WNBA’s Indiana Fever on Thursday night. The Indiana Pacers did get 22 points out of Pascal Siakam in Game 5, as well as 16 from Myles Turner but just 13 from Tyrese Haliburton, who had put up 89 points combined through Games 2-4. Can the Pacers find that momentum at home and force a Game 7? Even if they can, can they break through Jalen Brunson on the road?
POV: Taking in second-round views from the Celtics win on the iconic parquet floor in TD Garden 📸 @GooglePixel_US #BroughtToYouByGoogle pic.twitter.com/3DcCvxCAAE
— NBA (@NBA) May 16, 2024
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