Basketball
NBA roundup: Cavs suffer worst playoff loss in franchise history; Lakers down 3-0
Orlando, Fla. — Paolo Banchero had 31 points and 14 rebounds, Jalen Suggs added 24 points and the Orlando Magic handed Cleveland the worst playoff loss in franchise history, winning 121-83 on Thursday night to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 2-1 in their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Franz Wagner finished with 16 points and eight assists for the Magic, who led by 43 points in the fourth quarter on the way to the third-largest margin of victory in a playoff game. They earned their first playoff victory since 2020 and the first on their home floor since April 26, 2011.
They can even the series with a victory at home Saturday afternoon.
Jarrett Allen had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who shot 39% from the field and 23.5% from 3-point range. Caris LeVert added 15 points and Donovan Mitchell had 13 points and seven assists.
The Cavs’ previous worst playoff loss was a 36-point defeat against Washington on April 24, 2008.
Denver 112, (at) L.A. Lakers 105: Aaron Gordon had 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and the Nuggets moved to the brink of the second round.
Jamal Murray scored 22 points as the defending NBA champion Nuggets won their 11th consecutive meeting with LeBron James and the Lakers in dominating style.
Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight road win over Los Angeles, starting with its sweep of last season’s Western Conference finals.
Game 4 is Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever rallied from an 0-3 playoff deficit.
Anthony Davis had 33 points and 15 rebounds, and James added 26 points and nine assists in the Lakers’ seventh consecutive postseason loss to Denver over the past two years. Los Angeles hasn’t beaten the Nuggets since Dec. 16, 2022.
(At) Philadelphia 125, N.Y. Knicks 114: Joel Embiid is suffering from Bell’s palsy and played Game 3 with a bulky knee brace to sturdy the 7-footer after dealing with injuries all season.
The lingering effects of the time off from his most recent knee surgery s ucked him into a depression – and that was before Embiid was hit with a form of facial paralysis. Embiid pushed aside the pain – mental and physical – and embraced the pressure after he vowed the 76ers were “going to win this series” against the New York Knicks.
Embiid scored 50 points, making all four 3-point attempts and scoring 18 in a potential series-saving third quarter on Thursday night to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 125-114 win in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
After getting punished in New York, the Sixers pushed back.
“They want to bring the physicality,” Embiid said. “We can be physical, too.”
Embiid boldly stated “we’re going to win this series” after the 76ers dropped Game 2.
They at least have a shot now – the Knicks lead the series 2-1 and Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.
Knicks don’t mind Thibodeau’s tantrums
New York — The New York Knicks know when it’s coming.
When they throw a careless pass that leads to a turnover, or hoist a bad shot that ruins a possession, their coach is likely standing on the sideline with arms in the air, furious he’s just witnessed such careless miscues.
Like any coach, Tom Thibodeau doesn’t like mistakes but unlike others in the NBA coaching ranks, he doesn’t bother hiding it from the nearly 20,000 people in the arena watching.
“I mean, I’ve played for a lot of animated coaches in my life,” New York guard Deuce McBride said. “He might take the cake.”
The Knicks players say they don’t mind. They know that along with an occasional Thibodeau tantrum, there’s also the enormous planning and preparation he provides that has helped them take a 2-0 lead over the Philadelphia 76ers heading into Game 3 on Thursday night.
Some NBA coaches spend much of a game yelling, but most times it’s at the referees. Rare is the coach who so demonstratively shows when he’s mad at his own players.
Many may chastise players during timeouts, or wait until they’re back in the privacy of the locker room at halftime. But Thibodeau reacts immediately when he’s seen something he can’t stomach.
Thibodeau isn’t sure why it’s a topic of discussion and is incredulous when asked about his unusual sideline manner.
“What are you expecting, a celebration?” he says.
His players expect the unexpected from Thibodeau – even if they don’t always see it.
“Sometimes you don’t even notice it, because no matter what’s going on over there, he’s going to say something,” All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson said.
Josh Hart doesn’t bother glancing toward the bench when he knows Thibodeau will be glaring back at him.
“Nah, I don’t really look at him too much. I hear him. Damn sure hear him,” Hart said.
“Sometimes you can’t help but hear him. But I let Thibs be Thibs,” Hart continued. “He’s going to yell no matter what, so I’m the kind of guy it doesn’t really affect me if he yells, because I’m going to play my game how I play my game no matter what. So I don’t look at him.”
Brunson chuckles as he reflects about it, as does McBride. They are Thibodeau’s type of players, second-round picks who embrace tough coaching – or anything else that leads to team success.
The Knicks have had more of it under Thibodeau than anyone else in a quarter of a century. They won a playoff series last year for the first time in a decade. They are halfway to doing it again, winning 50 games and earning the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference despite playing without their entire starting frontcourt of All-Star Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson for a large part of the season.
Brunson’s arrival in the summer of 2022 has led to much of that success, but he’s not spared Thibodeau’s wrath. Nor is he bothered by it. His father, Rick, played for the Knicks when Thibodeau was an assistant and was his assistant in Chicago and now in New York, so Brunson has known the coach since he was young.
“I think yes, he’s passionate, but the one thing we all understand is that he’s prepared,” Brunson said. “So he’s not really yelling at you for some BS or something that probably didn’t happen or whatever. He’s more proactive versus reactive, so it’s never really something that as a player we can be like, ‘I didn’t do that, or this hasn’t happened yet.’ Like, he’s preparing us.”
Yes, but NBA players often expect to see no reaction at all. They know they messed up and don’t need the coach to call attention to it.
Monty Williams, whose Detroit Pistons were a turnover-prone team that had the NBA’s worst record at 14-68, recalls his grandmother once telling him he needed to tone down his reactions during a game and remembers that when he wants to flip out.
“Sometimes I’m ashamed at some of the things I may be thinking,” he said. “I try, because at the end of the day as a believer in Christ I want to treat everybody with a great level of respect and dignity no matter what they do on the court. So that’s my motivation as to why I do it.”
The Knicks don’t expect Thibodeau to tone it down. McBride, who endured Hall of Fame coach Bob Huggins’ tirades at West Virginia, assumes that’s what the players have signed up for.
“We’re all grown,” he said. “If there was something we didn’t like we would have approached him, but I mean, it’s no harm, no foul.”
The Knicks have reached the playoffs three times in four seasons under Thibodeau after getting there only three times in the previous 16 years. The two-time Coach of the Year is still seeking his first title and has to prove his demanding style works in the playoffs.
But so far, there’s no reason for Thibodeau or his players to question it.
“Often times, it’s one play that’s the difference between winning and losing, and mental mistakes right now could be the difference between moving on and going home,” Thibodeau said. “So your concentration level is so important. Using good judgment is so important.”
Bucks’ Middleton questionable for Game 3
The Milwaukee Bucks face the possibility of continuing their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers on Friday without two of their top three players.
Khris Middleton has a sprained right ankle that kept him from practicing Thursday and puts his status in question for Game 3 in Indianapolis. The Bucks already played the first two games of this series without two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has a left calf strain.
“It’s another holding-our-breath situation,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said about Middleton’s availability for Friday. “Honestly, I don’t know.”
The NBA’s injury report Thursday afternoon listed Antetokounmpo as doubtful and Middleton as questionable for Friday’s game. The Bucks and Pacers are tied 1-1 in the best-of-seven series.
Middleton was limping in the first quarter of the Bucks’ 125-108 Game 2 loss on Tuesday and briefly went into the locker room, but he returned after getting his right ankle re-taped and ended up playing 36 minutes. The three-time All-Star has averaged 19 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists through the first two games.
Antetokounmpo hasn’t played since straining his left calf in an April 9 victory over the Boston Celtics. He missed the Bucks’ final three regular-season games.
“He did a lot of floor stuff today, probably the most I’ve seen,” Rivers said. “Nothing live. He was shooting and moving today.”
While speaking after the Bucks’ Thursday practice in Milwaukee, Rivers didn’t want to speculate on when Antetokounmpo could return.
“I saw him moving around and my mindset is he’s getting close,” Rivers said. “Does that mean a day, four days? I’m not sure.”
The Bucks have played without key performers on numerous occasions this year. The Bucks had their top three players – Antetokounmpo, Middleton and Damian Lillard – all available for only five of their last 35 games. That 35-game stretch covers Milwaukee’s last 33 regular-season contests and the first two games of this series.
“We’ve had games like that this season,” Bucks center Brook Lopez said. “We’re prepared for it. We’ve seen everything. Obviously we’d prefer to have them play. But if they can’t, if they have to do whatever they have to do to be healthy, stay healthy, we’ll be ready.”
Suns’ Big 3 in a big pickle
The Phoenix Suns and their so-called Big Three return home to the desert in a big pickle.
Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and the Suns are in a 2-0 hole heading into Friday’s Game 3 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, who looked mostly dominant in a pair of double-digit wins in the first two games.
There are two more Game 3s on Friday, including the Bucks at the Pacers and the Clippers at Dallas. Both of those series are tied at 1-1.
Durant has been on a team that recovered from a 2-0 deficit to win a series – the 2012 Oklahoma City Thunder – but said there’s no advice he or anyone else can give to pull the Suns out of their current predicament.
Instead, they just have to play better.
“You can talk all you want, but if you don’t execute what you just talked about, it does you no good,” Durant said. “Talking and rah-rah speeches are cool to a certain point, but you’ve got to go out there and execute.
“We haven’t done that. We’ve done it in spurts, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not good enough doing it in spurts.”
The Suns hoped to be one of the NBA’s best teams this year after acquiring Beal in an offseason trade, adding the three-time All-Star to a roster that already included Durant and Booker. But Beal’s myriad of injuries early in the season kept him out of the lineup for long stretches, and the group never quite found consistent cohesion.
A 10-4 record to close the regular season was encouraging, but the first two games of the playoffs were not. Now there are only a few more chances to get it right, or the season ends in disappointment.
Eastern Conference
Milwaukee vs. Indiana
(Series tied 1-1)
▶ Game 1: Milwaukee 109, Indiana 94
▶ Game 2: Indiana 125, Milwaukee 108
▶ Game 3: Friday at Indiana, 5:30 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Sunday at Indiana, 7 p.m.
▶ x-Tuesday, April 30: Indiana at Milwaukee, TBA
▶ x-Thursday, May 2: Milwaukee at Indiana, TBA
▶ x-Saturday, May 4: Indiana at Milwaukee, TBA
Boston vs. Miami
(Series tied 1-1)
▶ Game 1: Boston 114, Miami 94
▶ Game 2: Miami 111, Boston 101
▶ Game 3: Saturday at Miami, 6 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Monday at Miami, TBA
▶ x-Wednesday, May 1: Miami at Boston, TBA
▶ x-Friday, May 3: Boston at Miami, TBA
▶ x-Sunday, May 5: Miami at Boston, TBA
Cleveland vs. Orlando
(Cavaliers lead 2-0)
▶ Game 1: Cleveland 97, Orlando 83
▶ Game 2: Cleveland 96, Orlando 86
▶ Game 3: Thursday at Orlando, 7 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Saturday at Orlando, 1 p.m.
▶ x-Tuesday, April 30: Orlando at Cleveland, TBA
▶ x-Friday, May 3: Cleveland at Orlando, TBA
▶ x-Sunday, May 5: Orlando at Cleveland, TBA
New York vs. Philadelphia
(Knicks lead 2-1)
▶ Game 1: New York 111, Philadelphia 104
▶ Game 2: New York 104, Philadelphia 101
▶ Game 3: Philadelphia 125, New York 114
▶ Game 4: Sunday at Philadelphia, 1 p.m.
▶ x-Tuesday, April 30: Philadelphia at New York, TBA
▶ x-Thursday, May 2: New York at Philadelphia, TBA
▶ x-Saturday, May 4: Philadelphia at New York, TBA
Western Conference
L.A. Clippers vs. Dallas
(Series tied 1-1)
▶ Game 1: L.A. Clippers 109, Dallas 97
▶ Game 2: Dallas 96, L.A. Clippers 93
▶ Game 3: Friday at Dallas, 8 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Sunday at Dallas, 3:30 p.m.
▶ x-Wednesday, May 1: Dallas at L.A. Clippers, TBA
▶ x-Friday, May 3: L.A. Clippers at Dallas, TBA
▶ x-Sunday, May 5: Dallas at L.A. Clippers, TBA
Denver vs. L.A. Lakers
(Nuggets lead 3-0)
▶ Game 1: Denver 114, L.A. Lakers 103
▶ Game 2: Denver 101, L.A. Lakers 99
▶ Game 3: Denver 112, L.A. Lakers 105
▶ Game 4: Saturday at L.A. Lakers, 8:30 p.m.
▶ x-Monday, April 29: L.A. Lakers at Denver, TBA
▶ x-Thursday, May 2: Denver at L.A. Lakers, TBA
▶ x-Saturday, May 4: L.A. Lakers at Denver, TBA
Oklahoma City vs. New Orleans
(Thunder lead 2-0)
▶ Game 1: Oklahoma City 94, New Orleans 92
▶ Game 2: Oklahoma City 124, New Orleans 92
▶ Game 3: Saturday at New Orleans, 3:30 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Monday at New Orleans, TBA
▶ x-Wednesday, May 1: New Orleans at Oklahoma City, TBA
▶ x-Friday, May 3: Oklahoma City at New Orleans, TBA
▶ x-Sunday, May 5: New Orleans at Oklahoma City, TBA
Minnesota vs. Phoenix
(Timberwolves lead 2-0)
▶ Game 1: Minnesota 120, Phoenix 95
▶ Game 2: Minnesota 105, Phoenix 93
▶ Game 3: Friday at Phoenix, 10:30 p.m.
▶ Game 4: Sunday at Phoenix, 9:30 p.m.
▶ x-Tuesday, April 30: Phoenix at Minnesota, TBA
▶ x-Thursday, May 2: Minnesota at Phoenix, TBA
▶ x-Saturday, May 4: Phoenix at Minnesota, TBA
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