Reigning champions Boston on the brink of elimination by New York
With New York winning game four, Boston stand at the precipice of elimination, a huge shock for the team billed as favourites for most of the season, and until last night, still installed as second favourites. Lets take a look at how the odds have impacted all four teams involved last night.
At time of publishing the futures odds for winning the 2024/25 NBA Championships look like this:
OKC: best odds 2.1 (in from 2.5 yesterday)
New York: best odds 7.5 (slashed from 23)
Minnesota: best odds 7.5 (in from 11)
Indiana: best odds 13 (in from 15)
Cleveland: best odds 13 (in from 16)
Denver: best odds 17 (in from 21)
Boston: best odds 29 (huge change from yesterday's 3.5)
Golden State: best odds 251 (out from 71)
KNICKS 121, CELTICS 113
Betting Results:
Head to Head: Knicks, odds 2.945
Line: Knicks (+5.5), odds 1.9
Total Points: Over (208) odds 1.909
Pre-game Prediction
Celtics, 66.5%
Knicks, 33.5%
Knicks lead the Eastern Conference Semifinal series 3-1
NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks had just taken control of the game with another fourth-quarter kick when Jayson Tatum fell to the court with a potentially severe right leg injury.
The specifics of Tatum’s injury are uncertain but the situation in the Eastern Conference semifinals is clear.
The Knicks need one more victory to reach the conference finals for the first time in 25 years. The Celtics need to match the biggest comeback in NBA history to extend their title reign.
Brunson had 39 points and 12 assists, and the Knicks pushed the defending champions to the brink of elimination with a 121-113 victory Monday night in Game 4.
Blown out in Game 3, the Knicks dominated the second half to become the first home team to win in this series.
“I think it was a sense of urgency, desperation, just knowing that we have a great opportunity,” Brunson said.
The Celtics will have to make the NBA’s 14th comeback from a 3-1 deficit and may have to do it without Tatum, who was carried off the court with a right leg injury with 2:58 left.
Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns each added 23 points and OG Anunoby bounced back from two poor performances by scoring 20 for the Knicks, who can win the series Wednesday night at Boston. If not, they would come back to Madison Square Garden to try to do it Friday night.
“We have to turn that page quickly and do our first job, which is win on Wednesday. That's the mindset,” Celtics veteran Al Horford said. “As a group, we just have to rally together because obviously we’ve lost our leader, the guy that gets us going.”
Tatum scored 42 points, his high in these playoffs, before he was hurt when the Celtics turned the ball over and his leg gave out as he tried to lunge forward toward the loose ball.
Nobody has come from 3-1 down since Denver did it twice in 2020 at the Walt Disney World resort. It hasn't happened when a team had to win a true road game since Cleveland rallied past Golden State in the 2016 NBA Finals.
After leading by at least 20 points in the first three games — but blowing the first two of them in Boston — the Celtics had another double-digit lead less than five minutes into this game and were up 62-51 at halftime.
Brunson then scored 18 in a desperate third quarter, when the Knicks played their starters the entire way and outscored the Celtics 37-23 to set up a thrilling final period.
“Just keep fighting,” Bridges said. “We were down way worse before.”
Tatum’s three-point play tied it for the final time at 102-all before Anunoby hit a 3-pointer and the Knicks later put it away for good with an 11-0 burst that made it 116-104.
Derrick White made six 3-pointers and scored 23 points for the Celtics. Jaylen Brown had 20.
NBA's Top 5 Plays of the Night - May 12 - NBA Playoff Semifinals
TIMBERWOLVES 117, WARRIORS 110
Betting Results:
Head to Head: Timberwolves, odds 1.512
Line: Timberwolves (-4.5), odds 1.898
Total Points: Over (200.5) odds 1.909
Pre-game Prediction
Timberwolves, 67.1%
Warriors, 32.9%
Timberwolves lead the Western Conference Semifinal series 3-1
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Anthony Edwards let it fly from 30 feet just before the halftime buzzer and his 3-pointer provided some much-needed momentum that Minnesota took right into a commanding third quarter.
Edwards also spoke up to his team at halftime and Chris Finch credited that pep talk for setting the tone ahead of an impressive second half.
“At halftime, Coach came in and said we’re playing like we already won the series pretty much, I don’t really like that," Edwards said, adding, “I told them we’ve only got two wins."
Edwards scored 30 points, Julius Randle had 31 and the Timberwolves beat the Golden State Warriors 117-110 on Monday night for a 3-1 lead in their Western Conference playoff series.
Staying close at halftime was key.
“It was huge because it felt like one of those games where we were going to struggle to find a rhythm,” Finch said. “I thought we might be down eight, 10 at halftime with the way that we had played. Fortunately, I thought his shot made it pretty much an even game and if we came out with the type of purpose that we needed to I felt we were going to be OK.”
Now, it's back home to Minneapolis for the Wolves with a chance to clinch the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series in Game 5 on Wednesday night.
The Warriors will still be without Stephen Curry, who sat out his third game in a row and is scheduled to have his strained left hamstring re-evaluated that day.
“We’re not going to Superman this thing,” Draymond Green said. “If he’s in a place where he can play, I’m sure he will.”
Edwards made consecutive 3-pointers and scored 11 total points in a decisive 17-0 Minnesota run that put the Timberwolves ahead 85-68 late in the third. They led 97-77 going into the fourth and the Warriors couldn't catch up.
Edwards — coming off a 36-point performance in a Game 3 — hit that big shot that pulled Minnesota within 60-58 at the break. And the Wolves delivered in the second half again after also trailing by two points at halftime in a 102-97 victory in Game 3 .
Jonathan Kuminga came off the bench to score 23 points and convert 11 of 12 free throws for the Warriors, following up his 30-point performance in Game 3 with another gem.
Jaden McDaniels added 10 points and 13 rebounds for Minnesota.
Buddy Hield went down briefly 4:17 before halftime after McDaniels grabbed at the guard's neck and pulled the back of his jersey. The play went to replay review as fans chanted “You can't do that!” but was deemed a common foul rather than a flagrant.
Golden State has now dropped three in a row since Curry hurt his leg early in Game 1 last Tuesday night.
The Warriors were slow getting their offense and 3-point shooting going in a 102-97 loss Saturday and it was much of the same this game.
Jimmy Butler and Green scored 14 points apiece and Hield 13.
Even without Curry, Finch's defensive game plan focused on keeping the Warriors from their dangerous 3-point flurries — and Golden State wound up 8 of 27 from deep.
