NEW YORK (AP) — Denver's Nikola Jokic was fined $50,000 and Minnesota's Julius Randle was fined $35,000 for their roles in an altercation near the end of Game 4 of the teams' playoff series, the NBA announced Sunday.
Both will be eligible to play when the series resumes Monday with Game 5 in Denver.
The incident was evidently sparked when Minnesota's Jaden McDaniels took an uncontested layup with 2.1 seconds left and the Timberwolves already leading by 14 — a play the Nuggets took exception to, given how the game had been decided.
Jokic, the NBA said, “initiated the incident by confronting and shoving” McDaniels in reaction to that play. Randle, the league said, “escalated the incident by forcefully inserting himself into the scrum and shoving Nuggets guard-forward Bruce Brown.”
Jokic and Randle were assessed technical fouls and ejected from the game.
“He scored when we’d stopped playing,” Jokic said. “You guys saw what happened.”
The teams are meeting in the postseason for the third time in the last four years. Minnesota leads the series 3-1, but will be without guard Donte DiVincenzo for the rest of the season because of a torn Achilles and will be without fellow guard Anthony Edwards indefinitely because of a knee injury. DiVincenzo and Edwards both got hurt on Saturday.
Apr 26, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks the basketball during the first half against the Portland Trail Blazers during game four of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images
The Spurs had a rollercoaster of a Game 4 in Victor Wembanyama’s return to action. San Antonio was dreadful, especially on offense, in the first half and trailed by a wide margin heading into the break before making a roaring comeback in the second half, outscoring the Trail Blazers 73 to 35 to get the 114-93 win. Now, they’ll return home up 3-1 in the series and with a chance to close it out on Tuesday.
The start of the matinee game was predictably sloppy, with both teams struggling with turnovers and the Spurs showing some poor shot selection and questionable transition defense. As the minutes passed, things stabilized, and the two squads tried to play their games. San Antonio locked down on defense with a dominant Wembanyama deterring and altering shots near the rim and the perimeter defenders being active and energetic. The Silver and Black took a small lead that would, unfortunately, disappear when the bench checked in, as they struggled massively on offense. As they tend to do, after a drought, the Blazers went on a run to regain the lead, and the poor shot selection from earlier returned when the starters did for the visitors, allowing the hosts to stay ahead by two after the opening 12 minutes.
It was a low-scoring first quarter, and unfortunately for the Spurs, their offense would only get worse in the second. Mitch Johnson tried some strange lineups in hopes of getting a spark, but nothing worked. The Blazers’ defense was suffocating in the halfcourt, with Jrue Holiday doing a great job of containing Wembanyama on the perimeter and San Antonio showing the lack of variety and imagination in its attack that hurt them occasionally in the regular season. The bench got outscored 23-5 in the first half, showing that the entire team was struggling and there would be no unexpected hero to save it. They were helped by a Spurs defense that wasn’t sharp and by some outrageous shotmaking from unlikely sources, but the Blazers should be commended for running every chance they got and moving the ball until it found the open man. At the break, they led by 17, and they deserved that buffer.
As dominant as Portland was in the first half, they tend to be inconsistent, so it didn’t feel like the game was out of reach. The Spurs just needed to remember their identity, get some stops, and hit some threes, and the hope was that they could eventually chip away at the deficit, taking advantage of their often erratic opponent. There was room for optimism, but not even the most bullish fan could have predicted how quickly San Antonio would get on track and catch up on the scoreboard. The defense, which was lackadaisical earlier, became a blur of movement, with everyone in the perimeter showing energy and aggression. Stephon Castle was everywhere on both ends, playing through foul trouble, and Victor Wembanyama sealed off the paint. Even the second unit found some scoring. Everything went well for the Silver and Black and poorly for the Blazers, who only scored 16 points in the frame.
The score was tied heading into the final period, and the concern was that the Spurs might have spent all their energy climbing their way out of a hole. The opposite seemed to happen. If anything, the Silver and Black looked energized after the fantastic third quarter and only got more dominant in the fourth. Castle was finding Wembanyama for easy buckets inside, and when the young guard had to take a break, De’Aaron Fox took over the game. It didn’t hurt that the Blazers went through one of their turnover-filled droughts, but San Antonio’s defense was partly responsible for their poor play on that end. A close win felt possible even at the worst points, but it would have been hard to predict the Spurs running away with it, dropping 40 in the fourth, one shy of the amount of points they had in the entire first half. It was a terrific comeback that showcased how high San Antonio’s ceiling really is.
Game notes
Wembanyama finished with an insane stat line in his return. He looked like himself on defense throughout and came alive on offense when he got to play off the ball more as a finisher instead of trying to create against smaller defenders with a lower center of gravity. Fantastic return for Wemby.
Dylan Harper, the hero of Game 3, didn’t have it going on Sunday, but the two other guards did. Stephon Castle was limited by foul trouble but still managed to get 16 points and eight assists in 27 minutes while playing elite defense for stretches. De’Aaron Fox, seeing that the team needed him to look for his shot more aggressively, dropped 28 points in 17 shots and played almost 40 minutes, taking over when needed.
It wasn’t just Harper who struggled off the bench. Luke Kornet and Carter Bryant, who were hugely important in Game 3, were not effective on Sunday. Harrison Barnes did well, but in a small role. And Keldon Johnson once again scored in single digits. The second unit wasn’t a major factor in the win.
One possible reason for the struggles of some role players, apart from facing a deep opponent, might be due to experimentation by Mitch Johnson. Some of it has been forced by Wembanyama’s absence, but Mitch tried some strange lineups in the first half that simply didn’t work. He stuck with a more traditional rotation in the second half, and everyone seemed to feel more comfortable.
After the Scoot Henderson and Dylan Harper verbal battle in Game 3, things got chippy between Stephon Castle and Deni Avdija. Castle put the ball in Avdija’s chest after scoring on him, the Blazers’ forward shoved him, Castle shoved him back, and then the two exchanged some heated words after being separated. The officials went with double technicals, and things didn’t escalate, but it’s clear that familiarity is breeding contempt between the two teams.
Play of the game
Luke Kornet, channeling his inner Wemby with the dunk of the inbounds pass.
In Game 3, with Victor Wembanyama in street clothes recovering from a concussion, Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle led a comeback from 15 down in the third quarter to win comfortably.
Sunday in Game 4, the Spurs trailed by as many as 19, and the deficit was 17 at the half. Portland was playing with urgency, and their fans were fired up and loud.
But this time, San Antonio had Wembanyama. He had 18 points and, more importantly, five blocked shots in the second half alone. The Spurs cranked up their defense after halftime, holding the Trail Blazers to 33.3% shooting in the final 24 minutes, including 3-of-15 from 3-point range. Meanwhile, De'Aaron Fox got rolling and scored 18 on his own after the break. The Spurs went on 62-23 run over 20 minutes of Game 4.
The result was a 114-93 Spurs win, giving them a commanding 3-1 lead heading back to San Antonio for Game 5 on Tuesday.
In his return, Wembanyama scored 27 points with 11 rebounds and seven blocks — he is the youngest player ever, and only the 10th, to have that stat line in a playoff game — and he was a +28 on the night.
In his walkoff interview after the win, Wembanyama talked to ESPN's Malika Andrews about going through the concussion protocol.
"The Spurs have done an amazing job," Wemby said. "I'm very unhappy about the way the protocol has been handled by other parties. But my staff has been amazing. I've been really healthy starting on day one after injury. The injury was weird, though. It was funny."
Portland came out Sunday with the urgency of a team that knows it needed a win — its defense and energy were way up. Portland led by two after one quarter because they took advantage of the Spurs' 37.5% shooting and got out and ran, scoring 11 fast-break points. Shaedon Sharpe came in off the bench firing and has six points as the Trail Blazers won the bench scoring in the first quarter 14-0.
However, it was the second and third quarters that told the story of this game.
In the second quarter, San Antonio scored just 18 points on 7-of-22 shooting (31.8%), and they were 2-of-8 from beyond the arc. The Spurs were just 5-of-12 in the paint in that quarter against a pressure defense from Portland. By comparison, the Trail Blazers had a 33-point second quarter on 57.9% shooting (5-of-8 from 3), which included a 13-0 run at one point. The result was a 17-point lead for Portland at the half.
The third quarter was the opposite. San Antonio scored 33 points on 56.5% shooting, including 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. Portland, on the other hand, scored 16 points on 7-of-24 shooting (29.2%). The Spurs started the third quarter on a 13-0 run with better defensive effort. Eight minutes into the third quarter, the Spurs had retaken the lead. It was tied, 74-74, after three quarters.
That's when Fox and Wembanyama kept pouring it on.
Deni Avdija led the Trail Blazers with 26 points, and even got into a little scrap with Stephon Castle in the fourth quarter. Jrue Holiday was the best Trail Blazer on the floor with 20 points and impressive defense. And Jerami Grant added 17 points off the bench.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 26: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers warms up before game four of the Eastern Conference first round playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Xfinity Mobile Arena on April 26, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid will make his series debut in Game 4 against the 76ers, after previously being listed as doubtful. Embiid missed the first three games of the series as he continues to recover from an emergency appendectomy surgery on April 9th.
Embiid was upgraded to questionable and went through his full warm-up. Philadelphia made him available about 30 minutes before tip-off.
Embiid will take some of the minutes away from Adem Bona, who has been starting this series, and Andre Drummond, who has been playing the majority of backup big minutes.
Joel Embiid will make his debut in Game 4
Embiid averaged 26.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game this season, while shooting 48.9% from the field and and 33.3% from three.
Nick Nurse said pregame he did not know whether Embiid would be on a minutes restriction if he did become available.
Pregame, Joe Mazzulla declined to get into how different the Celtics’ game plan would be if Embiid did play, but Neemias Queta did say on Saturday that Philadelphia would get a boost if the big man made his return.
“One of the best players the last couple of years, so it can only be better than them when he’s out there helping,” said Neemias Queta. “I’m not really worried about that yet, nothing confirmed about it yet. But until then, we’re worried about what’s confirmed. But he’s a hell of a player, and he can make them a lot better. We’ll embrace the challenge if he comes.”
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 26: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots a three point basket during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers during Round 1 Game 4 of the 2026 Playoffs on April 26, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The San Antonio Spurs found themselves down by over 15 points for the second consecutive game. Much like they did in Game Three, the Spurs exploded in the second half, outscoring the Trail Blazers 73-35 after halftime to win Game Four 114-93. It was the largest playoff win by a team trailing by 15+ at halftime.
San Antonio was propelled by its All-Stars, De’Aaron Fox and Victor Wembanyama. Fox led all scorers with 28 points on an efficient 11-17 shooting from the field, while adding in 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal. Wembanyama was a major difference maker on the defensive end, keeping Portland from getting good looks in the paint. In his first game back after clearing concussion protocol, Wembanyama had 27 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, and 7 blocks.
Portland made things tough in the first half, especially in the second quarter, when they shot 58% to build a 19-point lead. Deni Advija led the Trail Blazers with 26 points on 8-14 shooting.
The Spurs have taken a 3-1 lead in the series. They’ll head back to San Antonio for Game Five on Tuesday, where they will look to advance to the Western Conference Semi-Finals.
Observations
Mitch Johnson should get a lot of credit for the Spurs’ turnaround. He used familiar lineups and strategies in the second half to pull ahead. He encouraged the team to pick up the pace offensively, which led to easy baskets while the Blazers struggled to get back. He relied on his guards and veteran experience to bring the team back. Harrison Barnes played more, Carter Bryant sat, and used Luke Kornet only in brief stints to give Wembanyama a short break.
Stephon Castle picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter. Johnson trusted him to play in foul trouble, and the gamble worked out. Castle was everywhere in the third quarter and made a big impact in his second-half minutes. He didn’t collect his 5th and final foul until the fourth quarter. Castle had 16 points and 8 assists in the win.
Wembanyama’s defense was huge in the second half. San Antonio outscored Portland 52-38 on Sunday. When they couldn’t get clean looks inside, they were forced to shoot contested threes. The Trail Blazers shot 10-31 (32%) from three.
The Spurs won the turnover battle, 18-13. They scored 29 points off turnovers, while Portland scored 18.
The Blazers battle back at the end of the fourth quarter, cutting a 20-point lead down to 12 points late. That run was ignited by some disruptive play by former Spur Sidy Cissoko.
The game was effectively over when Castle got a technical foul for putting the ball in Avdija’s chest after an and-1 layup. Those two have been physically competing all series long. That felt like a boiling-over point from Castle. It was probably an immature moment from the second-year man, but hey, those are the emotions of playoff basketball.
Scoot Henderson went scoreless on 0-7 shooting in his 27 minutes. Henderson has been a major difference maker in the first three games, but had a tough one on Sunday.
There were Go Spurs Go chants echoing in the Moda Center in the final minutes of the game.
It’s bad enough losing one playoff game in a series by 32 or more points. The 76ers on Sunday night lost for the second time in eight days by 32 or more points.
Until this week, the 76ers had lost only six playoff games in franchise history by 32 points. Now they’ve done it twice in the same series.
Yikes.
Let’s take a look at a handful of utterly demoralizing stats off the 76ers’ 128-96 loss to the Celtics in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference First-Round series, which the Celtics now lead three games to one. And thanks to the Stathead database for helping provide some of this insanity.
ONE OF THEIR WORST PLAYOFF LOSSES EVER: The 32-point loss is the Sixers’ 7th-largest ever in a playoff game, the 2nd-largest ever at home and their most lopsided home loss in 56 years. The only worse home loss in 76ers postseason history was a 156-120 loss to the Bucks in Game 3 of their 1970 Eastern Division Semifinal series at the Spectrum. It’s also their second 32-point loss in the series after losing Game 1 123-91. The 76ers are the seventh team in NBA history to lose two games in the same postseason series by 32 or more points.
TOUGH NIGHTS FOR V.J. AND KELLY: After shooting 0-for-7 from 3 in Game 3, V.J. Edgecombe shot 0-for-4 in Game 4. He’s only the second 76er to take 11 or more 3’s in a two-game span in the postseason and miss them all. In 2001, Allen Iverson shot 0-for-8 vs. the Bucks in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals series at the First Union Center and four nights later he was 0-for-5 in Game 4. (He didn’t play in Game 3). Meanwhile, Kelly Oubre shot 0-for-6 the 3rd-most misses ever by a Sixer without a basket in a playoff game. Robert Covington had an 0-for-8 against the Celtics in 2018 and Georges Niang was 0-for-7 at Miami in 2022.
OUT OF IT EARLY: After trailing the Celtics by 15 after the first quarter in Game 1, the 76ers trailed by 16 Sunday night after one quarter. Not only is this the first playoff series in 76ers history in which they’ve trailed more than once by 15 or more points after the first quarter it’s the first time it’s happened twice in the same postseason. In fact, before Game 1 the 76ers had only trailed by 15 after the first quarter six times in 488 all-time playoff games. They’ve now done it twice in four games. Similarly, the 76ers trailed by 18 at halftime Sunday night after trailing by 18 in Game 1. Those are tied for the 9th-largest halftime deficits in 76ers postseason history. And this is the first series in franchise history in which they’ve trailed twice by 18 or more points. The 18-point halftime deficit is 3rd-largest at home in the postseason behind a 36-point deficit vs. the Bucks in that Game 3 of their 1970 Eastern Division Semifinal series at the Spectrum and a 20-point deficit in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal vs. the Hawks at Wells Fargo in 2021.
HOW DO YOU SCORE 38 POINT IN A HALF? The 76ers’ 38 points in the first half were their fewest in a postseason first half in 14 years, since they trailed the Celtics 41-33 at halftime of an 85-75 loss in Game 7 of the 2012 Eastern Conference Semifinals at TD Garden. The last five times they’ve scored fewer than 40 points in a postseason first half have all been vs. the Celtics.
MOST 3’S EVER VS. 76ERS: The Celtics made 24 3-pointers, the most ever against the Sixers in a postseason game. The previous high was 20 three times, including by the Celtics in Game 2. The 76ers have allowed 20 or more 3-pointers three times in a home game, including twice in the last three days. The Hawks had 20 in Philly in 2021. The 24 3’s are tied for 3rd-most in NBA history. The Cavs made 25 vs. the Hawks in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series in 2016 and the Bucks made 25 in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference First-Round game in 2023. The Celtics shot 45 percent from 3, highest in NBA history by a team attempting at least 50 3’s. The previous high was the Rockets’ 44 percent on 22-for-50 in a win over the Spurs in Game 1 of their 2017 Western Conference Semifinal Round series.
HE DIDN’T EVEN START: Payton Pritchard’s 32 points tied the most ever scored in a playoff game against the 76ers by a player who came off the bench. In 1981, in Game 1 of the Bucks-76ers Eastern Conference Semifinal game, Junior Bridgeman scored 32 off the bench.
The Los Angeles Lakers will try to sweep the Houston Rockets in their first-round playoff series. The Lakers will advance to the second round with one more victory. Kevin Durant will be sidelined in Game 4 for the Rockets — the third game he has missed in the series.
How to watch Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets
TORONTO, CANADA - APRIL 26: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers drives to the basket during the game against the Toronto Raptors during Round One Game Four of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on April 26, 2026 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Mark Blinch/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The stats in the table below are taken from Cleaning the Glass. As a note, the percentiles are in comparison to other playoff games, which influences the sample size.
Offensive Rating
Effective Field Goal Percentage
Offensive Turnover Percentage
Offensive Rebounding Percentage
Free Throw Rate
Cavs
91.8 offensive rating, 3rd percentile
42.5%, 4th percentile
18.6%, 16th percentile
30.5%, 59th percentile
17.2, 33rd percentile
Raptors
95.9, 5th percentile
34%, 0th percentile
12.4%, 70th percentile
40%, 92nd percentile
27.8, 82nd percentile
Now, let’s dive into the numbers.
The Raptors had the lowest field-goal percentage (32%) from a postseason game winner since 1970, credit to Justin Russo. Toronto went just 31-97 from the field.
If you go before the three-point era, this was the fourth-lowest field-goal percentage from a team that won a playoff game, credit to Justin Thomas.
Jakob Poeltl is the only Raptor who had more makes than misses, going 4-7 from the field.
Toronto went just 4-30 from three (13.3%). Unsustainably hot outside shooting carried the Raptors to the Game 3 victory. Their regression to the mean was harsh as they couldn’t buy a basket from deep.
The Raptors had 10 more shot attempts than the Cavs. This is due to Cleveland losing the turnover and offensive rebounding battle. In a game where neither team could establish an offensive rhythm, the one that had more chances wound up the winner.
Toronto had 21 offensive rebounds, grabbing 40% of their misses (92nd percentile). This led to the Raptors outscoring Cleveland 19-7 on second-chance points.
Cleveland turned it over 18 times compared to Toronto’s 12. The Raptors won the points-off-turnovers battle 17-7.
The Cavs shot an abysmal 15-23 from the line (65.2%). On a day they couldn’t generate any offense, they also couldn’t convert the freebies that they got. Jarrett Allen struggled most, going 1-4.
James Harden turned it over seven times. This was the second time in as many games he’s had more turnovers than field goals (six).
Donovan Mitchell scored 20 or fewer points for the second game in a row. He finished with 20 points on 6-24 shooting (25%). In the regular season, the Cavs were 7-11 when he played and scored 21 or fewer points and 25-9 when he scored 30 or more. In the playoffs, the Cavs won both games he’s scored at least 30 and have lost both games he’s registered fewer than 21.
Mitchell went 0-4 in shots at the rim and 2-10 in shots in the paint overall.
Only 28% of the Cavs’ shots came at the rim (33rd percentile). Getting to the basket is still the most efficient way to score. The Raptors have kept Cleveland from getting there. The Cavs went just 13-22 (59%) on shots in the restricted area.
Cleveland registered just an 80 half-court offensive rating (9th percentile). The Cavs were outstanding in the half-court since the Harden trade in the regular season. That didn’t carry over to Game 4 as they couldn’t generate any consistent offense with their stagnant sets.
The Cavs were outscored 17-11 in the final five minutes. The Cavs went just 2-10 from the field with a turnover in that span. Sam Merrill accounted for both field goals.
Collin Murray-Boyles outscored Cleveland’s front-court 15 to 11, credit to NBACentral. The Cavs are paying $66.3 million for their starting front-court duo. Murray-Boyles is making 10% of that.
Allen, with five points, failed to register double-digit points for the seventh time in 22 playoff games with the Cavs. Allen’s aggression and activity have consistently fallen off in the postseason. He came into this game averaging 12.8 points per playoff game with the Cavs after averaging 14.8 across six regular seasons with the team.
Evan Mobley, with eight points, failed to register double-digit scoring in a playoff game for the fifth time in his career.
The Cavs won the 28 minutes Dean Wade was on the court by 11 and lost the 20 he sat by 16. Wade wasn’t great offensively in this game, but he was still a net positive because of his defense on Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram. The fact that the Cavs have struggled in the minutes without him isn’t surprising because they have no one capable of guarding Toronto’s wings. The lack of playable wings continues to hurt the Cavs in the playoffs.
The Cavs’ bench outscored the Raptors’ 32-19. Cleveland’s role players weren’t necessarily great, but they weren’t the reason the Cavs lost this one. The blame falls on the stars. Merrill (14 points), Jaylon Tyson (nine points), and Dennis Schroder (eight points) provided some scoring for that group.
The Cavs are now 3-10 on the road in the playoffs in the Mitchell era. Two of those wins came against the Miami Heat in the first round last season. They’re now 1-10 on the road against playoff teams that finished the regular season over .500.
TORONTO (AP) — Scottie Barnes hit the go-ahead free throws in the final minute and scored 23 points, Brandon Ingram also added 23 points and the Toronto Raptors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 93-89 on Sunday, tying the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at two games apiece.
The best-of-seven series shifts to Cleveland for Game 5 on Wednesday.
RJ Barrett scored 18 points and Collin Murray-Boyles had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors, who won despite shooting 4 for 30 from 3-point range.
Barnes added nine rebounds and six assists.
Donovan Mitchell scored 12 of his 20 in the fourth quarter and James Harden added 19, but the Cavaliers couldn’t overcome an 18-turnover performance.
Mitchell missed two shots in the final 25 seconds, including a 3-pointer that would have tied the game. He finished 6 for 24 overall and made 4 of 12 shots from long range.
Sam Merrill scored 14 points and Jarrett Allen had 15 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were outscored 10-2 in the final 1:54 of the fourth.
With NBA commissioner Adam Silver in attendance, both teams struggled from 3-point range. Cleveland finished 10 for 40 from distance, including 5 of 10 in the fourth.
SPURS 114, TRAIL BLAZERS 03
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Victor Wembanyama had 27 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocks in his return from a concussion, and San Antonio took a 3-1 lead in their first-round series against Portland Trail with a victory.
De’Aaron Fox added 28 points for the Spurs, who will return home to San Antonio for Game 5 on Tuesday night.
The Spurs trailed the Blazers by 17 points at the half, but the game was knotted at 74 going into the fourth quarter. Fox and Keldon Johnson hit back-to-back 3-pointer to put the Spurs up 90-77 with 7:14 left.
Johnson’s dunk with 4:31 left made it 101-81 for San Antonio and all but sealed the win.
Deni Avdija led the Trail Blazers with 26 points. There was tense moment with 2:13 left when Avdija and Stephon Castle exchanged shoves. They were given offsetting technical fouls.
UPDATE: Added a prediction for who will win tonight.
Thunder vs Suns prediction
Who will win Thunder vs Suns Game 4?
Thunder: Oklahoma City will be tested at some point this postseason, but it was never going to come in this first-round series against Phoenix.
We do not need to pretend otherwise. A 4-0 sweep always felt like the most likely outcome.
Thunder vs Suns best bet: Dillon Brooks Over 18.5 points (-105)
While the Oklahoma City Thunder can probably start crafting their game plan for the Los Angeles Lakers, the Phoenix Suns should at least go down swinging.
Consider that a compliment.
Phoenix has been a delightful surprise this season. There is no shame in the No. 8 seed getting swept by the defending champions.
However, there would be shame in not playing through the whistle.
If anyone can promise that effort until the final whistle — something the Denver Nuggets could clearly learn from — it is Dillon Brooks. The Brooks-related headline has been that he has scored 30+ points in each of his last two games, averaging 27 points per game in this series.
The actual stat to note is that he has taken at least 21 shots in each game of the series. Meanwhile, Devin Booker has not taken more than 17 shots in a game. Brooks has taken a total of 19 more shots than the Suns’ cornerstone has, a reality created intentionally by the Thunder.
No matter how much he might want to chuck, Booker simply doesn’t have those openings. Oklahoma City is quite content to let him heave.
Brooks’s volume has a competitive ceiling, while a fully-engaged Booker could tilt any game against any opponent. Expect that defensive blueprint to indulge Brooks one more time before his offseason commences.
Thunder vs Suns same-game parlay
Booker dished out seven assists in Game 3 while taking only 16 shots. When one of the best pure scorers in the NBA goes just 6-for-16 from the field, it’s a clear reflection of the opposing defensive intention.
The five-time All-Star should lean even further into his playmaking; it may be frustrating to acquiesce to Oklahoma City’s defensive approach, but generating better looks for the Phoenix offense as a whole should take priority.
Doing so should give the Suns one last gasp before the beach nears.
Thunder vs Suns SGP
Dillon Brooks Over 18.5 points
Devin Booker Over 5.5 assists
Suns 1H +6
Our "from downtown" SGP: 1, 2, 3, Cancun!
Consider this to be the tune of, “1, 2, 3 — slight pause — Cancun!”
In front of a home crowd with three shooters in the backcourt, the Suns should start Game 3 competitively... but when reality becomes inevitable, Phoenix’s focus and drive will wander.
Margaritas await.
Thunder vs Suns SGP
Dillon Brooks Over 18.5 points
Suns 1H +6
Thunder -10.5
Thunder vs Suns odds for Game 4
Spread: Thunder -10.5 (-110) | Suns +10.5 (-110)
Moneyline: Thunder -500 | Suns +375
Over/Under: Over 213.5 (-110) | Under 213.5 (-110)
Thunder vs Suns betting trend to know
Across the last three years, Oklahoma City is 7-4 ATS in the first round. Find more NBA betting trends for Thunder vs. Suns.
How to watch Thunder vs Suns Game 4
Location
Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, AZ
Date
Monday, April 27, 2026
Tip-off
9:30 p.m. ET
TV
Peacock
Thunder vs Suns latest injuries
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TORONTO, CANADA - APRIL 26: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers dribbles the ball during the game against the Toronto Raptors on April 26, 2026 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Cleveland Cavaliers dropped their second straight game to the Toronto Raptors. The series is now tied 2-2, heading back to Cleveland.
All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.
Donovan Mitchell
20 points, 3 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 turnovers
We’ve seen the worst of Mitchell across the last two games. An overliance on jumpers. Not having the size to break free from Scottie Barnes in the halfcourt. And, most of all, being an option for the Raptors to attack offensively.
Mitchell finished the game shooting 6-24.
The Cavs won’t win another game this series if Mitchell doesn’t adjust. He’s been at the core of all their problems, failing to score efficiently or handle the ball with care.
Harden had 6 turnovers in his first 14 minutes tonight. That’s what throwing a behind-the-back pass when you’re being double-teamed in the corner will do.
The decision-making on display was alarming. For a player who previously solved every problem thrown at him, it felt like Harden was blindfolded and throwing darts at a board in Toronto.
He eventually stabilized himself and had a strong second half. But I think more than enough damage was done in the first half to justify this grade.
Grade: D-
Evan Mobley
8 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
We’ve all agreed that Mobley will not lead this team in scoring, nor will he be the focal point of the offense. Yet, we all understand that if the Cavs want to go deep into the postseason — Mobely at least has to be capable of raising their floor on nights where the backcourt is struggling.
The grade speaks for itself.
Grade: F
Jarrett Allen
3 points, 15 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Allen is the only member of the core four who showed enough effort to fight defensively. His 15 rebounds and team-high plus/minus of +15 are a product of that.
Still, this was far from a good game. Allen went 1-5 from the floor and 1-4 from the free-throw line. The Cavs needed someone to elevate their offense by beating mismatches and finding easy opportunities. Allen didn’t come through.
Grade: D-
Dean Wade
7 points, 5 rebounds
Wade’s defensive impact is starting to be severely blunted by his role on offense. He doesn’t care to shoot the ball, so Toronto doesn’t care to defend him. This has made it easier for the Raptors to swarm the guards and pack the paint. The biggest problem is that the Cavs don’t have enough size on the wing to take Wade out of the rotation.
Grade: D
Max Strus
1 point, 7 rebounds
The Cavs sorely needed an offensive punch from Strus. He went 0-5 from the floor. A few three-pointers would have gone a long way to unsticking the offense.
Grade: D-
Keon Ellis
0 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Ellis has still only made one field goal in this series. He played just 4 minutes tonight.
Grade: F
Jaylon Tyson
9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 turnovers
It felt like Tyson was making the wrong reads tonight. He drove a few closeouts that probably should have been catch-and-shoot three-point attempts. He also turned it over in the short-roll, throwing a predictable pass to the dunker’s spot that was picked off.
All that said, the Cavs shouldn’t be needing Tyson to produce at this level to keep the offense running.
Grade: C-
Sam Merrill
14 points
Merrill hasn’t performed great so far in the postseason. But he did help to unjam the Cavaliers’ offense in the second half.
His frenetic off-ball movement and complete lack of fear with the ball in his hands go a long way. The Raptors can’t ignore him the same way they ignored Wade, and that put Toronto into motion defensively. That led to Merrill being arguably the most impactful offensive player for Cleveland.
Schroder played the best two minutes of anyone on the roster tonight. So, there’s that.
He scored 8 points in rapid succession, taking Jakob Poeltl off the dribble and looking like the only player who cared about running a proper offense. That didn’t last for too long.
Joel Embiid’s presence alone did not pull the Sixers even in their first-round playoff series with the Celtics.
The Sixers suffered a blowout Game 4 loss Sunday night in Embiid’s first action since undergoing an appendectomy on April 9. They fell to a 128-96 defeat at Xfinity Mobile Arena and now trail 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.
Embiid had 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in 34 minutes.
Tyrese Maxey posted 22 points and six assists. Paul George scored 16 points.
Payton Pritchard torched the Sixers, scoring a playoff career-high 32 points. Jayson Tatum had 30 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Jaylen Brown added 20 points and seven rebounds.
Game 5 will be Tuesday night in Boston. Here are observations on the Sixers’ 32-point Game 4 loss:
Embiid not a million miles from his norm
Embiid drew two quick fouls on Neemias Queta. The Boston big man was whistled for his second personal on a swift Embiid drive from the right wing.
Embiid knocked down all four of his free throws off of Queta’s fouls. He also scored early on a fast-break dunk and a powerful post-up layup against Nikola Vucevic. Embiid didn’t look reluctant to invite contact, run the floor or do anything that’s normally part of his game. While he missed mid-range jumpers that he’s accustomed to hitting and showed other signs of rust here and there, he was relatively sharp out of the gates.
Until a VJ Edgecombe mid-range jumper with 5:24 left in the first quarter, no Sixer scored besides Embiid. Both sides had cold jump shooting starts. The Sixers and Celtics each missed their first four three-point tries.
Embiid subbed out and Andre Drummond replaced him with 5:11 to go in the first. However, Embiid was back in soon. He re-entered with 2:49 left after a subpar Drummond stint that included two fouls.
Drummond exited early in the second quarter after appearing to hurt his right hip, but he was able to return in the third.
Boston’s bench dominant in first half
The Celtics made an unsurprising run in the night’s first Embiid-less minutes. Pritchard nailed two three-pointers. Drummond fouled Tatum on a shot beyond the arc.
Pritchard had a massive first quarter, tallying 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting. In Game 3, the Celtics’ bench outscored the Sixers’ by 21 points. Boston had the first 27 second-unit points Sunday.
Pritchard ended the quarter with an exclamation point, sinking a long-range, one-legged runner to put the Celtics up 34-18.
Offensive rebounds remained another giant problem in the first quarter for the Sixers, who struggled to close out good defensive possessions and were caught ball watching on several occasions. The Celtics grabbed six offensive boards in the first quarter and the Sixers had zero.
The start of a new quarter didn’t snap the Sixers into a higher gear. Pritchard swished a three over Quentin Grimes and Sixers head coach Nick Nurse called timeout with his team trailing by 21 points.
Maxey was quiet in the first half, scoring seven points on 2-for-3 shooting. He’s faced strong defense in this series from Derrick White, Jordan Walsh and the Celtics, but Maxey was too deferential to teammates at times in the first half. His backcourt mate dealt with early foul trouble and Edgecombe posted just two points over the first two quarters.
As for the Celtics’ stars, Tatum and Brown combined to shoot 4 for 17 from the field in the first half and were defended effectively by Kelly Oubre Jr. and George. The Celtics still held an 18-point lead at halftime.
Celtics leave no doubt
Maxey canned a three to open the scoring in the third quarter.
The Celtics kept snuffing out any hints of a Sixers push, though. Edgecombe stole the ball and threw it ahead to Maxey, but White sprinted back and blocked his layup. Brown drained a fadeaway, and-one jumper on George. Tatum hit a three to extend Boston’s lead to 69-43.
Embiid eventually settled into a nice shooting rhythm starting around the midpoint of the third quarter. He wound up going 9 for 21 from the floor and 1 for 6 from three-point territory.
Boston tossed up threes all night, including during a brief third-quarter stretch when the Sixers turned to zone defense. The Celtics attempted 23 more threes than the Sixers (53-30) and made 15 more (24-9).
The Sixers could never contain Pritchard, who did even more damage late in the third quarter. Edgecombe fouled him with 0.9 seconds left in the third and the 2024-25 Sixth Man of the Year made both his foul shots. Before Sunday, Pritchard had played in 72 career postseason games and his scoring high was 23 points.
The Sixers were a thoroughly deflated, defeated team in the fourth quarter. A Tatum four-point play stretched the Celtics’ advantage to 30 points.
That’s two blowout losses now for the Sixers in the series. They were great in Game 2 and close in Game 3, but there’s no question the Celtics have been the better, deeper squad and deserve to be up 3-1. As they did in Game 2, the Sixers will need a serious bounce-back performance to keep their season ticking.
HOUSTON — To Lakers coach JJ Redick, what mattered most about Bronny James’ first career NBA playoff points, a pull-up 3-pointer to give the Lakers a 50-40 lead midway through the second quarter of their Game 3 victory over the Rockets, wasn’t that James made the shot.
It was the fact that after all the nerves James experienced entering the first-round playoff series, he had the confidence to take the shot in the first place.
The Lakers’ Bronny James has continued to grow during the postseason. NBAE via Getty Images
“Without Luka [Doncic and Austin Reaves], we don’t have the luxury of turning down shots created and advantages created,” Redick said. “He did a nice job offensively in that first stretch. Certainly making shots gives you confidence, but I thought he was great defensively as well in that stretch and really has just improved a lot even in this season from when he was getting some rotation minutes earlier in the year to when he’s gotten rotation minutes late in the season.”
James, the younger son of Lakers star LeBron James who was the No. 55 pick in the 2024 draft, got an up-close view of the playoffs last season.
But having played just four minutes across two games during the Lakers’ five-game first-round playoff loss to the Timberwolves last spring, he didn’t get a true sense of what playing in the playoffs feels like.
That changed this season, with the younger James being in the Lakers’ rotation during the postseason entering Sunday’s Game 4 at Toyota Center.
“It’s the best feeling in the world,” Bronny said. “I mean, in college I didn’t get to play in March, so that’s something that’s gonna irk me for the rest of my life. And got to do it in the playoffs, and that’s just the best feeling.”
Bronny admitted to being nervous before his first playoff game.
“I definitely think I’ve gained a little more confidence and relaxed myself … Looking forward to down the road, me getting more minutes and stuff like that. I feel like just me getting playoff time, second stints and stuff like that is just gonna help more and more.”
Bronny James (9) and his dad, LeBron, made NBA history in Game 3 against the host Rockets. AP
James’ first playing stint resulted not only in his first playoff points but also his second.
“I’m not sure when was the last time I got an oop from him,” Bronny said. “Probably in training camp last year, maybe this year. But it was just one of those things; he saw me and saw that I was making eye contact with him, so he threw it up and I can always go get it.”
Bronny’s first stint impressed the Lakers’ coaching staff so much that he played a second stint for the first time during the playoffs against the Rockets in Game 3 after being limited to one stint in Game 1 and Game 2.
“It just says a lot about me and JJ’s relationship, the other coaches in the coaching staff,” Bronny said. “They believe in me. And I appreciate that. And I’m going to take advantage of every minute I get.”
Bronny got regular playing time to close the regular season while Marcus Smart was sidelined for nine games because of an ankle injury before being cemented in the rotation when Doncic (hamstring) and Reaves (oblique) were sidelined to close the regular season.
“He has just gotten a lot better defensively,” Redick said. “His physicality’s been really good. His execution’s been really good and excited for him and just we got to continue to build him up. He’s obviously really important right now.”
TORONTO, CANADA - APRIL 26: Scottie Barnes #4 of the Toronto Raptors drives against Jaylon Tyson #20 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during first half of Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on April 26, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After the electric atmosphere of the Toronto Raptors game three win, hopes were high going into Sunday’s game four that the Raptors could even out their series against the Cavaliers. While Thursday’s game was a must-win to keep Toronto alive in this series, Sunday was their last chance to get a win in a non-elimination game scenario, and just as important to their longevity in this series.
After truly one of the weirdest games of basketball, the Raptors were able to edge out the Cavaliers in the final minutes to bring the series to 2-2. With a final score of 93-89, it was a gritty, gruelling rock fight that often got physical and relied heavily on defense, rebounding, and taking advantage of every single possession.
Raptors had a 34.0 eFG% in the win today, the lowest by a team in a playoff win since 1978. (Seattle on Apr 23).
The 1 pm start made this game a slog to start for both teams. A low-scoring first quarter led to a defensive battle from both teams, and the Raptors’ being active on the glass helped mitigate their lack of shot-making. They started to warm up as the second quarter dwindled, and Ingram’s buzzer-beater at halftime was the momentum they needed to go into the break up two points over the Cavs.
The real action came in the fourth quarter, though. In a game that kept flipping leads, every posession counted for both teams. Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles came up huge for the Raptors on most posessions — getting deflections, rebounds, and disrupting the Cavaliers offence enough that they started making messy decisions and fouls.
It also helped that the crowd at Scotiabank Arena was absolutely electric, despite the early start time. That noise and energy from the fans helped the Raptors find it in them to get this win.
Scottie Barnes on the effect the fans at ScotiaBank Arena have on the late-game situations and getting the win in those moments:
“It was great hearing the crowd! The energy was amazing. I think it just carries on to us.”
One play in particular had Jamal Shead diving for the basketball to cause an 8 second violation on James Harden, a huge turning point for the game. In the final minutes, the Raptors ability to get stops and ensure that Cleveland couldn’t get ahead of them at the last second showed incredible poise in the moment. Barnes’s six clutch free throws were the deciding factor as Cleveland started fouling late in the game, and thr crowd propelled them to the end.
Ingram had a better game as well, and despite shooting 6-for-23 scored 23 points on the night. To be fair, everyone had a terrible shooting night — the Raptors shot 32% from the field while the Cavaliers shot 36.8% from the field. It was his defence that impacted the game the most, and he looked less discombobulated on the court than he has all series long. Hopefully the shot selection and accuracy improves more in the next game, but he showed up enough to help them get the win.
Honestly, that's one of the best wins the Raptors had since the Championship. Nobody would've blamed them if they caved when they lost their lead in the 4th, and they clamped down and kicked ass. Just incredible that this series is 2-2, and the Raptors deserve every bit of it.
With the series now tied at 2 games per piece, we head back to Cleveland for game 5 on Wednesday. It will not be an elimination game, which relieves the pressure a bit for the Raptors, but it will still be tough. The first two games in Cleveland were hard, and the crowd will only be more intense as the series gets more competitive. Regardless of the result of Wednesday’s game, the series will return to Toronto for game 6 on Friday night.
