Category: Sports News

A hot shooting night and swarming second-half defense helped guide the Knicks to a 108-105 overtime victory against the Boston Celtics.

Monday night’s win was progress for the Knicks, who dropped all four games to the Celtics in the regular season. Game 1 highlighted some ways that the Knicks can attack Boston and further a series lead in Game 2.

Top of the mind from the series opener is Boston’s record-breaking night. The Celtics went 15-for-60 (25 percent) from beyond the arc. The 60 three-point attempts and 45 misses were both NBA playoff records. That doesn’t seem like something that the Knicks can rely on happening again. But still, New York’s defenders showed they could get out and contest shooters.

The second half was a masterclass on defense for the three-headed monster of OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart. The trio of wings flew all over the floor, defending their one-on-one matchups, helping and recovering, and being a general nuisance to Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

All three players covered a considerable amount of ground and propped up two shaky defenders in Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson. Expect Boston to emphasize attacking the paint more. The Celtics settled at times in the opener, and 60 threes in a playoff game is an extreme. The Knicks will have to be prepared to defend the paint.

For the Knicks to have a chance in this series, they need to continue to have an aggressive mindset on the defensive end. Defensive stops and forced turnovers are paramount to creating transition opportunities, which will make it easier to score. In the first half, the Knicks had zero fastbreak points. They had 10 fastbreak points in the second half.

Getting out in transition and finding easier looks will help the Knicks generate better looks. New York hasn’t been as effective in the halfcourt. It was also hot from three, making two more treys than Boston, but attempting 23 fewer three-pointers.

Brunson and Anunoby led the way for the Knicks on offense with 29 points apiece. Brunson found a groove in the third and fourth quarters, scoring 20 points. He had some success going against Celtics veteran Al Horford on switches.

On the margins

Kristaps Porzingis’ health will be important going forward. The former Knick was limited to just 13 minutes due to an illness. He is listed as probable for Game 2.

Miles McBride was bound to recover. After a disastrous first-round series, McBride scored 11 points in 19 minutes on Monday. As I highlighted at the start of the series, the Knicks need McBride to be active on both sides of the ball.

There’s a lot the Knicks can work on even in the win. It won’t always be pretty. Towns and Brunson will be out on an island guarding Boston’s top scoring options often. But it will be about helping them on the backline.

Towns played just 31 minutes as he was hampered by fouls all game. Some of the fouls came when he switched on Tatum or Brown. The big man needs to be more disciplined on defense so he can stay on the floor.

The Celtics had seven more offensive rebounds than the Knicks. It helped Boston win the possession battle as they attempted 10 more shots. If the Knicks lose the possession battle, it will be hard to consistently defeat the Celtics. New York managed to win despite that, but it should be a focus for the rest of the series.

How NBA road teams made playoff history after Warriors' Game 1 win vs. Timberwolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Warriors’ stunning 99-88 Game 1 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night at Target Center completed a remarkable few days in the NBA.

With Golden State’s Western Conference semifinal victory, all four road teams won Game 1 of the Division/Conference Semifinals round for the first time in NBA history.

On Sunday, the Indiana Pacers stole their series opener against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. A day later, the New York Knicks rallied to beat the Boston Celtics in overtime, while the Denver Nuggets stunned the NBA-best Oklahoma City Thunder in the final seconds.

The Warriors completed the feat Tuesday night.

Making the Warriors’ win all the more impressive, they did it for the majority of the contest without Steph Curry, who sustained a left hamstring strain early in the second quarter, exiting the game with 13 points.

The Warriors entered Tuesday’s game with one day of rest after beating the Houston Rockets in Game 7 on Sunday night.

Indiana did the unthinkable and somehow won Game 2 in Cleveland earlier on Tuesday night. New York and Denver will have a chance to snatch their respective Game 2s on Wednesday, while Golden State is back in action Thursday night.

Winning Game 2 without Curry might be a tall task, but for now, the Warriors will bask in the glory of taking the series opener.

How NBA road teams made playoff history after Warriors' Game 1 win vs. Timberwolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Warriors’ stunning 99-88 Game 1 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night at Target Center completed a remarkable few days in the NBA.

With Golden State’s Western Conference semifinal victory, all four road teams won Game 1 of the Division/Conference Semifinals round for the first time in NBA history.

On Sunday, the Indiana Pacers stole their series opener against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. A day later, the New York Knicks rallied to beat the Boston Celtics in overtime, while the Denver Nuggets stunned the NBA-best Oklahoma City Thunder in the final seconds.

The Warriors completed the feat Tuesday night.

Making the Warriors’ win all the more impressive, they did it for the majority of the contest without Steph Curry, who sustained a left hamstring strain early in the second quarter, exiting the game with 13 points.

The Warriors entered Tuesday’s game with one day of rest after beating the Houston Rockets in Game 7 on Sunday night.

Indiana did the unthinkable and somehow won Game 2 in Cleveland earlier on Tuesday night. New York and Denver will have a chance to snatch their respective Game 2s on Wednesday, while Golden State is back in action Thursday night.

Winning Game 2 without Curry might be a tall task, but for now, the Warriors will bask in the glory of taking the series opener.

Hield declares himself ‘Batman' after sparking Warriors' Game 1 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors’ Gotham analogy to describe their team dynamic is becoming a tad complicated.

First, Jimmy Butler was the Robin to Steph Curry’s Batman, then Buddy Hield attempted to insert himself as Alfred.

Now, after his five 3-pointers helped lead Golden State to a 99-88 Game 1 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night, Hield jokingly declared himself the new Batman in light of Curry’s hamstring injury.

“I’m Batman today,” Hield proclaimed to reporters alongside Butler. “I saved the day. [Jimmy] is still Robin.”

"I'm Batman today. I saved the day. [Jimmy] is still Robin."

Got to love Buddy's confidence 🤣 pic.twitter.com/mWoLgA4rWl

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 7, 2025

Beforehand, Draymond Green praised Butler and Hield for elevating their play after Curry left the game in the second quarter. Hield led all players with 24 points and a plus-22, while Butler contributed 20 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

“Robin turned into Batman … Alfred turned into Robin,” Green, whose role in the metaphor remains unclear, explained in his presser.

"Robin turned into Batman … Alfred turned into Robin."

Draymond praises Jimmy and Buddy for stepping up after Steph's injury 🙌 pic.twitter.com/9qVJnKcNBi

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 7, 2025

Hield evidently wanted to one-up Butler amid their ongoing back-and-forth, which hasn’t shown signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Butler, meanwhile, desired to maintain the status quo in the developing Warriors cinematic universe.

“I’m still Robin, and Steph is still Batman,” Butler replied after Hield’s flamboyant claim, “and [Buddy] is still who he is.

“But you had another good game, man,” he concluded with a pat on Hield’s shoulder.

And that wasn’t even the full story of this duo’s shenanigans during an all-time postgame presser.

Nevertheless, with a major question mark around Curry’s injury status, the Warriors might need several Batmans to rise to the occasion throughout this series.

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Steph's injury is why Warriors acquired Butler as insurance originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

MINNEAPOLIS – Steph Curry sat at his Target Center locker, headphones in tuning out the world. The Warriors had just outlasted the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 99-88 Game 1 win on the road Tuesday night, 48 hours after celebrating their gutsy Game 7 win against the Rockets in Houston. What should have been another jubilant environment was meek and gloomy at best, with Curry severely limping back to the team bus. 

From the way he was bouncing around the court, and the sight of his last three of the night splashing through from a 25-foot waterfall of arc, Curry was in for a game to remember to open the Western Conference semifinals. His night lasted 13 minutes, in which he scored 13 points and made a trio of threes. 

The sight of him grabbing at the back of his left leg could have sucked the life out of what should’ve been a depleted squad. The Warriors ruling Curry out with a strained left hamstring soon after his exit should have spelled doom for the Warriors, who held a 10-point lead when he limped to the locker room.

This is why you trade for Jimmy Butler. 

The dream was to pair Curry with him, two alphas changing the course of a season as they have ever since Butler put on a Warriors jersey, switched to No. 10 and added three roman numerals to honor his late father. But as an insurance plan, Butler is about as reliable as it gets when healthy.

“It’s massive,” Steve Kerr said. “The game settles down. I mean, you could see the last six, eight minutes, all we were doing was side-ball screens for Jimmy and we were even willing to take shot clock violations at that point. It was all about protecting the ball, and Jimmy is, I think, as good as anybody – any star in the game – at reading the game, understanding how to control the tempo and control the time and score, understanding everything that’s happening, and putting the ball in his hands in a situation like that is pretty comforting.” 

Comforting. That’s about as pinpoint of a word as Kerr could have landed on. 

Butler, in the Warriors’ grueling first-round series, had a total of three turnovers and never had a multi-turnover game — finishing three of the seven games without a single giveaway. The game doesn’t speed up with Butler and it doesn’t come to a halting stop. It flows, finding a state of Rhythm and Blues meeting brute strength. 

Buddy Hield was the Warriors’ leading scorer with 24 points, catching fire for 22 second-half points behind five 3-pointers. But it was Butler who made a statement, not by racking up points, but by flying around the floor and playing even bigger than a 7-foot-1 Rudy Gobert, who stands six inches taller than him. 

In the first half alone, Butler had five offensive rebounds and finished with seven, talling 11 boards overall. His teammates refer to him as “Megatron,” channeling his inner Calvin Johnson to go up and grab rebounds that feel out of reach for most. 

“Incredible anticipation,” Kerr said. “And I think that’s one of the things that separates great players, is the anticipation of what’s happening at all times. Both ends of the floor, Jimmy’s got that sense.” 

Butler finished the win with 20 points on 7-of-20 shooting, inefficient to his standards, but was a plus-15 in 41 minutes two nights after giving Golden State 45 minutes. He scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half as Minnesota tried to shift the momentum, his 11 rebounds led the Warriors and were the same amount as Gobert, plus his eight assists were a game-high, as were his two steals – tied with three of his teammates. 

Kerr doesn’t expect Curry to play Thursday in Game 2. Curry is getting an MRI on Wednesday, and missing multiple games is a real possibility. Without the Chef, Butler knows there will be a bigger scoring onus put on him. 

“I guess it’s going to be my job to draw a little more attention, probably not as much as does draw, but I got to find a way to score and get everybody else involved,” he said. 

But he knows who he is and isn’t going to pretend to be Curry or anybody else. 

“I’m not a volume shooter,” Butler said. “Never have been, probably never will be. But I’m going to play the right way. If my guys are open, I’m going to pass it, I’m going to yell, ‘Shoot it!’ and if they don’t shoot it, I’m probably going to yell at them for not shooting the ball. And I’m just going to have to be efficient. 

“I’m going to have to play hard. I know I’m going to have a lot of minutes coming my way. I train for this. I’ll be ready for it.” 

In the three games Butler played without Curry after the trade, he averaged 19.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 6.7 assists. The NBA playoff version of him always finds an extra level. Now he’ll need to tap into a new dimension for however long Curry is sidelined.

There’s the comfort and calmness he brings to his teammates, and the respect and tenacity he demands from them as well. This is why you trade for Jimmy Butler. Not to be Steph Curry, but to be the ultimate safety valve in case of emergency, ripping the hearts of a team and crowd that feels any sense of an advantage going their way.

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What Butler learned about Warriors in Game 1 win over Timberwolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Every Robin needs a Batman.

After the Warriors’ 99-88 Game 1 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night at Target Center, wing Jimmy Butler revealed to TNT’s Lauren Jbara what he learned from Golden State’s formidable performance. 

“That Steph is our best player, and the game is much easier when we’ve got him,” Butler said after the win.

"That Steph is our best player, and the game is much easier when we've got him."

Jimmy tells @laurenjbara what he learned from the @warriors' Game 1 win 😆 pic.twitter.com/RSTnkNsuc7

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 7, 2025

Unsurprisingly, Butler highlighted the importance of star teammate Steph Curry, who left the game early in the second quarter due to a left hamstring strain.

Butler, who has formed a Batman-Robin-esque duo with Curry, is likely heading into Game 2 without his scoring partner. 

Steph went to the Warriors' locker room with an apparent hamstring injury

(via: @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/rNQTmChFWj

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 7, 2025

Although Butler, Buddy Hield and Draymond Green managed to compensate on offense amid Curry’s absence, it’s a less than ideal scenario for Golden State, which outshot Minnesota 42.9 percent to 17.2 percent from beyond the arc. 

Butler hopes that changes soon.

“We want Steph back, I’ll tell you that,” Butler said. “It’s hard playing without that man, but we got one on the road. [We] came here to do what we had to do.” 

Tuesday night marked Butler’s return to Target Center for the first time since 2021. The 35-year-old spent just over one season with the Timberwolves before his trade demand was fulfilled just three weeks into the 2018-19 NBA season. 

Despite losing his Batman, Butler celebrated his return to Minnesota with a Western Conference semifinal win. It doesn’t get much better than that. 

The Dubs steal Game 1 in Minnesota 😈 pic.twitter.com/FucgpvtyzI

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 7, 2025

“Great, with a new group and in the playoffs,” Butler concluded. “I don’t think you can ask for anything better than to be here and get a W.”

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Warriors must maintain Game 1 win grit, energy without injured Steph Curry originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The task facing the Warriors now is to prove their Western Conference semifinal Game 1 performance is not who they were for one night but who they will be for the rest of the NBA playoffs.

It’s an exceedingly difficult challenge made essential by the absence of Stephen Curry.

Golden State’s 99-88 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night was profoundly inelegant yet sublime. The Warriors shot like a gang of drunken bandits, committed more turnovers than their opponent and lost Curry in the second quarter to a strained hamstring.

“We’re all concerned about Steph,” coach Steve Kerr told reporters at Target Center. “But it’s part of the game. Guys get hurt and you move on. Our guys did a great job of moving on and getting a great win 48 hours after a Game 7 road win. It’s an amazing group of guys. These guys are there. They compete. They’re together.

The Warriors won Game 1 by diving into the grime game, and those elements will be necessary for them to have a chance to win this Western Conference semifinals series and any other they might encounter.

They played both ends with enough grit to clog three drains, played defense with an attitude and displayed the resilience of a pack of junkyard dogs, with Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler III leading the way.

“We flew around,” Green said. “We made extra efforts, which was important. We know they’re a very, very good 3-point shooting team, and we knew that we didn’t want to give them uncontested looks. If they get started on 3s, they can roll.”

There was no rolling by the Timberwolves, who were limited to 31 points in the first half. They shot 39.5 percent from the field, including 17.2 percent – 17.2 percent – from deep. They were so bamboozled by the relentless energy surrounding them that they missed a surprising number of open looks.

The Warriors walked out of Target Center having seized the homecourt advantage not because they played superbly but because they played hard.

After producing 20 points, a team-high 11 rebounds, eight assists and two steals over 41 minutes, Butler walked off the court like a man who wouldn’t mind swapping out his hips, legs and feet for new ones. Hield chased Anthony Edwards and scored a game-high 24 points – 22 in the second half – over 40 minutes. Green finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals over 35 minutes.

Which brings us to what the Warriors will need for a long as Curry, who will miss Game 2, is sidelined: More efficiency from their youngsters.

Brandin Podziemski would like to forget his 1-of-7 shooting and back-to-back turnovers in the second quarter. Moses Moody took four shots, missing them all, in four first-quarter minutes and didn’t play much afterward. Jonathan Kuminga played 13 minutes off the bench, scoring seven points but committing two turnovers. All three finished on the ugly side of the plus/minus equation.

Kerr was forced to lean into his depth – 12 players in all – which was barely good enough because each reserve brought a certain velocity.

“Every single guy who came off the bench contributed,” Kerr said. “I never really look at the stats after a playoff game. I just think about how guys competed. And I thought that was every guy who came off the bench.”

The defense was crucial, but this was a triumph of effort over excellence.

And the intensity picked up after Curry, who scored 13 points in 13 minutes, limped off the court with 8:19 left in the second quarter.

“You have to understand what it takes to win a game without your best player, and tonight was a good indication of that,” Kerr said. “Draymond and Loon (Kevon Looney) and Jimmy led the way, just with the leadership on the sidelines, talking to the guys, recognizing you battle for every loose ball, every rebound. We got 18 offensive rebounds. We outrebounded them, 51-41, and their guys are all six inches taller than our guys.

“It’s about the intensity. The heart. The fight. And if you do that, and you give yourself a chance.”

Though the youngsters, whether starting or coming off the bench, will have to be better in Game 2 and beyond, the Warriors would be best served by keeping everything else where it was in Game 1.

Right around 100.

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Steph Curry ‘crushed' by injury, unlikely to play in Game 2, per Steve Kerr originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Warriors star Steph Curry will undergo an MRI on his left hamstring on Wednesday, but coach Steve Kerr’s initial prognosis doesn’t seem encouraging.

“I talked to him at halftime. He’s obviously crushed,” Kerr told reporters shortly after the Warriors won Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. “But the guys picked him up and played a great game. Obviously, we’re all concerned about Steph but it’s part of the game. Guys get hurt and you move on. Our guys did a great job of moving on and getting a great win, 48 hours after a Game 7 road win.

“It’s an amazing group of guys. They compete, they’re together, been the best defense in the league since the Jimmy trade, and that’s what’s keeping us afloat.”

Curry sustained the injury early in the second quarter and was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the Warriors’ eventual 99-88 win over the Timberwolves.

Kerr deemed Curry day-to-day, but the MRI will determine the true extent of the injury.

With the quick turnaround for Game 2 on Thursday, Kerr isn’t expecting Curry to play.

“We’re definitely gameplanning for him to not be available on Thursday, but we don’t know yet,” Kerr said. “But with a hamstring, it’s hard to imagine he’ll play Thursday.”

Curry didn’t speak to reporters after Tuesday’s game, but when he left the locker room for the team bus, he had a noticeable limp.

The Warriors stole Game 1 without Curry for most of contest, and they might be without their leader for at least one game, if not more.

Golden State might be able to get by Minnesota with Curry sidelined, but its NBA title hopes hinge on the four-time champion returning at some point during the playoffs.

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How many NBA teams won a playoff series down 2-0? Cavs need to make rare history originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

A magical NBA season in Cleveland is suddenly in danger of ending.

The No. 1 Cavaliers, who went 64-18 in the regular season, fell in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the No. 4 Indiana Pacers, with Tyrese Haliburton nailing a game-winning 3-pointer close to time expiring.

Indiana stunned Cleveland 121-112 in Game 1, and matters worsened for the Cavs when Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and De’Andre Hunter were ruled out for Game 2 due to injuries. The short-handed Cavs then blew leads on multiple occasions and Haliburton, after fans chanted “overrated” at him, took advantage.

So, what does history say about Cleveland’s chances with the series headed to Indiana? Here’s what to know:

How many NBA teams won a series down 2-0?

Since 1956, 463 series — non-seven-games series included — started with a team winning each of the first two games. In 429 of those, the team with the advantage won. Only 34 were able to overcome the 2-0 deficit, a 7.3% success rate.

How many NBA teams won a conference semifinals series down 2-0?

Narrowing down the numbers to just the conference semifinals, 117 series have seen a team trail 2-0 and just eight (6.8%) came back to win.

How many NBA teams down 2-0 forced a Game 6 or Game 7?

Cleveland has to force either a Game 6 or Game 7 to win the series and advance. Teams down 2-0 forced a Game 6 87 times, but just 14 (16.1%) advanced to the next round.

A Game 7 transpired on 58 occasions, with 14 teams (24.1%) completing the series comeback.

When was the last time an NBA team won a series down 2-0?

Not all hope is lost for Cleveland, as a team has recovered from a 2-0 deficit to win in each of the last four postseasons. And the last team to do it is a familiar face. In the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals, the Pacers came back to beat the New York Knicks in seven games.

Steph Curry ruled out of Warriors-Timberwolves Game 1 with left hamstring strain originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The last thing the Warriors need right now is a Steph Curry injury, but that’s what they are dealing with early in Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Less than four minutes into the second quarter of the Western Conference semifinal opener Tuesday at Target Center, Curry tweaked his left hamstring on a defensive possession. He grabbed the back of his left leg on several occasions.

The Warriors ruled Curry out a few minutes later.

Curry stayed in the game but after Draymond Green hit a 3-pointer to give the Warriors a 30-20 lead, the Timberwolves called a timeout and the two-time NBA MVP walked to Golden State’s locker room for evaluation.

Curry was playing well at the time of the injury, having made 5 of 9 field-goal attempts for 13 points.

Curry has been playing through a right thumb injury he has been dealing with for the last few months.