On May 7, Beijing time, the NBA playoffs will continue, and the league has scheduled two games. The Knicks host the Pacers and start the first game of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Brunson PK Haliburton, who of the two All-Star point guards can get the first win? The Nuggets, who are 0-1 behind in total, will play the Timberwolves at home, and in the face of Edwards, who scored 43 points in the first game, can Jokic lead the team to win back a city?
7:30: Pacers vs. Knicks
In the regular season, the Pacers are 47-35 and 21-20 on the road, while the Knicks are 50-32 and 27-14 at home. In the first round of the playoffs, the Pacers eliminated the Bucks 4-2 to advance, and the Knicks also eliminated the 76ers 4-2 to advance.
The two teams met three times during the regular season, with the Pacers winning two and losing one. On 12/31/23, the Pacers beat the Knicks 140-126, on 2/2/24, the Knicks beat the Pacers 109-105, and on 2/11/24, the Pacers beat the Knicks 125-111.
Looking back at the average data of the three meetings between the two teams this season, the Pacers' Haliburton had 19.7 points, 4 rebounds and 13.3 assists, Turner had 18.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists, Siakam had 18.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4 assists, and Nesmith had 18.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1 assist. The Knicks' Brunson had 35.7 points, 3 rebounds and 3.7 assists, DiVincenzo had 24 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3 assists, and Hart had 6.3 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3 assists.
As the leading scorer in the playoffs so far, Brunson has a special meaning against the Pacers, and the current Pacers coach Carlisle coached Brunson for three years with the Mavericks, and the two have a lot of connections.
"Brunson is a guy you would never bet on him, and if you know his character, you won't be surprised at what he's accomplished in those two years. Speaking of his former disciples, Carlisle said. In the last two meetings with the Pacers, Brunson scored 40 points in one game and 39 points in the other.
This is the eighth meeting between the Pacers and Knicks in playoff history, with the Pacers winning four of the first seven series. The Pacers averaged 123.3 points per game in the regular season, the most points in the league, and the Knicks conceded 108.2 points per game in the regular season, the second-fewest in the league.
In terms of injuries, the Pacers' Mathurin is out and Haliburton is doubtful. The Knicks' Randle and Bojan Bogdanovic are out.
ESPN Predicted Win Percentage: Pacers 38.3%, Knicks 61.7%
10:00: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets
The Timberwolves currently lead the Nuggets 1-0 in aggregate, and in the G1 game, the Timberwolves beat the Nuggets 106-99. In the regular season this season, the Timberwolves are 56-26 and 26-15 on the road, while the Nuggets are 57-25 and 33-8 at home.
In the last game, the Timberwolves played an 18-4 start, and the Nuggets quickly completed the comeback and maintained the lead for most of the middle two quarters, and the Timberwolves came out of the final quarter to take away the victory by 7 points. Timberwolves' Edwards scored a playoff career record with 43 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks, Towns had 20 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, Conley had 14 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists, and Reed had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, 14 of which came in the final quarter. The Nuggets' Jokic had 32 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, Porter had 20 points and six rebounds, and Murray had 17 points and four assists.
The Timberwolves were the most efficient team in the regular season, scoring just 99 points against the Nuggets in G1, making seven turnovers and just 2-of-9 from three-point range. Edwards turned on the killing mode and scored 43 points, including 25 in the first half. Speaking of Huazi, Jokic felt that this opponent was very special, and he respected him very much.
He was able to find teammates when the Nuggets wrapped up Edwards, and Reed, the Sixth Man of the Year, scored 14 points in the final quarter. "As a team, we trust each other and it doesn't matter who shoots at the end of the day. Edwards said. Edwards also has a lot of respect for last season's championship and FMVP. "It's always fun to play against the best players in the world, it's always fun to play against the best teams in the world. ”
In terms of injuries, the Timberwolves are fully healthy, the Nuggets' Cankar is out, and Murray is doubtful.
ESPN Predicted Win Percentage: Timberwolves 48.1%, Nuggets 51.9%