The second round of the 2026 NBA playoffs is here, and our NBA insiders have you covered for every game of the Eastern and Western conference semifinals.
The No. 2-seeded New York Knicks swept the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers. The No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons have a 2-1 series lead after losing a wild Game 3 on Saturday to the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.
In the West, the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, who had Anthony Edwards (left knee injury) back for Game 1, stole a win over the 2-seed San Antonio Spurs and Victor Wembanyama on Monday. On Wednesday, the Spurs evened the series with a 38-point blowout victory, and they seized a 2-1 series edge by winning Friday in Minnesota. The top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder, who swept the Phoenix Suns in the first round, picked up where they left off with wins over the No. 4 seed Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
As teams chase the Larry O’Brien Trophy, here’s what matters most in both conferences and what to watch for in all four series.
Jump to a series:
76ers-Knicks | Cavaliers-Pistons
Timberwolves-Spurs | Lakers-Thunder
More coverage:
Schedules and results | Offseason guides
Eastern Conference
Biggest takeaway from Game 4: The Knicks are playing a cohesive brand of basketball, one they perhaps had been building up to all season long.
But even the most orange-and-blue-eyed optimist couldn’t have foreseen this: the capitalizing on mistakes, the torrid 3-point shooting, bordering on a record pace. The Knicks’ 25 3-pointers in their 30-point Game 4 victory tied for the most in NBA playoff history.
Now, their 0-3 record in Detroit this season doesn’t seem to matter, and nor does their 2-1 mark against Cleveland. Detroit beat them up, heavily motivated from last season’s first-round series, but are the Knicks a much tougher bunch this time around? The Cavs had the Knicks on the ropes on Christmas Day before New York put on a fourth-quarter run that seemed like the past seven playoff games.
Perhaps it was an omen. — Vincent Goodwill
Biggest takeaway from Game 3: James Harden finally delivered the clutch performance the Cavs needed.
The Pistons had been the better team in the clutch through the first two games, executing in late games like a veteran team, while outplaying the Cavs, who have a bevy of playoff experience. But with the score tied 104-104 with under three minutes remaining Saturday, the Cavs made the plays to win the game down the stretch, including seven points in the final 1:30 from Harden.
Cleveland responded in a must-win Game 3 to keep its hopes alive of winning this series. Donovan Mitchell scored more than 30 points for the second straight game, and Harden bounced back from a miserable Game 2.
Harden and Mitchell combined to outscore the Pistons 10-5 over the final 1:29 of the game. Harden went 3-for-3 in that sequence.
Jarrett Allen scored 18 points, and Evan Mobley added 13 points in the win.
Despite falling behind 2-0 in the series, Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said he came into Saturday’s game encouraged that they had chances to win both games, despite not playing well in either game in Detroit. And for the first time in the series, the Cavs got off to a good start in the first half. They shot 72.2% in the first quarter and outscored Detroit 32-18 in the second.
And although the Pistons closed the gap with a 33-19 third-quarter surge and took the lead in the fourth, powered by Cade Cunningham’s triple-double — 27 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds — the Cavs responded with a strong fourth quarter, led by Harden, to win in the clutch for the first time in this series. — Jamal Collier
Game 4: Pistons at Cavaliers (Monday, 8 p.m. ET, NBC/Peacock)
What to watch in Game 4: The Cavs are still undefeated at home in the postseason, and they will need another all-around performance to even this series. Harden and Mitchell were excellent in Game 3, especially in the fourth quarter, and the Cavs will need a repeat performance if they want to hold off a hungry Pistons team.
Detroit has touted the lessons learned from its first-round seven-game battle with the Orlando Magic. Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said before the game it was “the best thing to ever happen to them” because it taught this young squad the urgency it takes to compete in the playoffs.
And the Pistons almost completed an epic comeback Saturday, despite trailing by 16 at the half, showing they will not go out quietly, no matter where the game is played. — Collier
Western Conference
Biggest takeaway from Game 3: The Lakers have kept reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in check for the first three games of the series and have nothing to show for it.
Los Angeles’ strategy of having Marcus Smart hug Gilgeous-Alexander all over the floor when he didn’t have the ball and frequently doubling him when he did succeeded in slowing the superstar, who finished with his series-high 23 points on 7-of-20 shooting, didn’t work. Ajay Mitchell, who is filling in as a starter with Jalen Williams (hamstring) injured, continued his stellar series. Mitchell had game highs of 24 points and 10 assists, scoring nine points and dishing out four dimes as the Thunder put the game out of reach while Gilgeous-Alexander rested during the first half of the fourth quarter. Chet Holmgren, who has arguably been Oklahoma City’s best player in the series, also had another outstanding outing with 18 points and nine rebounds. —Tim MacMahon
Game 4: Thunder at Lakers (Monday, 10:30 p.m., Prime)
What to watch in Game 4: All three games have followed a similar script. The Lakers’ defense does its job containing Gilgeous-Alexander and their offense does enough to hang around for a half … and then the wheels fall off when L.A.’s turnovers fuel Thunder runs.
The Lakers committed 17 turnovers leading to 30 points for Oklahoma City on Saturday (OKC had just 10, which L.A. scored 11 points off of). That disparity, combined with OKC’s work on the offensive glass, gave the Thunder 13 more shots than L.A. had in Game 3. Will the Lakers be able to string together a full four quarters Monday to avoid the consequence of their season coming to an end if they don’t? — Dave McMenamin
Biggest takeaway from Game 3: San Antonio expected a late Minnesota run in its 115-108 victory in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals, but this time the Spurs found a way to hold on for their first win at Target Center since 2022 to take a 2-1 series lead. San Antonio led in the fourth quarter in its past two games in Minnesota — both losses — and entered Friday’s matchup determined to fend off a Timberwolves squad led by Anthony Edwards, who has looked healthier in every game.
The Spurs prevented succumbing down the stretch thanks to a big push from Victor Wembanyama, who scored a game-high 39 points with 15 rebounds. In the upcoming film session reviewing Game 3, expect the Spurs to walk away lamenting missed opportunities, however.
With Wembanyama scoring nine of San Antonio’s first 11 points and Minnesota missing its first 11 attempts from the floor, San Antonio led 18-3 to start but whiffed on a chance to go up bigger. The Timberwolves didn’t make their first field goal until 5:10 left in the opening frame. With 3:48 remaining in the quarter, Minnesota’s only points had come off an Edwards free throw and a Rudy Gobert layup.
Over the final 2:08 of the first quarter, Edwards poured in 12 points, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer as Minnesota chopped down a 15-point deficit to just one. During the time Wembanyama wasn’t on the court in the first quarter, Minnesota took advantage, shooting 6-of-9 for 15 points, compared to 2-of-14 when the Frenchman was on the floor, according to ESPN Research. — Michael C. Wright
Game 4: Spurs at Timberwolves (Sunday, 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC/Peacock)
What to watch in Game 4: It’s desperation time for the Timberwolves and coach Chris Finch.
In an urgent Game 3, he already gave a hint at where his rotations are heading. Edwards returned to the starting lineup and played 40 minutes, despite his ailing left knee. The training wheels appear all the way off for the rest of the series.
Mike Conley started at point guard but played only four minutes. The Timberwolves were outscored by 10 points in his only stint and failed to make a shot for nearly seven minutes to open the game. Reserve guard Ayo Dosunmu started the second half and closed. Dosunmu and Terrence Shannon Jr. are likely to shoulder almost all the backcourt minutes next to Edwards moving forward in what is shortening into a seven-man rotation. Julius Randle and Jaden McDaniels went a combined 8-of-33 shooting.
Finch tried some offense-defense substitutions late with Randle and Rudy Gobert, but everyone struggled against Wembanyama’s length. — Anthony Slater