Saturday's NBA Games: Cavaliers-Heat, Thunder-Grizzlies,
Oklahoma City has an opportunity to secure its area in Round 2. Cleveland and the Los Angeles Clippers can get to the doorstep of the 2nd round. And the Houston-Golden State winner is going to have control of their match.
Those are the headings going into a quadruple-header of NBA playoff video games on Saturday: Oklahoma City can sweep its series with a win at Memphis, Cleveland can take a 3-0 lead over Miami, the Clippers will go for a 3-1 edge when they host Denver and the nightcap is a Rockets-Warriors match in San Francisco with those teams connected at a game apiece.
And there are some injury concerns, especially for Memphis and Golden State. Grizzlies protect Ja Morant took a bad fall that knocked him out of Game 3 against Oklahoma City with a bruised hip - and assisted contribute to the Thunder rallying from a 29-point deficit - while Warriors forward Jimmy Butler also is handling the side effects of a fall that knocked him out of Game 2 in Houston.
"I never ever desire to see anyone get hurt. I hope he's OK," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault stated of Morant. "You want everybody to be at complete strength. He's a terrific competitor. He was playing excellent. Obviously, that had something to do with the video game also. It 'd be wrong of me not to acknowledge that."
The Thunder, because moving to Oklahoma City, were 0-95 in video games where they tracked by a minimum of 27 points - till Thursday.
"Never shocked. Always pleased," Daigneault said. "They simply feel an astounding responsibility to one another."
Memphis Grizzlies guard Scotty Pippen Jr., right, tries to get a loose ball ahead of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) in the 2nd half of Game 3 of an NBA first-round playoff series Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)
When/Where to Watch: Game 3, 1 p.m. EDT (TNT)
Series: Cavaliers lead, 2-0.
BetMGM Sportsbook: Cavaliers by 6.5.
What to Know: Miami did a great deal of things right in Game 2 - groups in playoff video games were 76-0 all-time when scoring at least 112 points, making 16 threes, shooting 50% or better from the field and holding their opponent to under 50% shooting. The Heat did all that and lost Game 2 anyway, merely because of Cleveland ´ s barrage of 3-pointers and Donovan Mitchell ´ s ability to make big plays down the stretch to fend off a Miami run. The Heat say Game 3 is a must-win, so anticipate a huge push to open the game. It ´ ll be an excellent test for Cleveland, which was terrific on the road all year, to see how it deals with a playoff roadway atmosphere.
When/Where to Watch: Game 4, 3:30 p.m. EDT (TNT)
Series: Thunder lead, 3-0.
BetMGM Sportsbook: Thunder by 14.5.
What to Know: Oklahoma City will have an opportunity to be the first group to reach Round 2 of the playoffs, plus can complete off a first-round sweep for the 2nd consecutive year after ousting New Orleans 4-0 last season. The 14.5-point spread, assuming it doesn't move before video game time, would be the largest according to BetMGM Sportsbook for any road team in a championship game over the last years. (Excluding bubble video games, the biggest road favorites in the postseason because 2012 were San Antonio at Memphis in 2016 and Milwaukee at Detroit in 2019. Both were 12.5-point favorites and both covered). The difficulty for Memphis will be how to combat back after losing a 29-point lead in Game 3.
When/Where to Watch: Game 4, 6 p.m. EDT (TNT)
Series: Clippers lead, 2-1.
BetMGM Sportsbook: Clippers by 5.5.
What to Know: The Clippers routed 26-19 after 9 minutes of Game 1 - and outscored the Nuggets 98-57 the remainder of the way. Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray had 37 of those last 57 points for Denver while their colleagues combined to shoot 7-for-37 and score only 20 points in those 39 minutes. That is all an obvious credit to the Clippers' defense, which has actually been an ignored story all season. Another increase for the Clippers out of that video game was how Kawhi Leonard didn't have to log big minutes; he played just 34. Denver needs to get some shooting going in Game 4, after getting outscored 54-21 on 3-pointers in Game 3.
When/Where to Watch: Game 3, 8:30 p.m. EDT (ABC)
Series: Tied, 1-1.
BetMGM Sportsbook: Warriors by 2.5.
What to Know: Golden State forward Jimmy Butler's injury status is the big concern entering into Game 3. And if he plays, can he work? The Warriors still have the upper hand in the series after getting a split of Games 1 and 2 in Houston and now come home to Chase Center - where they are 16-4 in playoff and play-in games. The Rockets are only 2-8 because structure, the third-worst record among Western Conference groups, ahead of just Utah (2-9) and Portland (1-9). Houston needs to love what it has done defensively up until now in the series, holding the Warriors to 95 and 94 points in the very first two matches. That's a clear trend, with the Warriors being held under 100 points in 5 of their last 6 games versus the Rockets. The combined numbers from those games: Rockets 582, Warriors 579, and each group going 3-3.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) manages the ball against Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane (22) in the 2nd half of Game 3 of an NBA first-round playoff series Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) gestures after a 3 point basket in the very first half in Game 2 of an NBA first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat, Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) duels in the 2nd half in Game 2 of an NBA first-round playoff series versus the Cleveland Cavaliers, Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, center, defend a loose ball with Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet, left, and Rockets center Steven Adams throughout the second half of Game 2 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series versus the Houston Rockets in Houston, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)
Los Angeles Clippers guard Patty Mills, left, and Denver Nuggets guard Jalen Pickett reach for a loose ball throughout the 2nd half in Game 3 of an NBA basketball series Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Fans ridicule the Denver Nuggets from "The Wall" throughout the second half in Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)