The 2025 NBA Conference Finals have already achieved results as there are only four teams in the playoffs, all of whom are fighting for the opportunity to represent their conference in the finals.
Oklahoma City's No. 1 seed kicked off the Western Conference Finals Tuesday night after a tough seven-game series with the Denver Nuggets. They beat Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in sixth place, second only to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 31 points.
In the East, the third seed of the New York Knicks will be on Wednesday for the fourth-place Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden, with two of the Tyrese Haliburton-based superstars and Jalen Brunson facing each other in a highly anticipated game. The Knicks and pacemakers will appear for the first time since 1999 and 2000, respectively.
Our NBA insiders will get the biggest gain in every game and what to watch in two conference showdowns when these elite teams face off.
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Schedule and Results | Offseason Guide
Western Conference
Game 1: Thunder 114, Timberwolves 88
Thunder’s biggest gains: Oklahoma City’s defense bought half of the thunder before their scorer settled in the rhythm. Although All-Star duo Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams were only four points behind at halftime, they shot just four of 21 goals on the floor. That duo then seized control, surpassed the Timberwolves themselves in the third quarter and combined to score 21 points to give Oklahoma City a double-digit lead. Chet Holmgren scored nine of 15 points in the first quarter of the fourth quarter, keeping Minnesota comfortable. Throughout the game, the Thunder, the highest-ranking force in the league, has been relentless in defense. Oklahoma City put Minnesota's floor shooting percentage to 34.9% and forced the Thunder to turn 31 points. - Tim MacMahon
The Timberwolves’ biggest gain: If you tell Timberwolves that they will control the first half and Gilgeous-Alexander hits twice as many as he (17) (10) (10), they hope to have a chance in the first game of the Western Conference Finals. There is only one problem: because of how effective their defense is, their offense is equally powerless. If you take out Julius Randle's 28 points on 9 of 13, Minnesota scored just 60 points (28.6%) on 20 of 70 shots while making 19 turnovers, resulting in Oklahoma City 31 points.
After leading 48-44 in the first two quarters, there was almost no game after the half. The Wolves led 60-56 with 7:22 to third place, and the Thunder responded 17-2, opening the double-digit mat for fourth place. Minnesota's bench support is particularly lacking, with Naz Reid, Donte Divincenzo and Nickeil Alexander-Walker pair hitting just 7-36 (3-3). Superstar Anthony Edwards, 23, adjusted his left ankle in the first half and scored 18 points with 5 of 13 shots. Wolves have a lot of work to do in Game 2 or they will stare at a 0-2 deficit back to Game 3. - Dave McMenamin
Game 2: Thunder's Timberwolves (8:30 ET, Thursday)
What to watch: Is it possible for Minnesota to find a way to score in paint? Timberwolves earned only 20 paint points, and the team with the least team in this year's playoffs equalized. Minnesota averaged 51.6 points per game in paint, while he ranked 72-playoffs while ending the Golden State Warriors in Game 5 last Wednesday High For any team.
It is worth noting that Oklahoma City achieved this when it was laying off employees. Thunder coach Mark Digneault has been running less than eight minutes in two front-court games between starters Isaiah Hartenstein and Holmgren, which is far less than their average playoff 14.2 in the NBA's senior statistics bureau. After defending Nikola Jokic for Nikola Jokic in the semifinals, Daigneault put the smaller Kenrich Williams (6-foot 7,210) as the backup center.
Oklahoma City lacks scale, Thunder far exceeds the swarming defense and packaging paint to make up. Oklahoma City dared to do the Timberwolves 3s, just like the Nuggets did in the final round. After Minnesota shot five of five from downtown in the opening quarter, the Timberwolves scored 10-40 (25%) for the rest of the game.
Paradoxically, the best hope for Minnesota scores may be from external. The Timberwolves will definitely do this. Minnesota has accounted for 35% of the playoffs so far, ranking fourth in the regular season and fourth in the league. We will see how accurate the Timberwolves need to pull the Thunder defense out of the paint. - Kevin Pelton