The 2025 NBA Playoffs continue on Friday, May 9, with two semifinal matchups.
First, the Cleveland Cavaliers take on the Indiana Pacers, and then the Oklahoma City Thunder play the Denver Nuggets.
Before previewing tonight’s action, here’s a full recap of Thursday’s results and the updated playoff bracket.
Updated 2025 NBA Playoffs Bracket
Here’s the updated 2025 NBA Playoff bracket after last night’s Minnesota Timberwolves victory over the Golden State Warriors.
Thursday, May 8 – Game Recap
Minnesota Timberwolves 117, Golden State Warriors 93
Series tied 1–1
The Timberwolves bounced back from their Game 1 loss with a dominant 117–93 victory over the Warriors, evening the series at 1–1.
Julius Randle led Minnesota with 24 points and 11 assists, while Anthony Edwards added 20 points despite a brief injury scare.
The Warriors, playing without Stephen Curry due to a hamstring injury, struggled to generate offense and absolutely could not contain Minnesota’s early surge.
The Timberwolves started the game with 13 unanswered points. And while the Warriors were able to cut the deficit to single digits multiple times, they could never tie the game and ended the night with a 24-point loss.
In a discouraging sign for the Warriors, Jimmy Butler didn’t quite step up as many expected him to in Curry’s absence. He scored just 17 points and had four assists.
Curry is likely to be out for at least Games 3 and 4 as well. And that could put the Warriors in a 3-1 hole, if he does return for Game 5 on Wednesday, May 14.
The series now shifts to San Francisco for Game 3, where the Warriors will look to regroup. But it doesn’t look good for Golden State.
Series Prediction: Timberwolves in six.
Next Game: Saturday, May 10, 2025, 8:30 PM Eastern, Chase Center, San Francisco, CA
Friday, May 9 – Game Previews
Cleveland Cavaliers at Indiana Pacers
Pacers lead series 2–0
The Pacers have stunned the top-seeded Cavaliers by taking a 2–0 lead on the road.
The Cavaliers led for the last three quarters — until the game’s final seconds, when Tyrese Haliburton sank his game-winning three-pointer.
With Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and De’Andre Hunter out, Donovan Mitchell put up a Herculean effort, scoring 48 points in what late in the game looked to be a certain Cavaliers win. All three have participated in the Cavaliers’ shootaround today and are game-time decisions.
If they do play, the Cavaliers have a chance to bounce back in and close the deficit of the series. But if they’re out, it’ll be very tough for Cleveland to win on the road tonight in Indianapolis.
The Pacers will look to ride their home crowd’s energy and push the Cavaliers to the brink of elimination.
Series Prediction: Pacers in 6.
Time: 7:30 PM Eastern
Venue: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
TV: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN app and website, fuboTV
Oklahoma City Thunder at Denver Nuggets
Series tied 1–1
This series has been a tale of two games, both of which saw the Thunder leading for most of the way.
In Game 1, the Nuggets clawed back from a 14-point deficit to secure a 121–119 win thanks to another game-winning shot by Aaron Gordon.
But the Thunder made sure in Game 2 to build a lead that would be impossible for the Nuggets to come back from, scoring 90 points in the first half and delivering a record-setting 149–106 blowout behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s explosive performance.
The series now heads to Denver. Expect Games 3 and 4 to be closer, with the Nuggets winning tonight but the Thunder bouncing back on Sunday.
Series Prediction: Thunder in six.
Time: 10:00 PM Eastern
Venue: Ball Arena, Denver, CO
TV: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN app and website, fuboTV
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