{"id":61958,"date":"2025-05-28T17:15:10","date_gmt":"2025-05-28T17:15:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/61958\/"},"modified":"2025-05-28T17:15:10","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T17:15:10","slug":"bracket-update-may-28-game-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/61958\/","title":{"rendered":"Bracket Update, May 28 Game Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2025 NBA Playoffs<\/a> continue on Wednesday, May 28, with Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.<\/p>\n

The Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> host the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a> at Paycom Center, aiming to clinch the series and secure their first NBA Finals appearance since 2012.<\/p>\n

Before previewing tonight\u2019s Game 5, here\u2019s a recap of Tuesday\u2019s action and an updated look at the playoff bracket.<\/p>\n

Updated 2025 NBA Playoff Bracket<\/p>\n

The Indiana Pacers<\/a> took a commanding 3\u20131 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals with a 130\u2013121 victory over the New York Knicks<\/a> in Game 4 on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n

Both conference finals series are moving in parallel directions, beginning with the Pacers and Thunder coming out to 2-0 leads, followed by the Knicks and Timberwolves responding with Game 3 wins, and then Indiana and Oklahoma City winning their respective Game 4s.<\/p>\n

The Knicks and Timberwolves find themselves on the verge of elimination in the conference finals \u2014 ironic given that the two teams completed a blockbuster trade last fall to make themselves championship contenders.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the updated NBA playoff bracket after last night\u2019s Knicks loss:<\/p>\n

\"2025The updated 2025 NBA Playoffs bracket ahead of Wednesday\u2019s Thunder-Timberwolves Game 5.<\/p>\n

Tuesday, May 27 \u2013 Game 4 Recap<\/p>\n

Indiana Pacers 130, New York Knicks 121<\/p>\n

Pacers lead the Eastern Conference Finals series 3\u20131<\/p>\n

The Knicks kept pace with the Pacers despite allowing 43 points in the first quarter \u2014 their worst defensive quarter of the playoffs. But unlike Game 3, there was no late surge. New York trimmed the lead to six points in the final stretch, but the comeback fizzled.<\/p>\n

Unforced errors were costly. Mikal Bridges<\/a> missed open threes, and Josh Hart<\/a> committed several turnovers \u2014 five in total. The Knicks finished with 17 turnovers, which Indiana converted into 22 fast-break points.<\/p>\n

After the game, Hart took responsibility:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s tough to win against a team like that who turns those turnovers to points. I had like 4 or 5, just stupid turnovers that\u2026lead to easy baskets\u2026I have to be more careful with the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jalen Brunson<\/a> led the Knicks with 31 points and Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a> added 24, but both were quiet in the fourth quarter, combining for just four points, as the Knicks relied more on OG Anunoby<\/a> and Bridges attacking the rim. Brunson scored 11 of his points at the free throw line.<\/p>\n

New York was outpaced again \u2014 the Pacers had 22 fast-break points to the Knicks\u2019 9 \u2014 but they slowed down the game in the third, earning trips to the free-throw line.<\/p>\n

Tyrese Haliburton<\/a> delivered a historic triple-double: 32 points, 15 assists, and 12 rebounds \u2014 all without a single turnover. The young point guard is making the case that he is actually underrated.<\/p>\n

Pascal Siakam<\/a> added 30 points, continuing his dominance in this series. The Knicks have no answer once he\u2019s in the paint.<\/p>\n

Mitchell Robinson and Hart battled on the offensive glass, grabbing 5 and 4 offensive rebounds, respectively, but many of those chances led to empty possessions.<\/p>\n

Defense remained a bright spot in moments. Delon Wright played just nine minutes but was a +11, providing valuable pressure and composure, despite making a costly turnover.<\/p>\n

The Knicks are on the brink of elimination and will return to Madison Square Garden<\/a> for Game 5. To extend the series, they\u2019ll need to find a way to slow the pace and protect the ball.<\/p>\n

Series Prediction: Pacers in six.<\/p>\n

Next Game: Thursday, May 29, 8:00 PM Eastern \u2013 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY<\/p>\n

Wednesday, May 28 \u2013 Game 5 Preview<\/p>\n

Minnesota Timberwolves at Oklahoma City Thunder<\/p>\n

Thunder lead the Western Conference Finals series 3\u20131<\/p>\n

The Thunder are on the brink of their first NBA Finals appearance since 2012 after a thrilling 128\u2013126 victory over the Timberwolves in Game 4.<\/p>\n

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a> led the way with a playoff career-high 40 points, adding 10 rebounds and 9 assists, narrowly missing a triple-double. Jalen Williams <\/a>contributed 34 points on 13-of-24 shooting, including 6-of-9 from three-point range, while Chet Holmgren added 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks.<\/p>\n

Despite the loss, the Timberwolves had notable performances from Nickeil Alexander-Walker (23 points), Jaden McDaniels (22 points), and Donte DiVincenzo (21 points). However, turnovers plagued Minnesota, committing 21 to Oklahoma City\u2019s 14, which proved decisive in the close contest. And their two stars, Anthony Edwards<\/a> and Julius Randle<\/a> were non-factors. Edwards scored just 16 points, while Randle was simply dismal \u2014 ending with just 5 points.<\/p>\n

Game 5 will be critical for the Timberwolves to stay alive in the series. But it will also be a test of their young leader, Edwards, and how he responds to a moment like this.<\/p>\n

Last year, Edwards and the Timberwolves fell to Luka Doncic<\/a> and the Dallas Mavericks<\/a> in the Western Conference Finals 4-1. Three of those games were decided by five points or less. It\u2019s a bit of a deja vu moment for Minnesota. Will they break the cycle or repeat last year\u2019s exit?<\/p>\n

Expect Minnesota to win on the road tonight, with Edwards rising to the challenge and a supporting cast continuing with the rhythm they found in Game 4. The Timberwolves will likely survive to see another game. But just one more game.<\/p>\n

Game Prediction: Timberwolves win by 3.<\/p>\n

Series Prediction: Thunder in six.<\/p>\n

Time: 8:30 PM Eastern<\/p>\n

Venue: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK<\/p>\n

TV: ESPN<\/p>\n

Streaming: ESPN app and website, Hulu + Live TV, Sling, YouTube TV<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2025 NBA Playoffs continue on Wednesday, May 28, with Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61959,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1431,375,7,372,126,288,364,327,376,563,1260,152,1247,6,11,191,741,179,279,209,278],"class_list":{"0":"post-61958","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba-playoffs","8":"tag-2025-nba-playoffs","9":"tag-anthony-edwards","10":"tag-basketball","11":"tag-donte-divincenzo","12":"tag-indiana-pacers","13":"tag-jalen-brunson","14":"tag-jalen-williams","15":"tag-josh-hart","16":"tag-julius-randle","17":"tag-karl-anthony-towns","18":"tag-mikal-bridges","19":"tag-minnesota-timberwolves","20":"tag-mitchell-robinson","21":"tag-nba","22":"tag-nba-playoffs","23":"tag-new-york-knicks","24":"tag-og-anunoby","25":"tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","26":"tag-pascal-siakam","27":"tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander","28":"tag-tyrese-haliburton"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114586591519247413","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61958"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61958\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}