{"id":64337,"date":"2025-05-29T18:12:11","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T18:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/64337\/"},"modified":"2025-05-29T18:12:11","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T18:12:11","slug":"bracket-update-may-29-game-prediction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/64337\/","title":{"rendered":"Bracket Update, May 29 Game Prediction"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2025 NBA Playoffs <\/a>continue on Thursday, May 29, with Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals.<\/p>\n

The New York Knicks<\/a> host the Indiana Pacers<\/a> at Madison Square Garden<\/a>, aiming to stave off elimination and extend the series.<\/p>\n

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

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

The Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> secured their first NBA Finals appearance since 2012 with a 124\u201394 blowout victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a> in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.<\/p>\n

The Thunder await the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Knicks and Pacers. The 2025 NBA Finals are set to start on June 5 at 8:30 PM in Oklahoma City. <\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the latest 2025 NBA Playoff bracket after Wednesday\u2019s Game 5:<\/p>\n

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

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

Oklahoma City Thunder 124, Minnesota Timberwolves 94<\/p>\n

Thunder win Western Conference Finals series 4\u20131<\/p>\n

The Thunder controlled Game 5 from start to finish, closing the first quarter with a commanding 26\u20139 lead. Oklahoma City shot nearly 50% from the field in the opening frame, while Minnesota hit just 15%. Only two Timberwolves players scored in the first 12 minutes: Anthony Edwards<\/a> with six points and Julius Randle<\/a> with three.<\/p>\n

While Randle finished with 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting, his four turnovers hurt Minnesota in key stretches. Edwards struggled once again with efficiency, scoring 19 points on 39% shooting and going just 1-of-7 from deep. Many of his makes came on highly contested long-range shots.<\/p>\n

Bench players Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker chipped in 11 points each, but Minnesota got just seven total points from its three other starters not named Edwards or Randle. Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert, and Mike Conley failed to make an offensive impact.<\/p>\n

Oklahoma City, on the other hand, was clicking on all cylinders. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a> dropped 34 points, Chet Holmgren added 22, and Jalen Williams<\/a> contributed 19. The Thunder\u2019s relentless ball pressure forced 21 turnovers \u2014 including 14 steals.<\/p>\n

The season ends in disappointment for the Timberwolves, who looked like title contenders just two weeks ago. Roster questions loom: Randle and Reid hold player options, Alexander-Walker hits free agency, and Gobert continues to offer little on offense.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, McDaniels\u2019 offensive inconsistency has made his $131 million extension a tough pill to swallow.<\/p>\n

Thursday, May 29 \u2013 Game 5 Preview<\/p>\n

Indiana Pacers at New York Knicks<\/p>\n

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

The Knicks return home to the Garden, facing elimination after a 116\u2013103 loss to the Pacers in Game 4. The game was a disaster on both ends \u2014 and there was no fourth-quarter magic this time around.<\/p>\n

New York allowed 43 points in the first quarter and never fully recovered. They made a push late, cutting the lead to six, but unforced errors \u2014 including missed open looks by Mikal Bridges<\/a> and turnovers by Josh Hart<\/a> \u2014 killed the momentum. Hart finished with five turnovers, part of a team total of 17 that led to 22 Pacer fast-break points.<\/p>\n

Despite 30 points from Jalen Brunson<\/a> and 24 from Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a>, the Knicks got very little in crunch time. Both stars faded late, providing little offense in the final quarter.<\/p>\n

Tonight will be Brunson\u2019s greatest test as the Knicks\u2019 captain. He carried them through the first round, but has since shown his fallibility not just on the defensive end, but also on offense, with the team\u2019s ball movement stagnating under Indiana\u2019s pressure.<\/p>\n

Towns is a game-time decision for tonight after suffering a left knee contusion on Tuesday. Without him, the Knicks will lose the offensive firepower necessary to stand a chance against the Pacers. Their defense may improve. Towns has been abysmal in coverage and prone to making inexplicable fouls. But if he\u2019s out, their depth in the frontcourt diminishes, and Mitchell Robinson<\/a> will have to stay out of foul trouble.<\/p>\n

As for the Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton<\/a> has made the case that he\u2019s actually underrated as a player. He\u2019s coming off a historic triple-double: 32 points, 15 assists, and 12 rebounds \u2014 without committing a single turnover. <\/p>\n

Haliburton may be the MVP of this series, but Indiana would not be where they are without Pascal Siakam<\/a>, who has tormented New York in the paint and on mid-range shots.<\/p>\n

The Pacers are just a win away from their first Finals appearance since 2000. For New York, the drought is just one year longer.<\/p>\n

Both teams are thirsty. But Indiana is further along the road. If Towns is in the lineup and his knee isn\u2019t an issue, then expect New York to scrape together a win tonight, before falling in Game 6 in Indiana.<\/p>\n

If Towns is out, then this game \u2014 and the series \u2014 goes to the Pacers.<\/p>\n

Game Prediction: Knicks win by 4, if Towns is in. Pacers win by 11 if Towns is out.<\/p>\n

Series Prediction: Pacers in 5 (if Towns is out for Game 5). Pacers in 6 (if Towns plays in Game 5).<\/p>\n

Time: 8:00 PM Eastern<\/p>\n

Venue: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY<\/p>\n

TV: TNT<\/p>\n

Streaming: Max, TNT app<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2025 NBA Playoffs continue on Thursday, May 29, with Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64338,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1431,375,7,126,288,364,327,376,563,1260,152,1247,6,11,191,741,179,279,209,278],"class_list":{"0":"post-64337","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-indiana-pacers","12":"tag-jalen-brunson","13":"tag-jalen-williams","14":"tag-josh-hart","15":"tag-julius-randle","16":"tag-karl-anthony-towns","17":"tag-mikal-bridges","18":"tag-minnesota-timberwolves","19":"tag-mitchell-robinson","20":"tag-nba","21":"tag-nba-playoffs","22":"tag-new-york-knicks","23":"tag-og-anunoby","24":"tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","25":"tag-pascal-siakam","26":"tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander","27":"tag-tyrese-haliburton"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114592477757588149","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64337","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=64337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64337\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}