2020 NBA Playoffs
A logo used by The Walt Disney Company promoting its hosting of the playoffs at Walt Disney World, using the resort's original 1971 to 1994 logo below.
Tournament details
CityBay Lake, Florida
DatesAugust 17 – October 11, 2020
Season2019–20
Teams16
Final positions
ChampionsLos Angeles Lakers (17th title)
Runner-upMiami Heat
Semifinalists

The 2020 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2019–20 season. The playoffs were originally scheduled to begin on April 18. However, the league suspended the season on March 11, 2020, hours after the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization and after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the virus.[1]

On June 4, the NBA Board of Governors approved a plan to restart the season on July 31 in the NBA Bubble.[2] This proposal was then approved by members of the National Basketball Players Association on June 5. Under this plan, the 22 top teams in the league at the time of the suspension (all the teams who had a mathematical chance at making the playoffs under the 82-game season) played eight additional regular season games to determine playoff seeding, with 16 of those teams playing in a conventional postseason tournament. If the ninth seed within a conference would have finished the regular season within four games of the eighth seed, they would have then competed in a play–in series.[3] The last time a play-in game was played to determine a playoff spot was in 1956.[4]

As part of the bubble, all playoff games were held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex inside Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida.

All three games that were scheduled to take place on August 26 were postponed by a wildcat strike,[5][6] in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, with the Milwaukee Bucks being the first team not to take the court prior to their game five matchup against the Orlando Magic. The games on August 27 and 28 were also postponed, with games resuming on August 29.[7]

The Toronto Raptors were defending champions, but lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals round to the Boston Celtics. None of the teams that made it to the conference finals in the 2019 NBA playoffs made the conference finals in 2020. These were the first playoffs since 1997 without the San Antonio Spurs, as they were eliminated from playoff contention on August 14, 2020, ending what was then the longest active playoff streak in the NBA and in the four major sports leagues in North America.

Overview

Western Conference

  • The Houston Rockets entered their eighth consecutive postseason.
  • The Portland Trail Blazers entered their seventh consecutive postseason. They also became the first Western Conference team since 1997 to qualify for the playoffs despite posting a losing record.
  • The Los Angeles Lakers made the playoffs for the first time in seven years.
  • The Dallas Mavericks made the playoffs for the first time in four years.
  • The Golden State Warriors missed the playoffs for the first time in eight years.
  • Despite being invited to the bubble, the San Antonio Spurs missed the playoffs for the first time in twenty-three years. This was only the fifth time since the merger that the Spurs missed the playoffs.
  • Despite the Phoenix Suns going a perfect 8–0 in the bubble, they missed the playoffs due to the Grizzlies defeating the Bucks and the Blazers defeating the Nets earlier in the day.

Eastern Conference

First round

Conference semifinals

Conference finals

NBA Finals

  • This was the first time that both teams in the NBA Finals failed to make the playoffs in the previous season.
  • Andre Iguodala reached the NBA Finals for the sixth consecutive year, joining LeBron James and James Jones as the only players to do so with two different teams.
  • Before this season, the last time the Heat reached the NBA Finals was in 2014, after which LeBron James ended a four-year stint with the team. James became the second player (after Wilt Chamberlain in 1967) to win MVP with a franchise before later playing against that franchise in the Finals. James was the first Finals MVP to play their previous franchise in the Finals.
  • Anthony Davis joined Kevin Durant, Michael Jordan, Rick Barry, and Hal Greer as the only players in NBA History to score 30+ points in their first two career NBA Finals games.
  • Tyler Herro became the youngest player to start an NBA Finals game at 20 years, 256 days during the Game 2 of the 2020 NBA Finals on October 2, 2020. He was eight days younger than Magic Johnson was when he started Game 1 for the Lakers in 1980.[12]
  • Jimmy Butler became the 3rd player in NBA History to record a 40+ point triple-double in the NBA Finals, joining LeBron James in 2015 and Jerry West in 1969.[13] At the end of Game 3 of the NBA Finals, Butler also became the first player (opponent or teammate) to out-score/-rebound/-assist/ LeBron James in a Finals game.
  • With their Game 6 win over the Miami Heat, the Los Angeles Lakers won their 17th NBA championship, tying the Boston Celtics as the two teams to win the most NBA championships (17). In addition to winning their first championship since 2010, the Lakers also became the first team since the 2008 Boston Celtics (who ironically defeated the Lakers in the 2008 NBA Finals) to win a championship after missing the playoffs the previous season.
  • LeBron James became the first NBA player to win the Finals MVP with three different teams and the third to win a championship with three different teams, joining John Salley and Robert Horry.
  • Anthony Davis became the 8th player to win an Olympic Gold Medal, NCAA Championship, and NBA Championship, joining Clyde Lovellette, Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, Jerry Lucas, Quinn Buckner, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan

Format

After the NBA suspended its season on March 11, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league started to explore implementing a special postseason format just for this year.[14]

On June 4, the NBA Board of Governors approved a plan to restart the season on July 31 in the NBA Bubble, with 22 of the 30 teams in the league, all clubs mathematically alive for a playoff spot under the 82 game schedule. Under this plan, the 22 teams played eight regular-season "seeding" games. A possible best-of-three play-in series for the final seed in each conference would then be held if the ninth seed finished the regular season within four games of the eighth seed. The eighth seed would start with a de facto 1–0 lead, meaning that it would need just one win to advance, while the ninth seed must win two in a row.[15][16] The NBA's regular playoff format proceeded as normal. All games were played behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World.[2]

Under the NBA's regular playoff format, the eight teams with the most wins in each conference qualified for the playoffs. The seedings were based on each team's record. Each conference's bracket was fixed; there was no reseeding. All rounds were best-of-seven series; the series ended when one team won four games, and that team advanced to the next round. All rounds, including the NBA Finals, were in a 2–2–1–1–1 format. In the conference playoffs, home court advantage went to the higher-seeded team (number one being the highest), although since all games were played in the same location, this was merely a designated home court. Seeding was based on each team's regular season record within a conference; if two teams had the same record, standard tiebreaker rules were used. Conference seedings were ignored for the NBA Finals: Home court advantage went to the team with the better regular season record, and, if needed, ties were broken based on head-to-head record, followed by intra-conference record.

Playoff qualifying

On February 23, 2020, the Milwaukee Bucks became the first team to clinch a playoff spot.[17] The Toronto Raptors,[18] Los Angeles Lakers,[19] and Boston Celtics[20] subsequently clinched playoff berths before the season was suspended on March 11.[14]

Denotes team that clinched a playoff berth prior to the March 11 suspension of the season
* Denotes team that automatically clinched a playoff berth or a division title on the June approval of the 22-team plan to resume the season

Eastern Conference

SeedTeamRecordClinched
Playoff berthDivision titleBest record
in conference
Best record
in NBA
1Milwaukee Bucks56–17February 23†[17]June 4*August 6[21]August 8
2Toronto Raptors53–19March 5†[18]August 9
3Boston Celtics48–24March 10†[20]
4Indiana Pacers45–28June 4*[2]
5Miami Heat44–29June 4*[2]June 4*
6Philadelphia 76ers43–30June 4*[2]
7Brooklyn Nets35–37August 7[22]
8Orlando Magic33–40August 7[23]

Western Conference

SeedTeamRecordClinched
Play-inPlayoff berthDivision titleBest record
in conference
Best record
in NBA
1Los Angeles Lakers52–19March 6†[19]August 3[24]August 3[24]
2Los Angeles Clippers49–23June 4*[2]
3Denver Nuggets46–27June 4*[2]August 10
4Houston Rockets44–28June 4*[2]August 9
5Oklahoma City Thunder44–28June 4*[2]
6Utah Jazz44–28June 4*[2]
7Dallas Mavericks43–32August 2[25]
8Portland Trail Blazers35–39August 13August 15
9Memphis Grizzlies34–39August 13

Bracket

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk.

First round Conference semifinals Conference finals NBA Finals
            
E1 Milwaukee* 4
E8 Orlando 1
E1 Milwaukee* 1
E5 Miami* 4
E4 Indiana 0
E5 Miami* 4
E5 Miami* 4
Eastern Conference
E3 Boston 2
E3 Boston 4
E6 Philadelphia 0
E3 Boston 4
E2 Toronto* 3
E2 Toronto* 4
E7 Brooklyn 0
E5 Miami* 2
W1 LA Lakers* 4
W1 LA Lakers* 4
W8 Portland 1
W1 LA Lakers* 4
W4 Houston* 1
W4 Houston* 4
W5 Oklahoma City 3
W1 LA Lakers* 4
Western Conference
W3 Denver* 1
W3 Denver* 4
W6 Utah 3
W3 Denver* 4
W2 LA Clippers 3
W2 LA Clippers 4
W7 Dallas 2
  • * Division winner
  • Bold – series winner
  • Italic – team with home-court advantage

First round

Note: All times are EDT (UTC−4) as listed by the NBA. All games were played behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World.

Eastern Conference first round

(1) Milwaukee Bucks vs. (8) Orlando Magic

August 18
1:30pm
Orlando Magic 122, Milwaukee Bucks 110
Scoring by quarter: 33–23, 29–29, 30–27, 30–31
Pts: Nikola Vučević 35
Rebs: Nikola Vučević 14
Asts: D. J. Augustin 11
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 31
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 17
Asts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 7
Orlando leads series, 1–0
August 20
6:00pm
Orlando Magic 96, Milwaukee Bucks 111
Scoring by quarter: 13–25, 30–39, 30–29, 23–18
Pts: Nikola Vučević 32
Rebs: Ennis, Vučević 10 each
Asts: D. J. Augustin 5
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 28
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 20
Asts: Eric Bledsoe 7
Series tied, 1–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: David Guthrie, James Williams, Tre Maddox
August 22
1:00pm
Milwaukee Bucks 121, Orlando Magic 107
Scoring by quarter: 31–23, 39–20, 29–34, 22–30
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 35
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 11
Asts: Eric Bledsoe 8
Pts: D. J. Augustin 24
Rebs: Gary Clark 8
Asts: D. J. Augustin 6
Milwaukee leads series, 2–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kevin Scott, Michael Smith
August 24
1:30pm
Milwaukee Bucks 121, Orlando Magic 106
Scoring by quarter: 22–18, 36–34, 26–29, 37–25
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 31
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 15
Asts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 8
Pts: Nikola Vučević 31
Rebs: Nikola Vučević 11
Asts: Fultz, Vučević 7 each
Milwaukee leads series, 3–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Ed Malloy, Courtney Kirkland
August 29
3:30pm
Orlando Magic 104, Milwaukee Bucks 118
Scoring by quarter: 21–26, 29–41, 29–23, 25–28
Pts: Nikola Vučević 22
Rebs: Nikola Vučević 15
Asts: Fultz, Vučević 5 each
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 28
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 17
Asts: Eric Bledsoe 8
Milwaukee wins series, 4–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Tony Brothers, Josh Tiven, Tyler Ford

Milwaukee was the first team in the league to refuse to play a game for social justice following the shooting of Jacob Blake.[26]

This was the second playoff meeting between the two teams, with the Bucks winning the first meeting.[27]

(2) Toronto Raptors vs. (7) Brooklyn Nets

August 17
4:00pm
Brooklyn Nets 110, Toronto Raptors 134
Scoring by quarter: 20–37, 31–36, 35–22, 24–39
Pts: Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot 26
Rebs: Jarrett Allen 12
Asts: Caris LeVert 15
Pts: Fred VanVleet 30
Rebs: Pascal Siakam 11
Asts: Fred VanVleet 11
Toronto leads series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Tony Brown, Leon Wood
August 19
1:30pm
Brooklyn Nets 99, Toronto Raptors 104
Scoring by quarter: 33–29, 20–21, 27–24, 19–30
Pts: Garrett Temple 21
Rebs: Allen, Harris 15 each
Asts: Caris LeVert 11
Pts: Powell, VanVleet 24 each
Rebs: Kyle Lowry 9
Asts: Fred VanVleet 10
Toronto leads series, 2–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Sean Corbin, Brian Forte
August 21
1:30pm
Toronto Raptors 117, Brooklyn Nets 92
Scoring by quarter: 24–17, 33–25, 27–26, 33–24
Pts: Pascal Siakam 26
Rebs: Serge Ibaka 13
Asts: Kyle Lowry 7
Pts: Tyler Johnson 23
Rebs: Jarrett Allen 17
Asts: Caris LeVert 6
Toronto leads series, 3–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Pat Fraher, Kevin Cutler
August 23
6:30pm
Toronto Raptors 150, Brooklyn Nets 122
Scoring by quarter: 39–32, 38–36, 39–19, 34–35
Pts: Norman Powell 29
Rebs: Serge Ibaka 15
Asts: Pascal Siakam 10
Pts: Caris LeVert 35
Rebs: Jarrett Allen 15
Asts: Chiozza, LeVert 6 each
Toronto wins series, 4–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Rodney Mott, Derrick Collins

Toronto set an NBA playoff record in Game 4 with 100 bench points in a single game.[28]

This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Nets winning the two previous meetings.[29]

(3) Boston Celtics vs. (6) Philadelphia 76ers

August 17
6:30pm
Philadelphia 76ers 101, Boston Celtics 109
Scoring by quarter: 26–25, 23–30, 30–20, 22–34
Pts: Joel Embiid 26
Rebs: Joel Embiid 16
Asts: Tobias Harris 8
Pts: Jayson Tatum 32
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 13
Asts: Kemba Walker 5
Boston leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Pat Fraher, Sean Corbin
August 19
6:30pm
Philadelphia 76ers 101, Boston Celtics 128
Scoring by quarter: 33–27, 24–38, 18–33, 26–30
Pts: Joel Embiid 34
Rebs: Tobias Harris 11
Asts: Shake Milton 4
Pts: Jayson Tatum 33
Rebs: Enes Kanter 9
Asts: Jayson Tatum 5
Boston leads series, 2–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Tony Brown, Curtis Blair
August 21
6:30pm
Boston Celtics 102, Philadelphia 76ers 94
Scoring by quarter: 26–24, 25–25, 25–23, 26–22
Pts: Kemba Walker 24
Rebs: Smart, Walker 8 each
Asts: Kemba Walker 4
Pts: Joel Embiid 30
Rebs: Tobias Harris 15
Asts: Tobias Harris 4
Boston leads series, 3–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Sean Wright, Courtney Kirkland
August 23
1:00pm
Boston Celtics 110, Philadelphia 76ers 106
Scoring by quarter: 27–32, 30–26, 32–19, 21–29
Pts: Kemba Walker 32
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 15
Asts: Smart, Tatum, Walker 4 each
Pts: Joel Embiid 30
Rebs: Embiid, Horford 10 each
Asts: Josh Richardson 5
Boston wins series, 4–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis, Dedric Taylor

This was the 22nd playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning 13 of the first 21 meetings.[30]

(4) Indiana Pacers vs. (5) Miami Heat

August 18
4:00pm
Miami Heat 113, Indiana Pacers 101
Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 29–19, 25–28, 32–21
Pts: Jimmy Butler 28
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 10
Asts: Bam Adebayo 6
Pts: T. J. Warren 22
Rebs: Myles Turner 9
Asts: Malcolm Brogdon 10
Miami leads series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: David Guthrie, Ed Malloy, Tyler Ford
August 20
1:00pm
Miami Heat 109, Indiana Pacers 100
Scoring by quarter: 22–24, 29–22, 37–31, 21–23
Pts: Duncan Robinson 24
Rebs: Jae Crowder 8
Asts: Dragić, Butler 6 each
Pts: Victor Oladipo 22
Rebs: Myles Turner 8
Asts: Malcolm Brogdon 9
Miami leads series, 2–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Josh Tiven, Derrick Collins
August 22
3:30pm
Indiana Pacers 115, Miami Heat 124
Scoring by quarter: 27–34, 29–40, 34–20, 25–30
Pts: Malcolm Brogdon 34
Rebs: Myles Turner 12
Asts: Malcolm Brogdon 14
Pts: Jimmy Butler 27
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 11
Asts: Goran Dragić 6
Miami leads series, 3–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Tony Brothers, Tre Maddox, Ben Taylor
August 24
6:30pm
Indiana Pacers 87, Miami Heat 99
Scoring by quarter: 22–21, 20–27, 20–22, 25–29
Pts: Victor Oladipo 25
Rebs: Myles Turner 14
Asts: Malcolm Brogdon 7
Pts: Goran Dragić 23
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 19
Asts: Bam Adebayo 6
Miami wins series, 4–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kevin Scott, Gediminas Petraitis

This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Heat winning three of the first four meetings.[31]

Western Conference first round

(1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (8) Portland Trail Blazers

August 18
9:00pm
Portland Trail Blazers 100, Los Angeles Lakers 93
Scoring by quarter: 36–25, 21–31, 21–19, 22–18
Pts: Damian Lillard 34
Rebs: Jusuf Nurkić 15
Asts: Anthony, Lillard 5 each
Pts: Anthony Davis 28
Rebs: LeBron James 17
Asts: LeBron James 16
Portland leads series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Tre Maddox, James Williams

Despite a losing effort, LeBron James had the first 20-point, 15 rebound, 15 assist performance in NBA playoff history.

August 20
9:00pm
Portland Trail Blazers 88, Los Angeles Lakers 111
Scoring by quarter: 19–27, 20–29, 19–32, 30–23
Pts: Damian Lillard 18
Rebs: Hassan Whiteside 9
Asts: CJ McCollum 3
Pts: Anthony Davis 31
Rebs: Anthony Davis 11
Asts: LeBron James 7
Series tied, 1–1
August 22
8:30pm
Los Angeles Lakers 116, Portland Trail Blazers 108
Scoring by quarter: 25–29, 28–28, 40–29, 23–22
Pts: LeBron James 38
Rebs: LeBron James 12
Asts: Davis, James 8 each
Pts: Damian Lillard 34
Rebs: McCollum, Whiteside 8 each
Asts: Damian Lillard 7
LA Lakers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Josh Tiven, Mark Ayotte
August 24
9:00pm
Los Angeles Lakers 135, Portland Trail Blazers 115
Scoring by quarter: 43–25, 37–26, 32–36, 23–28
Pts: LeBron James 30
Rebs: McGee, Howard 8 each
Asts: LeBron James 10
Pts: Jusuf Nurkić 20
Rebs: Jusuf Nurkić 13
Asts: Anfernee Simons 6
LA Lakers lead series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: David Guthrie, Rodney Mott, Ben Taylor
August 29
9:00pm
Portland Trail Blazers 122, Los Angeles Lakers 131
Scoring by quarter: 31–35, 37–33, 24–32, 30–31
Pts: CJ McCollum 36
Rebs: Jusuf Nurkić 10
Asts: CJ McCollum 7
Pts: Anthony Davis 43
Rebs: LeBron James 10
Asts: LeBron James 10
LA Lakers win series, 4–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kevin Scott, Curtis Blair

This was the Lakers first playoff series win since 2012.

Game 5 was postponed by the league after the Lakers and Trail Blazers refused to play.[32]

This was the 12th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning nine of the first eleven meetings.[33]

(2) Los Angeles Clippers vs. (7) Dallas Mavericks

August 17
9:00pm
Dallas Mavericks 110, Los Angeles Clippers 118
Scoring by quarter: 38–34, 31–32, 13–21, 28–31
Pts: Luka Dončić 42
Rebs: Boban Marjanović 8
Asts: Luka Dončić 9
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 29
Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 12
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 6
LA Clippers lead series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis, Mark Ayotte

Dončić's 42 points are the most points in a playoff debut. Following the game, many people, including LeBron James and current Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, criticized the officials for controversially ejecting Porziņģis during the 3rd quarter after he received two technical fouls that the critics considered "bogus".[34]

August 19
9:00pm
Dallas Mavericks 127, Los Angeles Clippers 114
Scoring by quarter: 29–25, 32–31, 37–29, 29–29
Pts: Luka Dončić 28
Rebs: Maxi Kleber 10
Asts: Luka Dončić 7
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 35
Rebs: George, Leonard 10 each
Asts: Lou Williams 7
Series tied, 1–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Sean Wright, Courtney Kirkland
August 21
9:00pm
Los Angeles Clippers 130, Dallas Mavericks 122
Scoring by quarter: 23–23, 45–31, 34–31, 28–37
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 36
Rebs: George, Leonard 9 each
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 8
Pts: Kristaps Porziņģis 34
Rebs: Kristaps Porziņģis 13
Asts: Luka Dončić 10
LA Clippers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Tony Brown, Curtis Blair
August 23
3:30pm
Los Angeles Clippers 133, Dallas Mavericks 135 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 34–24, 32–34, 19–35, 36–28, Overtime: 12–14
Pts: Lou Williams 36
Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 9
Asts: Lou Williams 5
Pts: Luka Dončić 43
Rebs: Luka Dončić 17
Asts: Luka Dončić 13
Series tied, 2–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, James Williams, Kevin Cutler

Down by 1, Luka Dončić hit the game-winning 3 point buzzer-beater at the end of overtime. He becomes the youngest player to hit a buzzer-beater in the playoffs. His winning shot capped an incredible triple-double performance with 43 points, 17 rebounds, and 13 assists.

August 25
9:00pm
Dallas Mavericks 111, Los Angeles Clippers 154
Scoring by quarter: 22–41, 30–35, 34–35, 25–43
Pts: Luka Dončić 22
Rebs: Luka Dončić 8
Asts: Dončić, Finney-Smith 4 each
Pts: Paul George 35
Rebs: Montrezl Harrell 11
Asts: Reggie Jackson 5
LA Clippers lead series, 3–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Pat Fraher, Tre Maddox

The Clippers set 5 franchise records in this game, including: most points scored in a playoff game, as well as most 3-pointers made in a playoff game, as they shot 22-of-35 from long range.

August 30
3:30pm
Los Angeles Clippers 111, Dallas Mavericks 97
Scoring by quarter: 29–34, 28–17, 28–23, 26–23
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 33
Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 14
Asts: George, Leonard 7 each
Pts: Luka Dončić 38
Rebs: Burke, Dončić 9 each
Asts: Luka Dončić 9
LA Clippers win series, 4–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Bill Kennedy, Sean Corbin

Kawhi Leonard became the first player since 2000 to have 30+ points, 10+ rebounds, 5+ assists and 5+ steals in a playoff game.

This was the first playoff meeting between the Clippers and the Mavericks.[35]

(3) Denver Nuggets vs. (6) Utah Jazz

August 17
1:30pm
Utah Jazz 125, Denver Nuggets 135 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 25–31, 27–28, 31–19, 32–37, Overtime: 10–20
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 57
Rebs: Bradley, Mitchell 9 each
Asts: Donovan Mitchell 7
Pts: Jamal Murray 36
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 10
Asts: Jamal Murray 9
Denver leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Sean Wright, Curtis Blair

Mitchell's 57 points became the third most points scored in a single playoff game.

August 19
4:00pm
Utah Jazz 124, Denver Nuggets 105
Scoring by quarter: 27–25, 34–23, 43–29, 20–28
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 30
Rebs: Bradley, Gobert, O'Neale 7 each
Asts: Mitchell, O'Neale 8 each
Pts: Jokić, Porter Jr. 28 each
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 11
Asts: Nikola Jokić 6
Series tied, 1–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Pat Fraher, Michael Smith
August 21
4:00pm
Denver Nuggets 87, Utah Jazz 124
Scoring by quarter: 14–25, 28–34, 20–35, 25–30
Pts: Nikola Jokić 15
Rebs: Plumlee, Dozier 6 each
Asts: Jokić, Murray 6 each
Pts: Mike Conley 27
Rebs: Rudy Gobert 14
Asts: Joe Ingles 8
Utah leads series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis, Tyler Ford
August 23
9:00pm
Denver Nuggets 127, Utah Jazz 129
Scoring by quarter: 36–33, 29–31, 24–33, 38–32
Pts: Jamal Murray 50
Rebs: Jamal Murray 11
Asts: Jamal Murray 7
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 51
Rebs: Rudy Gobert 11
Asts: Donovan Mitchell 7
Utah leads series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Sean Corbin, Brian Forte

This was the first playoff game in NBA history in which two players scored 50 points.

August 25
6:30pm
Utah Jazz 107, Denver Nuggets 117
Scoring by quarter: 32–33, 31–21, 23–28, 21–35
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 30
Rebs: Rudy Gobert 12
Asts: Conley, Mitchell 5 each
Pts: Jamal Murray 42
Rebs: Jamal Murray 8
Asts: Jamal Murray 8
Utah leads series, 3–2
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Tony Brown, James Williams
August 30
8:30pm
Denver Nuggets 119, Utah Jazz 107
Scoring by quarter: 30–36, 31–20, 27–23, 31–28
Pts: Jamal Murray 50
Rebs: Michael Porter Jr. 12
Asts: Nikola Jokić 9
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 44
Rebs: Rudy Gobert 11
Asts: Mike Conley 6
Series tied, 3–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Sean Wright, Courtney Kirkland
September 1
8:30pm
Utah Jazz 78, Denver Nuggets 80
Scoring by quarter: 21–26, 15–24, 24–15, 18–15
Pts: Donovan Mitchell 22
Rebs: Rudy Gobert 18
Asts: Mike Conley 7
Pts: Nikola Jokić 30
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 14
Asts: Monté Morris 5
Denver wins series, 4–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, David Guthrie, Bill Kennedy

Denver became the 12th team in NBA history to come back from a 3–1 deficit. Nikola Jokić scored the go-ahead hook shot with 27.8 seconds remaining in regulation. Mike Conley Jr.'s potential series-winning three-pointer at the buzzer rimmed out.

This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Jazz winning three of the first four meetings.[36]

(4) Houston Rockets vs. (5) Oklahoma City Thunder

August 18
6:30pm
Oklahoma City Thunder 108, Houston Rockets 123
Scoring by quarter: 20–28, 32–40, 31–36, 25–19
Pts: Danilo Gallinari 29
Rebs: Steven Adams 12
Asts: Chris Paul 9
Pts: James Harden 37
Rebs: James Harden 11
Asts: Danuel House 5
Houston leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Josh Tiven, Derrick Collins
August 20
3:30pm
Oklahoma City Thunder 98, Houston Rockets 111
Scoring by quarter: 30–35, 29–18, 19–24, 20–34
Pts: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 31
Rebs: Steven Adams 11
Asts: Dennis Schröder 5
Pts: James Harden 21
Rebs: Danuel House 9
Asts: James Harden 9
Houston leads series, 2–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kevin Scott, Gediminas Petraitis
August 22
6:00pm
Houston Rockets 107, Oklahoma City Thunder 119 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 29–23, 34–34, 19–21, 22–26, Overtime: 3–15
Pts: James Harden 38
Rebs: Danuel House 10
Asts: James Harden 8
Pts: Dennis Schröder 29
Rebs: Steven Adams 13
Asts: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 6
Houston leads series, 2–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: David Guthrie, Ed Malloy, Leon Wood
August 24
4:00pm
Houston Rockets 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 117
Scoring by quarter: 37–35, 23–25, 33–32, 21–25
Pts: James Harden 32
Rebs: P. J. Tucker 11
Asts: James Harden 15
Pts: Dennis Schröder 30
Rebs: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 12
Asts: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 6
Series tied, 2–2
August 29
6:30pm
Oklahoma City Thunder 80, Houston Rockets 114
Scoring by quarter: 14–24, 31–24, 18–37, 17–29
Pts: Dennis Schröder 19
Rebs: Steven Adams 14
Asts: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 4
Pts: James Harden 31
Rebs: Jeff Green 10
Asts: Russell Westbrook 7
Houston leads series, 3–2
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Eric Lewis, Rodney Mott

Game 5 was postponed by the league following a boycott by the Rockets and Thunder.[37]

August 31
9:00pm
Houston Rockets 100, Oklahoma City Thunder 104
Scoring by quarter: 25–24, 26–24, 24–29, 25–27
Pts: James Harden 32
Rebs: P. J. Tucker 11
Asts: James Harden 7
Pts: Chris Paul 28
Rebs: Steven Adams 14
Asts: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 6
Series tied, 3–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Josh Tiven, Kevin Scott
September 2
9:00pm
Oklahoma City Thunder 102, Houston Rockets 104
Scoring by quarter: 30–29, 29–32, 21–24, 22–19
Pts: Luguentz Dort 30
Rebs: Chris Paul 11
Asts: Chris Paul 12
Pts: Covington, Gordon 21 each
Rebs: Robert Covington 10
Asts: James Harden 9
Houston wins series, 4–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Pat Fraher, Tony Brown

This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Thunder/SuperSonics winning six of the first eight meetings.[38]

Conference semifinals

Note: All times are EDT (UTC−4) as listed by the NBA. All games were played behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World.

Eastern Conference semifinals

(1) Milwaukee Bucks vs. (5) Miami Heat

August 31
6:30pm
Miami Heat 115, Milwaukee Bucks 104
Scoring by quarter: 29–40, 31–23, 32–23, 23–18
Pts: Jimmy Butler 40
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 17
Asts: Bam Adebayo 6
Pts: Khris Middleton 28
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 10
Asts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 9
Miami leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis, Rodney Mott
September 2
6:30pm
Miami Heat 116, Milwaukee Bucks 114
Scoring by quarter: 38–29, 28–31, 24–26, 26–28
Pts: Goran Dragić 23
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 9
Asts: Jimmy Butler 6
Pts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 29
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 14
Asts: Khris Middleton 8
Miami leads series, 2–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Sean Wright, Kevin Scott

After being fouled by Giannis Antetokounmpo on a game-winning shot attempt as time expired in regulation, Jimmy Butler won the game for Miami with a pair of walk-off free throws. This marked the first time a playoff game had ended in such a fashion since Game 1 of the 1979 NBA Finals.[39]

September 4
6:30pm
Milwaukee Bucks 100, Miami Heat 115
Scoring by quarter: 30–29, 27–21, 30–25, 13–40
Pts: Brook Lopez 22
Rebs: Giannis Antetokounmpo 16
Asts: Giannis Antetokounmpo 9
Pts: Jimmy Butler 30
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 16
Asts: Jimmy Butler 6
Miami leads series, 3–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, David Guthrie, Sean Corbin
September 6
3:30pm
Milwaukee Bucks 118, Miami Heat 115 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 22–31, 28–17, 35–40, 22–19, Overtime: 11–8
Pts: Khris Middleton 36
Rebs: Eric Bledsoe 10
Asts: Khris Middleton 8
Pts: Bam Adebayo 26
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 12
Asts: Adebayo, Dragić 8 each
Miami leads series, 3–1
September 8
6:30pm
Miami Heat 103, Milwaukee Bucks 94
Scoring by quarter: 19–28, 33–18, 21–19, 30–29
Pts: Butler, Dragić 17 each
Rebs: Jimmy Butler 10
Asts: Butler, Herro 6 each
Pts: Khris Middleton 23
Rebs: Brook Lopez 14
Asts: Eric Bledsoe 9
Miami wins series, 4–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Josh Tiven, Rodney Mott

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Heat winning the previous meeting.[40]

(2) Toronto Raptors vs. (3) Boston Celtics

August 30
1:00pm
Boston Celtics 112, Toronto Raptors 94
Scoring by quarter: 39–23, 20–19, 29–31, 24–21
Pts: Smart, Tatum 21 each
Rebs: Daniel Theis 15
Asts: Kemba Walker 10
Pts: Kyle Lowry 17
Rebs: Serge Ibaka 9
Asts: Lowry, VanVleet 8 each
Boston leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Ed Malloy, James Williams

Both teams discussed a boycott of Game 1, similar to the Milwaukee Bucks, in protest due to the shooting of Jacob Blake. The game was eventually postponed.

September 1
5:30pm
Boston Celtics 102, Toronto Raptors 99
Scoring by quarter: 28–28, 22–20, 20–30, 32–21
Pts: Jayson Tatum 34
Rebs: Daniel Theis 9
Asts: Jayson Tatum 6
Pts: OG Anunoby 20
Rebs: Serge Ibaka 9
Asts: Lowry, VanVleet 7 each
Boston leads series, 2–0
September 3
6:30pm
Toronto Raptors 104, Boston Celtics 103
Scoring by quarter: 28–33, 19–24, 29–23, 28–23
Pts: Kyle Lowry 31
Rebs: OG Anunoby 10
Asts: Kyle Lowry 8
Pts: Kemba Walker 29
Rebs: Jaylen Brown 12
Asts: Jayson Tatum 6
Boston leads series, 2–1
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Josh Tiven, Rodney Mott

With 0.5 seconds on the clock and Toronto trailing by 2, Kyle Lowry threw a cross-court inbounds pass to OG Anunoby, who made a 3-point shot as the buzzer sounded to win the game for Toronto.

September 5
6:30pm
Toronto Raptors 100, Boston Celtics 93
Scoring by quarter: 31–27, 18–22, 32–24, 19–20
Pts: Pascal Siakam 23
Rebs: Lowry, Siakam 11 each
Asts: Kyle Lowry 7
Pts: Jayson Tatum 24
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 10
Asts: Kemba Walker 8
Series tied, 2–2
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Bill Kennedy, Kevin Scott
September 7
6:30pm
Boston Celtics 111, Toronto Raptors 89
Scoring by quarter: 25–11, 37–24, 25–28, 24–26
Pts: Jaylen Brown 27
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 10
Asts: Kemba Walker 7
Pts: Fred VanVleet 18
Rebs: OG Anunoby 7
Asts: Lowry, VanVleet 5 each
Boston leads series, 3–2
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis, Courtney Kirkland
September 9
6:30pm
Toronto Raptors 125, Boston Celtics 122 (2OT)
Scoring by quarter: 21–25, 27–27, 33–25, 17–21, Overtime: 8–8, 19–16
Pts: Kyle Lowry 33
Rebs: OG Anunoby 13
Asts: Fred VanVleet 7
Pts: Jaylen Brown 31
Rebs: Jaylen Brown 16
Asts: Marcus Smart 10
Series tied, 3–3
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Tony Brothers, Sean Wright
September 11
9:00pm
Boston Celtics 92, Toronto Raptors 87
Scoring by quarter: 26–27, 24–19, 22–25, 20–16
Pts: Jayson Tatum 29
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 12
Asts: Jayson Tatum 7
Pts: Fred VanVleet 20
Rebs: Pascal Siakam 11
Asts: Fred VanVleet 6
Boston wins series, 4–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Zach Zarba, David Guthrie

This was the first playoff meeting between the Raptors and the Celtics.[41] This was also the first best-of-7 playoff series in NBA history where the road team won every game (and the second overall in North American sports history in addition to the 2019 World Series), although all 7 games were played at a neutral site.

Western Conference semifinals

(1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (4) Houston Rockets

September 4
9:00pm
Houston Rockets 112, Los Angeles Lakers 97
Scoring by quarter: 29–28, 34–27, 22–24, 27–18
Pts: James Harden 36
Rebs: Tucker, Westbrook 9 each
Asts: Russell Westbrook 6
Pts: Anthony Davis 25
Rebs: Anthony Davis 14
Asts: LeBron James 7
Houston leads series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Sean Wright, Ben Taylor
September 6
8:30pm
Houston Rockets 109, Los Angeles Lakers 117
Scoring by quarter: 20–36, 31–31, 41–23, 17–27
Pts: James Harden 27
Rebs: Russell Westbrook 13
Asts: James Harden 7
Pts: Anthony Davis 34
Rebs: LeBron James 11
Asts: James, Rondo 9 each
Series tied, 1–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Josh Tiven, Curtis Blair
September 8
9:00pm
Los Angeles Lakers 112, Houston Rockets 102
Scoring by quarter: 32–33, 29–31, 21–18, 30–20
Pts: LeBron James 36
Rebs: Anthony Davis 15
Asts: Rajon Rondo 9
Pts: James Harden 33
Rebs: James Harden 9
Asts: James Harden 9
LA Lakers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Pat Fraher, Tre Maddox
September 10
7:00pm
Los Angeles Lakers 110, Houston Rockets 100
Scoring by quarter: 26–22, 31–19, 29–29, 24–30
Pts: Anthony Davis 29
Rebs: LeBron James 15
Asts: LeBron James 9
Pts: Russell Westbrook 26
Rebs: Jeff Green 7
Asts: James Harden 10
LA Lakers lead series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Tony Brown, Courtney Kirkland
September 12
8:00pm
Houston Rockets 96, Los Angeles Lakers 119
Scoring by quarter: 20–35, 31–27, 18–33, 27–24
Pts: James Harden 30
Rebs: James Harden 6
Asts: Russell Westbrook 6
Pts: LeBron James 29
Rebs: Davis, James 11 each
Asts: LeBron James 7
LA Lakers win series, 4–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Eric Lewis, Bill Kennedy

This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning five of the first eight meetings.[42]

(2) Los Angeles Clippers vs. (3) Denver Nuggets

September 3
9:00pm
Denver Nuggets 97, Los Angeles Clippers 120
Scoring by quarter: 31–31, 20–38, 16–22, 30–29
Pts: Nikola Jokić 15
Rebs: Paul Millsap 9
Asts: Jamal Murray 6
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 29
Rebs: three players 7 each
Asts: George, Williams 4 each
LA Clippers lead series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Eric Lewis, James Williams
September 5
9:00pm
Denver Nuggets 110, Los Angeles Clippers 101
Scoring by quarter: 44–25, 28–31, 17–21, 21–24
Pts: Jamal Murray 27
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 18
Asts: Jamal Murray 6
Pts: Paul George 22
Rebs: JaMychal Green 11
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 8
Series tied, 1–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Pat Fraher, Tre Maddox
September 7
9:00pm
Los Angeles Clippers 113, Denver Nuggets 107
Scoring by quarter: 33–32, 24–27, 27–29, 29–19
Pts: Paul George 32
Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 14
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 6
Pts: Nikola Jokić 32
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 12
Asts: Jamal Murray 9
LA Clippers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Tony Brown, Ed Malloy
September 9
9:00pm
Los Angeles Clippers 96, Denver Nuggets 85
Scoring by quarter: 26–12, 22–28, 25–23, 23–22
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 30
Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 11
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 9
Pts: Nikola Jokić 26
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 11
Asts: Jamal Murray 7
LA Clippers lead series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, David Guthrie, Bill Kennedy
September 11
6:30pm
Denver Nuggets 111, Los Angeles Clippers 105
Scoring by quarter: 23–28, 21–28, 29–24, 38–25
Pts: Jamal Murray 26
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 14
Asts: Jamal Murray 7
Pts: Kawhi Leonard 36
Rebs: Leonard, Zubac 9 each
Asts: Paul George 6
LA Clippers lead series, 3–2
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Tony Brothers, Kevin Scott
September 13
1:00pm
Los Angeles Clippers 98, Denver Nuggets 111
Scoring by quarter: 34–26, 29–21, 16–30, 19–34
Pts: Paul George 33
Rebs: Ivica Zubac 12
Asts: Kawhi Leonard 5
Pts: Nikola Jokić 34
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 14
Asts: Nikola Jokić 7
Series tied, 3–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Kane Fitzgerald, Josh Tiven, Tre Maddox
September 15
9:00pm
Denver Nuggets 104, Los Angeles Clippers 89
Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 30–32, 28–18, 22–15
Pts: Jamal Murray 40
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 22
Asts: Nikola Jokić 13
Pts: Montrezl Harrell 20
Rebs: Leonard, Morris, Green 6 each
Asts: Leonard, Beverley, Williams 6 each
Denver wins series, 4–3
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, John Goble, Eric Lewis

This was the first time that an NBA team overcame a 3–1 deficit twice in the same playoffs, and the first time an NBA franchise did so twice in the same decade.

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Clippers winning the previous meeting.[43]

Conference finals

Note: All times are EDT (UTC−4) as listed by the NBA. All games were played behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World.

Eastern Conference finals

(3) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Miami Heat

September 15
6:30pm
Miami Heat 117, Boston Celtics 114 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 18–26, 37–29, 16–28, 35–23, Overtime: 11–8
Pts: Goran Dragić 29
Rebs: Tyler Herro 11
Asts: Adebayo, Herro 9 each
Pts: Jayson Tatum 30
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 14
Asts: Walker, Wanamaker 6 each
Miami leads series, 1–0
HP Field House, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kane Fitzgerald, Sean Wright
September 17
7:00pm
Miami Heat 106, Boston Celtics 101
Scoring by quarter: 28–31, 19–29, 37–17, 22–24
Pts: Goran Dragić 25
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 10
Asts: Dragić, Herro 5 each
Pts: Kemba Walker 23
Rebs: Daniel Theis 8
Asts: Smart, Tatum 4 each
Miami leads series, 2–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, David Guthrie, Tony Brown
September 19
8:30pm
Boston Celtics 117, Miami Heat 106
Scoring by quarter: 31–22, 32–28, 26–24, 28–32
Pts: Jaylen Brown 26
Rebs: Jayson Tatum 14
Asts: Jayson Tatum 8
Pts: Bam Adebayo 27
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 16
Asts: Crowder, Dragić 5 each
Miami leads series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Eric Lewis, Pat Fraher
September 23
8:30pm
Boston Celtics 109, Miami Heat 112
Scoring by quarter: 23–24, 21–26, 32–27, 33–35
Pts: Jayson Tatum 28
Rebs: Brown, Tatum, Theis 9 each
Asts: Marcus Smart 11
Pts: Tyler Herro 37
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 12
Asts: Bam Adebayo 4
Miami leads series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Tony Brothers, Tre Maddox
September 25
8:30pm
Miami Heat 108, Boston Celtics 121
Scoring by quarter: 26–18, 32–33, 25–41, 25–29
Pts: Goran Dragić 23
Rebs: Adebayo, Butler 8 each
Asts: Adebayo, Butler 8 each
Pts: Jayson Tatum 31
Rebs: Daniel Theis 13
Asts: Marcus Smart 8
Miami leads series, 3–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Josh Tiven, Kevin Scott
September 27
7:30pm
Boston Celtics 113, Miami Heat 125
Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 33–29, 26–26, 27–37
Pts: Jaylen Brown 26
Rebs: Brown, Smart 8 each
Asts: Jayson Tatum 11
Pts: Bam Adebayo 32
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 14
Asts: Jimmy Butler 8
Miami wins series, 4–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kane Fitzgerald, Pat Fraher

This was the fourth playoff meeting between the two teams, with the Heat winning two of the first three meetings.[44]

Western Conference finals

(1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) Denver Nuggets

September 18
9:00 PM
Denver Nuggets 114, Los Angeles Lakers 126
Scoring by quarter: 38–36, 21–34, 20–33, 33–23
Pts: Jokić, Murray 21 each
Rebs: Michael Porter Jr. 10
Asts: Jamal Murray 5
Pts: Anthony Davis 37
Rebs: Anthony Davis 10
Asts: LeBron James 12
LA Lakers lead series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Tony Brothers, Courtney Kirkland
September 20
7:30 PM
Denver Nuggets 103, Los Angeles Lakers 105
Scoring by quarter: 21–29, 29–31, 28–22, 25–23
Pts: Nikola Jokić 30
Rebs: Paul Millsap 8
Asts: Nikola Jokić 9
Pts: Anthony Davis 31
Rebs: LeBron James 11
Asts: Rajon Rondo 9
LA Lakers lead series, 2–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: John Goble, Josh Tiven, Bill Kennedy

Anthony Davis scored 31 points, including a 3-point shot over Nikola Jokić at the buzzer, to give the Lakers a 2–0 lead in the Western Conference finals.

September 22
9:00 PM
Los Angeles Lakers 106, Denver Nuggets 114
Scoring by quarter: 27–29, 26–34, 22–30, 31–21
Pts: LeBron James 30
Rebs: LeBron James 10
Asts: LeBron James 11
Pts: Jamal Murray 28
Rebs: Nikola Jokić 10
Asts: Jamal Murray 12
LA Lakers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kane Fitzgerald, Kevin Scott
September 24
9:00 PM
Los Angeles Lakers 114, Denver Nuggets 108
Scoring by quarter: 37–30, 23–25, 27–29, 27–24
Pts: Anthony Davis 34
Rebs: Dwight Howard 11
Asts: LeBron James 8
Pts: Jamal Murray 32
Rebs: Michael Porter Jr. 8
Asts: Jamal Murray 8
LA Lakers lead series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, David Guthrie, Rodney Mott
September 26
9:00 PM
Denver Nuggets 107, Los Angeles Lakers 117
Scoring by quarter: 30–33, 21–28, 33–26, 23–30
Pts: Grant, Jokić 20 each
Rebs: Jerami Grant 9
Asts: Jamal Murray 8
Pts: LeBron James 38
Rebs: LeBron James 16
Asts: LeBron James 10
LA Lakers win series, 4–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, Eric Lewis, Tony Brown

This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning the first six meetings.[45]

NBA Finals: (W1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (E5) Miami Heat

Note: All times are EDT (UTC−4) as listed by the NBA. All games were played behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World.
September 30
9:00pm
Miami Heat 98, Los Angeles Lakers 116
Scoring by quarter: 28–31, 20–34, 19–28, 31–23
Pts: Jimmy Butler 23
Rebs: Iguodala, Nunn, Olynyk 5 each
Asts: Andre Iguodala 6
Pts: Anthony Davis 34
Rebs: LeBron James 13
Asts: LeBron James 9
LA Lakers lead series, 1–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kane Fitzgerald, Josh Tiven
October 2
9:00pm
Miami Heat 114, Los Angeles Lakers 124
Scoring by quarter: 23–29, 31–39, 39–35, 21–21
Pts: Jimmy Butler 25
Rebs: Kelly Olynyk 9
Asts: Jimmy Butler 13
Pts: LeBron James 33
Rebs: Anthony Davis 14
Asts: Rajon Rondo 10
LA Lakers lead series, 2–0
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, David Guthrie, Eric Lewis
October 4
7:30pm
Los Angeles Lakers 104, Miami Heat 115
Scoring by quarter: 23–26, 31–32, 26–27, 24–30
Pts: LeBron James 25
Rebs: LeBron James 10
Asts: LeBron James 8
Pts: Jimmy Butler 40
Rebs: Jimmy Butler 11
Asts: Jimmy Butler 13
LA Lakers lead series, 2–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Scott Foster, Tony Brothers, Pat Fraher
October 6
9:00pm
Los Angeles Lakers 102, Miami Heat 96
Scoring by quarter: 27–22, 22–25, 26–23, 27–26
Pts: LeBron James 28
Rebs: LeBron James 12
Asts: LeBron James 8
Pts: Jimmy Butler 22
Rebs: Jimmy Butler 10
Asts: Jimmy Butler 9
LA Lakers lead series, 3–1
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Zach Zarba, John Goble, Tony Brown
October 9
9:00pm
Miami Heat 111, Los Angeles Lakers 108
Scoring by quarter: 25–24, 35–32, 28–26, 23–26
Pts: Jimmy Butler 35
Rebs: Jimmy Butler 12
Asts: Jimmy Butler 11
Pts: LeBron James 40
Rebs: LeBron James 13
Asts: LeBron James 7
LA Lakers lead series, 3–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: Marc Davis, Kane Fitzgerald, Eric Lewis
October 11
7:30pm
Los Angeles Lakers 106, Miami Heat 93
Scoring by quarter: 28–20, 36–16, 23–22, 19–35
Pts: LeBron James 28
Rebs: Anthony Davis 15
Asts: LeBron James 10
Pts: Bam Adebayo 25
Rebs: Bam Adebayo 10
Asts: Jimmy Butler 8
LA Lakers win series, 4–2
AdventHealth Arena, Bay Lake, Florida
Referees: James Capers, Tony Brothers, David Guthrie

This was the first playoff meeting between the Lakers and the Heat.[46]

Statistical leaders

CategoryGame HighAverage
PlayerTeamHighPlayerTeamAvg.GP
Points Donovan MitchellUtah Jazz57 Donovan MitchellUtah Jazz36.37
Rebounds Nikola JokićDenver Nuggets22 Jarrett AllenBrooklyn Nets14.84
Assists LeBron JamesLos Angeles Lakers16 Malcolm BrogdonIndiana Pacers10.04
Steals Fred VanVleetToronto Raptors6 Robert CovingtonHouston Rockets2.512
Blocks Hassan Whiteside
Myles Turner
Portland Trail Blazers
Indiana Pacers
5 Myles TurnerIndiana Pacers4.04

Media coverage

Television

ESPN, ABC, TNT, and NBA TV broadcast the playoffs nationally in the United States. During the first two rounds, games were split between TNT, ESPN, and ABC regardless of conference. With the start of the playoffs delayed to August, some games played during the weekday afternoon, and games postponed by the wildcat strike, the TV schedule for the first two rounds differed from previous seasons due to scheduling conflicts. For instance, TNT aired some Friday games instead of its usual Sunday through Thursday schedule. Likewise ESPN broadcast games on some of those days when TNT would normally air them. Also, ABC aired a rare Tuesday night first-round game on September 1. NBA TV also televised selected games in the first round. Regional sports networks affiliated with the teams also broadcast the games, except for games televised on ABC.

TNT exclusively aired the NBA Western Conference finals while ESPN televised the NBA Eastern Conference finals. ABC had exclusive television rights to the 2020 NBA Finals, which was the 18th consecutive year for the network.[47]

In Canada, the home market of the Toronto Raptors, national broadcast rights were split approximately equally between the Sportsnet and TSN groups of channels. Separate Canadian broadcasts were produced for all games involving the Raptors regardless of round or U.S. broadcaster.

See also

References

  1. "NBA to suspend season following tonight's games" (Press release). National Basketball Association. March 11, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
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