Eastern Conference playoffs: Brunson dagger sends Knicks to next round

The 2025 NBA playoffs are in full swing, and our NBA insiders have you covered for every game in the march to the Finals.

Thursday, the No. 3 New York Knicks defeated the No. 6 Detroit Pistons in Game 6 to advance to the second round after 3-point dagger from Clutch Player of the Year, Jalen Brunson.

They'll next face the No. 2 Boston Celtics, who ousted the No. 7 seed Orlando Magic in five games in the first round.

The No. 4 Indiana Pacers eliminated the No. 5 Milwaukee Bucks in overtime Tuesday and advance to take on the No. 1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers, who swept the No. 8 seed Miami Heat on Monday.

As the East playoffs continue, here's what matters most and what to watch with the second round looming.

Jump to a series:
Cavaliers-Heat | Celtics-Magic
Knicks-Pistons | Pacers-Bucks

More coverage:
West first-round takeaways
Schedules and results | Offseason guides

(3) New York Knicks win series over
(6) Detroit Pistons 4-2

Game 6: Knicks 116, Pistons 113

What we learned:

Jalen Brunson and the Knicks -- no matter how many double-digit leads they squandered -- had just enough to take down a pesky Pistons squad that did everything it could to push the series to a seventh game.

New York came into the game expressing the importance of not letting its foot off the pedal and playing a full, 48-minute game. The Knicks raced to a 14-point advantage in the first half before watching the Pistons overtake them at the break. Then, after Tom Thibodeau's group jumped out to an 11-point advantage in the third, Detroit closed that gap, too, before ultimately pulling ahead down the stretch. The Pistons led by as many as seven, 112-105, with 2:35 to play.

Detroit got just one more point the rest of the way, and the Clutch Player of the Year, Brunson -- playing without Karl-Anthony Towns, who fouled out and went 3-for-13 from the field -- broke free for the deciding triple, finally shut the door on the Pistons.

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Jalen Brunson's clutch 3 in final seconds wins series for Knicks

Jalen Brunson knocks down a huge 3-pointer in the closing seconds to put the Knicks ahead in their series-clinching win over the Pistons.

Round 2, Game 1: Knicks at Celtics (Monday, May 5)

What to watch:

Can the Knicks, who got swept by the Celtics and were generally uncompetitive against the defending champs during the regular season, find a way to take a game in Boston? Perhaps most key to watch: How does New York, which has played more drop pick-and-roll coverage against the Celtics than any other club, defend Boston's three-point attack? Having closed out Detroit on Thursday, they'll have decent rest and time for the coaches to prep before their series opener in Boston.

-- Chris Herring

(4) Indiana Pacers win series over
(5) Milwaukee Bucks 4-1

Game 5: Pacers 119, Bucks 118 (OT)

What we learned:

The Pacers continued their dominance over the Bucks, rallying from a 20-point deficit in Game 5 to come back and win the series-clinching contest in overtime on a game-winning layup from Tyrese Haliburton. Indiana eliminated Milwaukee for the second consecutive season and the Pacers are 8-3 against the Bucks in the playoffs during that span.

It sets up a second-round matchup between the Pacers and top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who have the best offense in the NBA and just swept the Miami Heat in their first-round series. If the Pacers can pull off an upset, they could return to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight season.

The Bucks did not go down without a fight, thanks to a 30-point, 20-rebound triple-double from Giannis Antetokounmpo and a new starting lineup that began the game on a 13-0 run. Coach Doc Rivers made a surprising change, inserting Bobby Portis, AJ Green and Kevin Porter Jr. into the starting unit in favor of Kyle Kuzma, Brook Lopez and the injured Damian Lillard. But the season ended in heartbreaking fashion with Gary Trent Jr. committing two turnovers in the final 30 seconds of OT after having just one the entire series before.

-- Jamal Collier

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Haliburton acknowledges his dad got 'caught up in moment' with Giannis

Tyrese Haliburton says he and his dad apologized to Giannis Antetokounmpo following the exchange after Game 5 of the Pacers' win.

(2) Boston Celtics win series over
(7) Orlando Magic 4-1

Game 5: Celtics 120, Magic 89

What we learned:

Even with the gentleman's sweep of the seventh-seeded Magic, you better believe that the defending champion Celtics are glad to be done with this series.

The Magic feature several lengthy, aggressive defenders, and they spent the series running the Celtics off the 3-point line and bothering them with a physical, bruising defense, which continued in Game 5, making the Celtics visibly frustrated.

But Orlando is also (very) offensively challenged, and when its star forward Paolo Banchero picked up three fouls in quick succession early in the third quarter, momentum shifted in a huge way. Banchero went to the bench with 9:46 remaining in the third, and the Celtics outscored the Magic 30-9 the rest of the quarter, including closing out the third on a 24-4 run. Ballgame.

Did the Magic provide a blueprint for how to slow the Celtics' 3-point barrage? Or are they just perfectly built to do so? The latter seems more likely, as the Celtics have struggled against Orlando in recent years, but now, the Celtics can enjoy some rest before facing the winner of the Pistons-Knicks series in the next round.

-- Baxter Holmes

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Jayson Tatum ensures Celtics close out the Magic

Jayson Tatum's 35 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists lead the Celtics to a series-clinching win over the Magic.

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers win series over
(8) Miami Heat 4-0

Game 4: Cavaliers 138, Heat 83

What we learned:

It was 70-25 late in the second quarter of Game 4 -- a margin representing a lot for both the Cavs and the Heat, as the former moves on to the second round of the playoffs after securing a four-game sweep of the latter.

It was as lopsided a score as you will probably ever see in an elimination game. The Cavs started 11-of-20 from 3-point range, while the Heat started 2-of-23. Let's just say the intensity levels of the two teams were not leveled up, with the Heat's lethargy setting quite the contrast to that of the Cavs.

Cleveland broke the Heat with a strong finish to Game 2. In Games 3 and 4, when Cleveland guard Darius Garland was out with a sprained toe, the Cavs leaned into boosting De'Andre Hunter's playing time and giving additional minutes to Dean Wade, two forwards who shared the available playing time. The result was big lineups that effectively walled off the paint for the Heat and made for hard denials of Tyler Herro, who largely had a miserable series.

Playing the big lineups is a lesson for the Cavs should they get into a pickle against stronger teams later in the postseason; going back to them could prove to be a valuable curveball, as one of Cleveland's few weaknesses is a lack of size in the backcourt. Otherwise, there wasn't much learning to be had this evening.

-- Brian Windhorst

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Stephen A.: It's time for Pat Riley to move on

Stephen A. Smith says it's time for a change in Miami and questions whether Pat Riley is still the right person to lead the Heat's front office.