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Four stars from Tuesday's NBA playoff games
Two teams advanced to the second round, one team saved their season and another shot the lights out. Here are four stars from a very busy night of NBA playoff basketball.
Detroit Pistons forward Ausar Thompson | 22 points, seven rebounds, two blocks
When the Detroit Pistons had their backs against the wall down 3-1 in their first-round series, 22-year-old Ausar Thompson came through with 22 points. He shot 8-for-10 from the field, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked two shots in a strong defensive effort from the whole Pistons team.
Plus he dunked. A lot.
Ausar getting pic.twitter.com/pdqGSoY5lp
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025
Cade lob to Ausar to open the second half pic.twitter.com/fAlrbdHwt3
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025
Ausar is dunking EVERYTHING
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025
7️⃣ dunks (and counting) so far pic.twitter.com/WqsSIlYXQ8
On a night where the Pistons went 8-for-29 from three-point range, the easy points they got from Thompson were crucial in their 106-103 win over the New York Knicks.
Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum | 35 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds
Jayson Tatum didn't shoot like a player coming back from an injured shooting hand in the Boston Celtics' 120-89 win over the Orlando Magic. He was 4-for-5 on three-pointers, 11-for-11 on free throws and 10-for-16 overall on his way to 35 points.
TATUM COMES UP BIG TO CLINCH THE SERIES
— NBA (@NBA) April 30, 2025
☘️ 35 PTS
☘️ 10 AST
☘️ 8 REB
☘️ 4-5 3PM@celtics will face winner of Pistons/Knicks. pic.twitter.com/DiJtwBvyZT
Not only did Tatum lead all players in scoring Tuesday night, he led the Celtics in assists and rebounds and spearheaded a Celtics defense that held Orlando to only 13 points in the third quarter. Maybe all he needed was a few days off before returning to MVP form.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo | 30 points, 20 rebounds, 13 assists
The Milwaukee Bucks lost another first-round series when the Indiana Pacers beat them, 119-118, in overtime, but it's hard to imagine what more Antetokounmpo could have done on Tuesday night. He put up a triple-double with 20 rebounds, found teammates for 13 assists and added two blocks and two steals.
Giannis for three! pic.twitter.com/8TBBDIJNwM
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) April 29, 2025
For the series, Antetokounmpo averaged 33 points, 15.4 rebounds and six assists, while shooting over 60% and committing just 2.4 fouls per game. It's a shame he's out of the playoffs already, though he didn't need to take out his frustrations on Bennedict Mathurin and Tyrese Haliburton's father.
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray | 43 points, seven assists, three steals
Tied 2-2 in their first-round series with the Los Angeles Clippers, the Denver Nuggets desperately needed points from someone other than Nikola Jokic. Tuesday night, Jamal Murray came through with the kind of shooting night he's become famous for in the playoffs.
MAKE IT 43 POINTS ‼️
— NBA (@NBA) April 30, 2025
Murray's Game 5 TAKEOVER has Denver on the verge of taking a 3-2 series lead! https://t.co/MEGgxZq1np pic.twitter.com/xWnhA1iJ8B
Murray scored 43 points with eight three-pointers, shooting 17-for-26 overall. That means Murray cracked 40 points with the benefit of only a single free throw. Counting points scored on his assists, Murray was involved in 59 of Denver's 131 points in their 131-115 win over the Clippers, giving it a 3-2 series lead.
GORDON UP TOP FROM MURRAY pic.twitter.com/b1lwAHt6BD
— NBA (@NBA) April 30, 2025
Jokic had a quiet (for him) triple-double, with 13 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Murray's big night — and Russell Westbrook's 21 bench points — meant that for one night, the Nuggets didn't need their big man to do it all.
More must-reads:
- Watch: Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton eliminate the Bucks in OT
- Celtics advance with dominant second half against Magic
- The 'NBA No. 3 draft picks in the lottery era' quiz
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TODAY'S BEST
Damian Lillard’s agent takes a shot at the Bucks
Damian Lillard’s agent took an apparent shot at the Milwaukee Bucks following the star guard’s return to the Portland Trail Blazers. Lillard’s longtime agent Aaron Goodwin suggested that Lillard’s failure to perform to his peak abilities in Milwaukee had to do with the team’s system. Goodwin suggested that the Bucks did not play to Lillard’s strengths, and that he sacrificed for the good of the team. “He never really had an opportunity to play as he has played the first 12 years of his career,” Goodwin told Jamal Collier of ESPN. “He played to win in the system that he was in.” Lillard’s scoring numbers did drop after being traded to Milwaukee, but that was inevitable now that he was sharing the stage with Giannis Antetokounmpo. In two seasons with the Bucks, he still averaged 24.9 points and 7.1 assists per game, but the Bucks never quite meshed as a unit. His latest severe injury ultimately gave the Bucks reason to move on as they try to maximize their championship window. Based on Lillard’s reaction to being waived by the Bucks, it is pretty clear that he never completely settled into Milwaukee. His move back to Portland, in that context, may not be all that surprising after all.
Padres already demoting one of their trade-deadline acquisitions
The Padres announced they’ve optioned JP Sears to Triple-A El Paso. They recalled reliever Sean Reynolds and will go with a nine-man bullpen in the short term. Sears will spend at least 15 days in the minors unless he’s brought up to replace a player going on the injured list. San Diego acquired Sears alongside Mason Miller in last week’s massive deadline deal. The 29-year-old southpaw made his team debut Monday night. He allowed five runs in as many innings on 10 hits and a walk against the Diamondbacks. Sears took the loss in a 6-2 defeat. He’d carried a 4.95 earned run average over 22 starts with the A’s. Monday's performance pushed his ERA to 5.12 across 116 innings. It’s a bottom-10 mark among pitchers to log at least 100 frames. Sears had the highest home run rate among that group, offsetting his nearly league-average 20.3% strikeout rate and solid 6% walk percentage. This is the first time in two-and-a-half years that Sears heads to the minors. He broke camp with the A’s in 2023 and has been in the majors since then. Sears has also avoided the injured list for that entire time. As a result, he’s tied for fifth in MLB with 87 starts since the beginning of the ’23 season. The durability is the big selling point, as his production (4.62 ERA/4.56 SIERA) over that stretch is that of a fifth or sixth starter. The demotion shouldn’t have any impact on Sears’ service trajectory. He has already surpassed the three-year mark and will qualify for arbitration next winter. He’s under team control for three seasons beyond this one. While he’ll probably be back up at some point this year, it may require an injury elsewhere in the rotation. San Diego optioned Randy Vásquez over the weekend. They have a four-man rotation of Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish and deadline acquisition Nestor Cortes. Darvish and Cortes will get the ball for the next two outings. San Diego is off Thursday and could turn back to Pivetta and Cease on extra rest for their first two games of the weekend series against the Red Sox. That’d point to the series finale on Aug. 10 as Michael King’s return date. King threw 61 pitches in what is expected to be his final rehab start on Sunday, via the MLB.com injury tracker. He’d be on six days' rest for his first MLB appearance since he went on the injured list in late May with a nerve problem in his throwing shoulder.
Jerry Jones takes another jab at Micah Parsons over contract stalemate
The Dallas Cowboys have a big problem on their hands right now. Micah Parsons has formally requested to be traded, and he took to social media to vent his concerns and frustration with his contract extension situation. However, team owner Jerry Jones isn't ready to budge. If anything, the controversial business mogul doesn't sound too worried about that. Talking to the media, he implied that he had already shaken hands on an extension with Parsons, so he just has to wait now: "I bought the Dallas Cowboys with a handshake," Jones said, per The Athletic's Jon Machota. "It took about 30 seconds. I gave the number, shook hands, the details we worked out later." Jones, one of the most successful businessmen of his generation, pretty much stated that he wouldn't change the way he does business. "Just so you understand the way that I communicate with people that I negotiate with. Let's leave it at that," Jones continued. "There's is no question that in the case of a player contract, you have to have it in writing. All parties do. We have a contract in writing, yet we're still talking about renegotiating, so so much for that." Parsons has every right to feel frustrated. He's one of the best pass-rushers in the game, and he's the youngest in the short list of superstars at the position. The Cowboys have a long history of dragging out negotiations for as long as they can, and that's usually rubbed their players the wrong way. Parsons is still under contract, and the Cowboys can technically wait to give him an extension because the market isn't likely to go any higher after T.J. Watt already got a deal done. But sometimes, it's not just about money, and these power struggles are terrible for team morale.
Angel Stadium experiences embarrassing issue after game
Angel Stadium is apparently doing its best impression of Oakland Coliseum. The Los Angeles Angels hosted the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday afternoon for a game at their Anaheim, California, home. It was the Rays who emerged victorious by a 5-4 final score, turning in some impressive plays along the way as well. After the loss by the Angels, the baseball gods continued to rain on them … literally. While reporters were gathered in the media room waiting for Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery to give his press conference, the roof in the room was noticeably leaking, resulting in water puddling on the floor and on a nearby trash can. Sam Blum of The Athletic shared the footage, noting that Montgomery’s press conference was ultimately moved to a different room. Angel Stadium opened back in 1966 and has served the home of the Angels ever since (also notably housing several other professional and collegiate teams, including the Los Angeles Rams from 1980-94). But it is clear that some renovations are badly needed at this point (beyond the trash can that appeared to have been intentionally placed under the leak to deal with the dripping water). Angels owner Arte Moreno, who has owned the team since 2003, is often accused of penny-pinching, particularly when it comes to resources and accommodations. Now that Angel Stadium looks to be slowly falling apart as well, perhaps Moreno will call for cups to be taped to the ceiling like other MLB teams have done before to stop leaks.
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