Gobert tied Hall of Fame big men Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace for the most times winning the award in league history. He received 72 first-place votes and 433 points from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.

Gobert finished tied for sixth in blocks per game (2.1) and averaged 14 points and 12.9 rebounds in 76 games, his ninth straight season averaging a double-double.

But Gobert's standout achievement this season was anchoring the Timberwolves' stifling defense. Minnesota ranked first in the regular season in points allowed per game (106.5) and field goal percentage allowed (45 percent) and was top five in blocks (4.5) and rebounds (41.4).

Gobert, who is the first player in Timberwolves franchise history to win the award, won his first three Defensive Player of the Year awards with the Utah Jazz, earning the honor in 2018, 2019 and 2021. A three-time All-Star, Gobert has averaged 12,7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 757 regular-season games during his 11-year career with the Jazz (2013-2022) and Timberwolves (2023-2024).

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, who was named NBA Rookie of the Year on Monday, finished second in the voting. Wembanyama, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft, led the league in blocks per game (3.6) and also averaged 1.2 steals per game. He received 19 first-place votes and 245 points.

Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (91 points) finished third, Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (83) was fourth and New Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones (14) rounded out the top five.

In other words, Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals went exactly as the Knicks and Pacers expected.

Second-seeded New York will look to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series on Wednesday night when it hosts sixth-seeded Indiana.

The Knicks earned a 121-117 win in Game 1 Monday. Donte DiVincenzo put New York ahead for good by draining a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 40.1 seconds left and just 12 seconds after Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith was erroneously whistled for a kicked ball violation.

DiVincenzo, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, all of whom played on Villanova's national championship-winning team in 2016, combined to score 92 points for the Knicks. Brunson finished with a game-high 43 as he became the fourth player in NBA history -- along with Michael Jordan, Bernard King and Jerry West -- to score at least 40 points in four straight playoff games.

"He's the engine," Hart said. "We're going to go as far as he goes."

DiVincenzo, Brunson and Hart were especially effective in the fourth quarter, when they combined for 34 of the Knicks' 39 points. New York trailed 94-85 with 10:28 left before the trio scored the next 24 points for the hosts over a span of seven minutes.

"Go out there and just figure out how to win," Brunson said. "We knew we had to play better tonight. They had our number for most of the night. We just made a couple plays down the stretch."

The Pacers acknowledged they were displeased with the officiating down the stretch but also lamented their inability to close out the Knicks.

New York shot 65.0 percent from the field (26 of 40) from the field in the second half, including 63.6 percent (7 of 11) from 3-point range. The Knicks shot just 42.9 percent (18 of 42) from the field in the first 24 minutes, including 4 of 12 from beyond the arc.

"It's right after the game -- I'm a little fresh and open with my emotions about it, but we know at the end of the day that we can't get into that position," Turner said. "I think the Last 2 Minute Report, we're all looking forward to that coming out. There were two controversial calls."

Crew chief Zach Zarba said following the game that the kicked ball call on Nesmith was incorrect. Replays showed Brunson's pass glanced off Nesmith's hand and toward Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard.

"On the floor, we felt that would be a kicked ball violation," Zarba told a pool reporter. "Postgame review did show that it hit the defender's hand, which would be legal."

DiVincenzo helped to ice the win with 12.1 seconds left, when he drew a moving screen against Myles Turner. DiVincenzo was defending point guard Tyrese Haliburton when he fell as Turner set a pick. The Pacers challenged the call, which was upheld.

"We're not expecting to get calls in here," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "It'd be nice if they laid off that one, but they didn't. So that's just the way it goes. I mean, we challenged it, they reviewed it, they got a bunch of people in New Jersey that agreed with them."

The Cavaliers advanced to the semis by beating the Orlando Magic in seven games in the first round. Allen missed the final three games with the injury, which he appeared to suffer when he took an elbow to the ribs from Orlando's Franz Wagner in the third quarter of Game 4.

Allen, 26, averaged 17.0 points and 13.8 rebounds in the first four games of the series.

The top-seeded Celtics will be without their center, Kristaps Porzingis, who has a right calf strain. He said Saturday that he is going through rehab but is on a week-to-week basis.

The series will continue Thursday in Boston with Game 2 before moving to Cleveland for the next two games in the best-of-seven series. The Cavaliers are the No. 4 seed.

Finch said it was "dangerous" and "inexcusable" that Murray -- who was stationed on the bench -- threw the object onto the floor during live game action. Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns was accepting a pass from Kyle Anderson at the time of the incident with 4:41 remaining in the second quarter.

Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope picked up the heating pad and tossed it out of play without the officials being aware.

"I was the lead official, and I didn't notice it was on the floor or where it came from until Towns scored," crew chief Marc Davis told a pool reporter, per ESPN. "We weren't aware it had come from the bench. If we would have been aware it came from the bench, we could have reviewed it under the hostile act trigger. The penalty would have been a technical foul."

Finch tried to lobby with the officials with the respect to the potential safety issue.

"We tried to impress upon (the referees) there probably aren't many fans in the building that have a heat pack, so it probably had to come from the bench, which they found logical," Finch said. "I'm sure it was a mistake and an oversight and nothing intentional by the officiating at all, but certainly can't allow that to happen."

Murray, 27, made just 3 of 18 shots from the floor and finished with eight points, 13 rebounds and four turnovers for the defending champion Nuggets, who trail 2-0 in the best-of-seven series. Game 3 is Friday in Minneapolis.

Minnesota won without center Rudy Gobert, who was away from the team for the birth of his first child. The Timberwolves, holding a decisive edge on the reigning NBA champions, head back to Minneapolis for Game 3 of the best-of-seven series on Friday.

Even without Gobert, a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, the Timberwolves held Denver to a season low in points. Jamal Murray scored eight points on 3-for-18 shooting but had a career-high 13 rebounds, and Nikola Jokic finished with 16 points and 16 rebounds.

Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 20 points, and Justin Holiday had 13 off the bench. Reggie Jackson left the game in the fourth quarter due to an apparent injury.

Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 14 points each for the Timberwolves, who have started the playoffs with six straight wins.

Minnesota looked smooth on offense, led by Towns scoring 20 points in the first half and the team shooting 54.5 percent before the break. The Timberwolves used a dominant run spanning the first and second quarters to take control.

Leading 18-17, the Timberwolves outscored Denver 24-5 to lead by 20 after a Reid 3-pointer with 8:05 left in the half. The Nuggets got it within 43-28, but Minnesota had a strong finish to the second quarter to lead 61-35 at halftime.

Denver continued to struggle in the third quarter and the Timberwolves took advantage, leading by as much as 32 on Alexander-Walker's 3-pointer with 7:20 left in the period.

The Nuggets found some offensive rhythm late in the third to cut it to 82-60 heading into the fourth.

Jackson opened the final quarter with a 3-pointer to slice the deficit to 19, but Denver then missed a pair from deep. Towns made a pair of free throws and Alexander-Walker soon hit his fourth 3-pointer to make it 87-65 with 9:18 left.

Another burst pushed the gap to 97-72 as Minnesota closed it out.

Donte DiVincenzo scored 21 of his 25 points in the second half and Josh Hart added 24 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists for New York. Isaiah Hartenstein had 13 points and OG Anunoby added 13 points and nine rebounds for the Knicks.

Myles Turner scored 23 points, Pascal Siakam added 19 and T.J. McConnell had 18 points for the Pacers. Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin chipped in 12 points apiece and Andrew Nembhard scored 11 points.

Game 2 is Wednesday night in New York.

Brunson became the fourth player in NBA playoff history to score 40 or more points in four consecutive games. Jerry West reached that mark a record six straight times in 1965. Bernard King (1984) and Michael Jordan (1993) did it in four straight contests.

DiVincenzo drained a 3-pointer to give the Knicks a 118-115 lead with 40.4 seconds remaining.

Indiana pulled within one on Siakam's driving layup with 26.6 seconds to go.

The Pacers later had a chance to take the lead, but Turner was called for a moving screen with 12.7 seconds left.

Indiana made another mistake when Nembhard fouled Brunson before the ball was inbounded. Brunson made the ensuing free throw, and New York kept possession.

Brunson was fouled with 10.7 seconds to play and made two free throws to give New York a 121-117 advantage, and the Knicks closed it out.

New York shot 53.7 percent from the field, including 11 of 23 from 3-point range.

The Pacers made 52.3 percent of their attempts from the floor and were 10 of 26 from behind the arc.

Brunson scored seven points during a 9-0 run as New York took a fourth-quarter lead for the first time. Anunoby's steal and dunk put the Knicks ahead with 3:11 left, and Brunson added a jumper to make it 113-109.

Nesmith's two free throws and Siakam's layup allowed the Pacers to knot the score at 113 with 2:10 remaining. Nembhard's basket with 1:33 left gave Indiana a 115-113 lead, but Brunson hit a short turnaround to tie it 19 seconds later.

Earlier, Indiana led 94-85 after McConnell's layup with 10:34 left in the game.

McConnell scored 10 points in the first half as the Pacers led 55-49 at the break. Brunson scored 18 points in the half for New York. Indiana led 87-82 after three quarters.

The French star received all 99 first-place votes from a media panel voting on the award, joining Ralph Sampson, David Robinson, Blake Griffin, Damian Lillard and Karl-Anthony Towns as unanimous winners of the award. Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren was a strong runner-up by receiving 98 of a possible 99 second-place votes.

Wembanyama lived up to the hype surrounding him as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft. He averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocked shots and 1.2 steals in 71 games. His 254 total blocks led the league.

Wembanyama led all NBA rookies in points, rebounds and blocks along with double-doubles (43) and triple-doubles (two). He became the youngest player in league history to post a 5x5 when he had 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five blocks and five steals against the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 23.

Wembanyama became the first player in NBA history to tally 1,500 points, 700 rebounds, 250 assists, 250 blocked shots and 100 3-pointers in a season.

He is the first player from France to win the award and third member of the Spurs, joining franchise legends David Robinson and Tim Duncan.

Charlotte's Brandon Miller (86 total points, including one second-place vote), Miami's Jaime Jaquez Jr. (10 points), Golden State's Brandin Podziemski (four points) and Dallas' Dereck Lively II (one point) also received votes.

But as they prepare for their Western Conference second-round matchup, which begins Tuesday in Oklahoma City, both teams likely will need more from their top players -- the Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Mavericks' Luka Doncic.

In Oklahoma City's first-round sweep of New Orleans, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 27.3 points, 5.0 assists and 1.5 steals and shot 47.6 percent from the floor and 29.4 percent from beyond the 3-point arc.

Those numbers were all below his regular-season averages.

Gilgeous-Alexander, whose wife gave birth to their son during the first-round series, is looking forward to a new experience in the series.

"I'm ready for it," said Gilgeous-Alexander, who has previously appeared in playoff series with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2019 and Thunder in 2020. "I'm excited for it. I've never been to the second round."

Doncic averaged 29.8 points, 9.5 assists and 8.8 rebounds in the Mavericks' 4-2 first-round series win over the Clippers, but he shot just 40.5 percent from the floor and 23.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Doncic shot a career-high 38.2 percent on 3-pointers during the regular season but has been dealing with a right knee sprain that has hindered him since just before the playoffs.

"I don't think it's going to get better before I get some rest," Doncic said. "That's a lot of minutes. Maybe the summer."

But Doncic plans to grind through the injury, and even at less than 100 percent, he will be a focus of Oklahoma City's defensive efforts.

"It'll be a full-team effort, for sure," Gilgeous-Alexander said of defending Doncic. "He is who he is for a reason. No one guy slows him down. We have one of the best -- if not the best -- perimeter defenders in the NBA. We'll lean on him a little bit."

That defender, Luguentz Dort, was a big reason Oklahoma City dispatched the Pelicans quickly in the first round and advanced to the second round for the first time since the 2016 run to the Western Conference finals.

"The ball is going to be in his hands a lot, so my main thing is to make everything tough," Dort said of defending Doncic.

Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr., who missed the last four games of the first-round series with an ankle sprain, have responded well.

"They've been great," Kidd said. "They look great. They look ready to go."

Though Hardaway will be back, Dallas will be without reserve power forward/center Maxi Kleber, who suffered a dislocated AC joint in his right shoulder in the series-clinching Game 6 win over the Clippers, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper, who suffered an ankle injury early in the first-round series.

The Mavericks are in the second round for just the second time since their 2011 championship run. Dallas made the Western Conference finals in 2022.

The Thunder won three of the four meetings between the teams this season, including both matchups in Oklahoma City.

Amid speculation he was being targeted by the Lakers, Kidd signed a multi-year contract extension with the Mavericks, the team announced Monday.

The well-rested Celtics and the stretched-to-the-limit Cleveland Cavaliers each will attempt to draw first blood when Game 1 gets underway Tuesday at Boston.

Boston advanced by beating eighth-seeded Miami in five games. Cleveland was pushed to seven games in its first-round series, getting Donovan Mitchell's 39-point performance as fourth-seeded Cleveland extended its season with a clinching 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday.

"This is why I'm here," Mitchell said. "It's my job.

"I don't mean this disrespectful, but it doesn't really mean much. We didn't come in just to win the first round. We accomplished one goal, now we have to do it again. That's the mindset."

Mitchell, who has been dealing with a left knee injury all season, scored 50 points during a Game 6 loss at Orlando. He's scored at least 30 points in 23 of his 52 career playoff games,

"That's what special players do when it matters most," Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "He was special when he needed to be."

Both teams are expected to be short-handed. Boston center Kristaps Porzingis is likely to miss the entire second round with a right calf injury he sustained during the series against Miami.

"It's something, not nothing, so it will take a little bit of time, for sure," Porzingis said. "But I'm doing everything I can to speed it up because I want to be back out there as soon as possible. But understanding, like, the worst thing would be probably to reaggravate that. So being smart.

"You would have to ask the medical people about the specifics of it. I'm kind of just following the plan. But I'm hoping for a return as soon as I start to get better."

Cleveland center Jarrett Allen has missed the last three games with a rib injury. Allen averaged a career bests with 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 77 games during the regular season. He averaged 17.0 points and 13.8 rebounds in four playoff games against the Magic.

The Cavaliers overcame an 18-point first-half deficit in Sunday's clinching victory.

"We showed a lot of fight," Cleveland's Caris LeVert said after scoring 15 points off the bench in Game 7. "We showed what we've been showing all year long. We just kept fighting.

"We've been there several times this year, not just games, just as a unit. We've been banged up. We've been injured. But we got a next-man-up mentality and we just never quit."

The Celtics won two of three meetings with the Cavaliers during the regular season. Mitchell didn't play when Cleveland earned a 106-105 victory at home March 5. The Celtics prevailed 120-113 and 116-107 in back-to-back games played at Boston in December.

Game 2 in the best-of-seven series will be played Thursday at Boston. The Celtics are trying to reach Eastern Conference finals for the third straight season, with the Cavaliers not shying away from the challenge.

"We know who we are - a team that's a contender," Mitchell said. "We did what we're supposed to do. In the grand scheme of it all, we just took seven games. So for us coming into Boston, I'm pretty sure everybody thinks they're going to come in and kick our ass. We just need to be who we are."

Gobert contributed six points, 13 rebounds, three blocks and three assists in Minnesota's 106-99 win on Saturday in the opener of the Western Conference semifinal series.

The three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and three-time All-Star averaged 14.0 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 76 games (all starts) during the regular season.

The 7-foot-1 Gobert, 31, has career averages of 12.7 points, 11.8 boards and 2.1 blocks in 757 games (665 starts) for the Utah Jazz (2013-22) and Timberwolves.

Naz Reid, this season's NBA Sixth Man of the Year winner, could slot into the starting lineup if Gobert is unable to go against the defending champions.

Financial terms and duration of the extension were not disclosed.

"We are excited to have Coach Kidd continue to lead our team throughout the coming years with this well-earned contract extension," Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont said in a statement. "Kidd led our team to two playoff appearances in three seasons, and we are looking forward to his leadership in continuing to build and grow this already great franchise."

Kidd, 51, is 140-106 in three seasons leading the Mavs, who are set to play the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals starting Tuesday. Kidd led the Mavericks to the Western Conference finals in 2022.

Overall, Kidd is 323-296 in seven seasons as a head coach with the Brooklyn Nets (2013-14), Milwaukee Bucks (2014-18) and Mavericks. He has a lifetime 22-26 record in the postseason.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame as a point guard in 2018, Kidd helped the Mavericks win their only NBA championship in 2011.

Things are different this season, as the Minnesota Timberwolves showed in winning Game 1 in Denver on Saturday night. Minnesota's 106-99 victory gives it homecourt advantage in the Western Conference semifinals with a chance to go up 2-0 Monday night in Game 2.

The Timberwolves have started this postseason with five straight wins -- all of them convincing wins. Minnesota was the team executing down the stretch Saturday night, harassing the Nuggets into mistakes they usually inflict on opponents.

But Denver isn't panicking heading into what could be considered a must-win at home on Monday night.

"Sweeping the playoffs probably wouldn't be as fun when we look back on the memories," Nuggets guard Reggie Jackson said.

While the Timberwolves have coasted through the postseason the Nuggets had to grind out wins in the first round. On Saturday, they ran into a familiar opponent, one that bothered Nikola Jokic into an 11-for-25 shooting night and held most of the Denver lineup in check.

Now the onus is on the Nuggets to make the adjustments and monitor Jamal Murray's injured calf. Murray has not shot the ball well in six playoff games, but he isn't using it as an excuse.

"Everybody's got leg injuries. Everybody's playing through something at this point in the season," said Murray, who had 17 points in Game 1. "My calf is no different than anybody else on the team."

One player who isn't struggling is Minnesota guard Anthony Edwards, who has become dominant in the postseason. He had 25 of the Timberwolves' 40 points in the first half of Game 1, finished with 43 points, and has scored 119 in the last three playoff games. He also has gained a fan: Jokic.

"To be honest, he's a special player. I have huge respect for him. he can do everything on the floor," Jokic said of Edwards. "You need to give him respect, how good and how talented he is."

When Denver doubled Edwards, he was able to find open teammates who knocked down shots. Naz Reid scored 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, including two big 3-pointers.

"The whole team, we trust each other," Edwards said. "It doesn't matter down the stretch who takes the shot."

Minnesota proved fearless at the start and finish of Game 1. The Timberwolves raced out to an 18-4 lead in the first six minutes and used an 8-0 run late in the fourth quarter to pull away.

The Timberwolves respect Jokic's talent, too, and it was apparent in how much defensive attention they paid to the two-time MVP. The Timberwolves rotated big men Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns and Reid on Jokic and sent double teams at him when he was in the paint.

Jokic scored 32 points, but he had to work for them.

"Going against the best player in the world is always fun," Edwards said about facing Jokic. "Going against the best team in the world is always fun."

Hard to imagine Brunson needs any extra motivation as he leads the New York Knicks into the opening game of the Eastern Conference second-round series against the visiting Pacers on Monday night.

Sixth-seeded Indiana eliminated the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, while the second-seeded Knicks ousted the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in their opening series. Both series ended in six games.

Brunson led the way for the Knicks with a 35.5 ppg scoring average and scored 39, 47, 40 and 41 over the final four games of the series.

Brunson is a bona fide star in his second season in New York but that wasn't the case when he was a member of the Mavericks, who faced the Los Angeles Clippers during the first round of the 2021 playoffs.

Dallas let a 3-2 series lead get away and as things disintegrated in Game 7, Brunson watched from the bench. The highly competitive guard played just 10 minutes, scoring two points in a 126-111 defeat.

"In all honesty, I said this last time, you're in the playoffs now, there is no extra motivation," Brunson told reporters when asked about his unhappiness at the time. "It is what it is. The past is the past. Rick welcomed me into the league and helped me become the player (I am today) and helped me grow from Day 1."

That Game 7 loss was Carlisle's final game in Dallas. Now in his third season with the Pacers, he fears Brunson but doesn't think a coaching decision made three seasons ago has any bearing on the current series.

"Jalen Brunson is a guy you would never bet against," Carlisle told reporters. "You just don't bet against that guy. I don't know if anybody saw this coming, what he's achieved for two years now, but if you know him and you know his character, you're not surprised. You're not shocked."

The Pacers went 2-1 against New York in the regular season but Brunson made an impact by averaging 35.7 points.

"The last two times we played him he had 40 in one game and 39 in the other," Carlisle said. "He's leading the playoffs in scoring average. It's pretty obvious that he established a very high level during the season, and he's maintained and/or exceeded it in the postseason, and that's hard to do."

Brunson departed Dallas after the following season as a free agent en route to becoming a star with the Knicks.

"Coaches got to make decisions that better suit their teams," Brunson said of Carlisle. "Whatever happened, happened, and we're moving forward from there."

This will be the eighth time the Pacers and Knicks have met in the postseason with Indiana holding a 4-3 lead.

Six of the meetings came in an eight-season span (1993-2000) when Reggie Miller was the star of the Pacers. Those series were filled with drama and memorable moments.

Indiana will rely on its top-rated offense (123.3 ppg in the regular season) in this series, while the Knicks are stingy, ranking second in scoring defense at 108.2.

Tyrese Haliburton makes the Pacers go with help from big men Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner.

But in the clinching win over Milwaukee on Thursday, it was a pair of reserves, former Knick Obi Toppin (21 points) and T.J. McConnell (20), leading the way in the 120-98 victory.

"It means a lot," McConnell said. "Not getting into the playoffs since the bubble, not being able to advance since 2014, we take great pride in being able to advance and extend our season."

Mitchell, who scored 17 points in the third quarter, made 15 of 17 free-throw attempts and added nine rebounds. His scintillating performance came on the heels of a 50-point effort in Cleveland's 103-96 loss in Orlando on Friday.

Caris LeVert scored 15 points off the bench and Max Strus added 13 for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers, who overcame an 18-point deficit to record their fourth win at home in the series.

Cleveland, which posted its first playoff series win in six years, will visit the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the conference semifinals on Tuesday. The Celtics captured two of the three meetings in the regular season.

The Cavaliers won despite playing without All-Star center Jarrett Allen (rib contusion) for the third straight game.

Orlando's Paolo Banchero collected 38 points and 16 rebounds while playing in his first career Game 7.

Wendell Carter Jr. scored 13 points and Jalen Suggs had 10 points and nine rebounds for the fifth-seeded Magic, who mustered just 15 points in the third quarter.

Franz Wagner made just 1 of 15 shots to finish with six points while dealing with early foul trouble for the Magic.

The Cavaliers shaved an 18-point deficit to 10 at halftime before Mitchell erupted for 17 points in the third quarter, capped by a driving layup to stake Cleveland to a 68-66 lead with 3:08 left. Suggs answered with a pair of free throws before Strus sank back-to-back 3-pointers.

Mitchell and Darius Garland each made a 3-pointer to increase the Cavaliers' lead to 88-77 with 5:53 left in the fourth quarter. The Magic trimmed their deficit to seven before Garland sank a pair of free throws and a short jumper to send Cleveland on its way.

Orlando scored 13 and nine straight points at separate junctures to seize a 33-18 lead early in the second quarter. The Magic pumped that advantage up to 18 at 47-29 following a 3-pointer from Gary Harris before the Cavaliers answered with a 14-6 run to end the quarter.

Porzingis was diagnosed with a right soleus strain, which he sustained in the second quarter of Game 4 of Boston's first-round series against the Miami Heat. He told reporters Saturday that his timetable is week-to-week.

The Celtics will face the winner of Sunday's game between the Orlando Magic and Cleveland Cavaliers in the next round of the playoffs, which are set to begin Tuesday in Boston.

"It's something; it's not nothing," Porzingis. 28, told reporters Saturday. "So it will take a little bit of time, for sure. But I'm doing everything I can to speed it up because I want to be back out there as soon as possible. But also understanding the worst thing would be probably to re-aggravate that, so being smart about it."

With the length of the NBA playoffs -- the conference finals begin May 19 at the earliest and the NBA finals are scheduled to open June 6 -- it isn't out of the question to think Porzingis could return at full strength to join the Celtics should they make a long run in the postseason.

Still, he is frustrated not to be on the court with his teammates.

"I'm not gonna lie, it's tough," he said. "First few moments were really tough. It gets you down for a second. But it is what it is. It's part of the sport and these things happen and the best I can do now, is I have to do to get healthy as soon as possible and follow the plan and make sure I do everything and just get in that mindset because I can't change what happened in the game. So just looking forward to making quick steps forward toward being back on the court."

Porzingis is in his eighth NBA season and has career averages of 19.7 points and 7.9 rebounds with the New York Knicks (2015-18), Dallas Mavericks (2019-22), Washington Wizards (2022-23) and Celtics. He missed the 2018-19 season due to an ACL injury.

In his first season with the Celtics, Porzingis averaged 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 29.6 minutes over 57 games (all starts). In his four playoff games, he averaged 12.3 points and 5.0 rebounds.

Porzingis has not been in the playoffs since 2021 with the Mavericks. He has appeared in just 14 career playoff games.

An MRI revealed the severity of the injury.

Kleber was hurt early in the second quarter of the Mavericks' 114-101 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday in Game 6 of their Western Conference first-round series. He was driving toward the hoop and landed awkwardly after being fouled by Amir Coffey.

Kleber scored four points before exiting as he managed to make one of two free throws immediately after the injury. In Game 5, Kleber scored 15 points on five 3-pointers and averaged 5.7 points in the series for the Mavericks, who will play Game 1 of their conference semifinal series at the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

In the regular season, the 32-year-old from Germany averaged 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds in 43 games (seven starts).

Overall, Kleber has averages of 6.7 points and 4.5 rebounds in 406 games (147 starts) over seven NBA seasons, all with Dallas. He has made 477 career 3-pointers while shooting 35.7 percent from long range.

Harris sat out Orlando's 103-96 victory over Cleveland in Game 6 on Friday due to a right hamstring strain. He sustained the injury in the Magic's 104-103 loss to the Cavaliers in Game 5 on Tuesday.

Harris, 29, has averages of 3.8 points and 2.0 rebounds in five games during the series.

Like Harris, Cleveland All-Star center Jarrett Allen was listed as questionable on the NBA injury report.

Allen, 26, has sat out the past two games due to a rib contusion. He averaged 17.0 points and 13.8 rebounds in the first four games of the series.

When asked Sunday morning if Allen would be available for Game 7, Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff told reporters: "We'll see."

The winner of Sunday's game will face the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals.

Naz Reid scored 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, Mike Conley had 14 points and 10 assists and Rudy Gobert grabbed 13 rebounds for Minnesota, which pulled away to begin the postseason 5-0.

Game 2 is Monday night in Denver.

Nikola Jokic had 32 points, Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points and Jamal Murray finished with 17 points, all in the second half, for the Nuggets, who are trailing in a series for the first time since losing to the Golden State Warriors in the first round in 2022.

It was a tight game early in the fourth, but the Timberwolves were more poised down the stretch.

Conley hit his third 3-pointer of the game to give Minnesota an 80-77 lead, but Murray answered from deep and was fouled by Towns and completed the four-point play.

Edwards, who had 25 points in the first half, hit a driving layup through traffic and a step-back 17-footer to put the Timberwolves back in front. Reid hit a pair of 3-pointers and dunked an Edwards miss to slam to give Minnesota a 94-88 lead with 4:20 left.

Jokic converted a three-point play, but the Timberwolves started to put it away. Rudy Gobert dunked, Edwards made two free throws and Gobert banked in a 13-footer. Porter committed an offensive foul and Edwards' 14-foot fadeaway made it 102-91 with 1:36 left.

Jokic's 3-pointer cut it to 102-96 with 1:01 left, but the Timberwolves closed it out.

Minnesota jumped out to an 18-4 lead with 5:12 left in the first quarter, but the Nuggets turned up the defense. They forced seven turnovers and held the Timberwolves to 22 points in the final 17 minutes of the first half to lead 44-40 at intermission.

Towns and Conley had 11 points each in the third to help put Minnesota ahead 73-71 heading into the fourth.

Ball, 26, has undergone three surgeries on his left knee, the last a cartilage transplant in March 2023.

Ball hasn't played in an NBA game since Jan. 14, 2022, and there's no guarantee he'll be able to play next season.

The New Orleans Pelicans signed Ball to a four-year, $85 million contract in August 2021, then shipped him to the Bulls in a sign-and-trade deal. In his lone season with the Bulls, Ball averaged 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.8 steals in just 35 games.

The NBA granted Chicago a $10.2 million injury exception for Ball last July.

In 252 career games (239 starts) over five seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers (2017-19), Pelicans (2019-21) and Bulls, Ball averaged 11.9 points, 6.2 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals. The Lakers selected him No. 2 overall in the 2017 draft.

The dislocation is reportedly serious enough that it could end Kleber's season.

Kleber was hurt early in the second quarter of the 114-101 win over the Clippers in Game 6. He was driving toward the hoop and landed awkwardly after being fouled by Amir Coffey of the Clippers.

Kleber scored four points before exiting as he managed to make one of two free throws immediately after the injury. In Game 5, Kleber scored 15 points on five 3-pointers and averaged 5.7 points in the series.

In the regular season, the 32-year-old from Germany averaged 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds in 43 games (seven starts).

Overall, Kleber has averages of 6.7 points and 4.5 rebounds in 406 games (147 starts) over seven NBA seasons. He has made 477 career 3-pointers while shooting 35.7 percent from long range.