NBA Game Notes (April 20, 2026)
Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on April 20, 2026.
Three Stars
Here are my “three stars” from yesterday’s NBA games, with the “first star” considered the top performer.
First ⭐️
CJ McCollum scored a game-high 32 points in the Atlanta Hawks’ 107-106 comeback win over the New York Knicks, squaring their Eastern Conference First Round series at one game apiece. McCollum shot 12-22 from the field (3-10 on threes) and 5-7 from the free throw line. He also contributed a team-high six assists (tied with Nickeil Alexander-Walker), a game-high two steals (tied with three others), and one block in 35 minutes played.
Second ⭐️
Donovan Mitchell scored a game-high 30 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 115-105 to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference First Round series. Mitchell went 13-23 from the floor, sinking four of his 10 attempts from 3-point range. He added seven rebounds, a game-high five assists (tied with two others), and one steal, committing just one turnover in 37 minutes of action.
Third ⭐️
Anthony Edwards scored a game-high 30 points (tied with Jamal Murray) to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 119-114 victory over the Denver Nuggets, tying their Western Conference First Round series at one game each. Edwards shot 10-25 from the field (3-11 on threes) and 7-9 from the free throw line. He also recorded a team-high 10 rebounds, a game-high two blocks, and one steal in 40 minutes played.
Milestones
The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic (24 points, 15 rebounds, eight assists) recorded his 50th career 20-point, 10-rebound, 5-assist game in the playoffs. The only other player in NBA postseason history to reach that mark is LeBron James with 94 such games.
The Cavaliers’ James Harden (28 points, four assists, five steals, five turnovers) moved up several of the NBA’s postseason career leaderboards: seventh in assists with 1,139, passing Rajon Rondo; seventh in turnovers with 599, passing Tony Parker; 11th in steals with 289, passing Chris Paul; and 15th in 20-point games with 103, breaking a tie with John Havlicek.
Edwards broke the Minnesota Timberwolves’ playoff career record for most free throws attempted with 280. The previous mark of 272 attempts was held by Kevin Garnett.
Streaking
Edwards has scored at least 15 points in each of his 44 playoff games. The only other players in NBA history to start their playoff careers with at least 44 such games in a row are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, and Karl Malone.
McCollum has made at least one 3-pointer in each of his last 43 playoff games, the sixth-longest such streak in NBA history.
The Nuggets’ Cameron Johnson (1-6 on threes) has made at least one 3-pointer in 33 straight playoff games, tying Fred VanVleet (May 17, 2019 to present) for the 10th-longest such streak in NBA history.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have won 12 consecutive playoff games versus the Toronto Raptors, matching the longest such streak in NBA postseason history against a single opponent. The Raptors have not beaten the Cavaliers in a playoff game since Game 4 of the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals.
Miscellany
McCollum led the nightly scoring brigade, bagging 32 points. He was followed by Edwards (30 points), Mitchell (30), the Nuggets’ Jamal Murray (30), and the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson (29).
Jokic was the night’s top board man, pulling down 15 rebounds. The Knicks’ Josh Hart was runner-up with 13 rebounds, while Edwards and the Raptors’ Sandro Mamukelashvili shared third place with 10 boards apiece.
Jokic was the leading playmaker last night, dishing out eight assists. Brunson and Murray tied for second place, each delivering seven dimes.
Brunson recorded his 30th career 25-point playoff game with the New York Knicks, breaking a tie with Walt Frazier for the second-most such games in franchise history. Patrick Ewing is the franchise’s all-time leader with 43 such games.
The Cavaliers’ Evan Mobley (25 points, 11-13 field goals) recorded a field goal percentage of 84.6%, the second-highest such figure in franchise history by a player in a 25-point game. The high of 85.7% was achieved by Kevin Love on April 17, 2017.
The Atlanta Hawks won despite trailing by 12 points after three quarters. It’s the fourth time in franchise history they’ve won a playoff game in which they trailed by at least 10 points entering the fourth quarter.
On the flip side, it’s just the second time the New York Knicks have blown a playoff game in which they held a double-digit lead through three quarters. They fell to the Indiana Pacers on June 1, 1994 despite holding a 12-point lead entering the final period.