NBA Game Notes (May 6, 2024)

Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on May 6, 2024.

May 07, 2024

Three Stars

The three stars in ice hockey are the three best players in a game, with the “first star” considered the best of the three players, similar to the player of the match in other sports. Here are my “three stars” from yesterday’s NBA games.

First ⭐️

Jalen Brunson scored a game-high 43 points in the New York Knicks’ 121-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series. Game 2 will be played in New York Wednesday night.

Brunson went 14-26 from the field and sank all 14 of his free throws. He also contributed six rebounds and six assists in his 44 minutes of action.

Second ⭐️

Karl-Anthony Towns scored a game-high 27 points (tied with teammate Anthony Edwards) and snagged a team-high 12 rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves routed the Denver Nuggets 106-80 to take a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference Semifinals series. The teams will head to Minneapolis for Game 3 Friday night.

The efficient Towns shot 10-15 from the field (3-5 on 3-pointers) and 4-4 from the free throw line. He also blocked two shots and committed just two turnovers in 36 minutes played.

Third ⭐️

Josh Hart scored a playoff career-high 24 points to go with game highs of 13 rebounds and eight assists (tied with Tyrese Haliburton) in the Knicks’ win over the Pacers. Hart made nine of his 13 field goal attempts, adding a team-high three steals while playing the full 48 minutes.

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Milestones

Brunson broke the Knicks’ postseason record for most free throws made in a game without a miss with 14. The previous mark was held by Campy Russell, who went 13-13 from the charity stripe on April 3, 1981.
Brunson has recorded 210 points and 47 assists over his last five games. The only other players in NBA history to produce at least 200 points and 40 assists over a five-game playoff span are Michael Jordan (April 30-May 9, 1989) and LeBron James (May 20-28, 2009).
Brunson has playoff totals of 256 points and 60 assists this season. The only other player in NBA history to record at least 250 points and 50 assists through the first seven games of a postseason is Luka Doncic in 2021.
Brunson has attempted a total of 201 field goals in seven playoff games this season. The last player to record at least 201 field goals attempts through the first seven games of a postseason was Michael Jordan in 1990 (202).
The Minnesota Timberwolves set a franchise record for most blocks in a playoff game with 12. The previous mark of 11 blocks was set on April 21, 2022. Naz Reid led the way with four rejections, followed by Nickeil Alexander-Walker with three and Towns with two.
The Timberwolves held a 26-point lead over the Nuggets after two quarters, the largest halftime lead in a playoff game in franchise history. They easily surpassed the previous mark of 14 points set three times previously.
The Indiana Pacers’ bench outscored their New York counterparts 46-3. That’s the largest such difference in a playoff game for the Pacers since the franchise joined the NBA in 1976. On the flip side, it’s the worst such differential for the New York Knicks in a playoff game since the NBA began tracking starters in 1970-71.

Streaking

Brunson became the first player in NBA history to record at least 40 points and five assists in four consecutive playoff games. He’s the fourth player to record at least four straight 40-point games in the postseason, joining Jerry West (six in a row), Bernard King, and Michael Jordan.
Brunson is just the third player in NBA history to produce at least 35 points and five assists in five straight playoff games, joining Michael Jordan (May 7-16, 1990) and LeBron James (May 20-28, 2009).
Brunson has scored at least 20 points in each of his last 18 playoff games, the longest such streak in Knicks history. He’s averaging 31.2 PPG and 6.8 APG over that span.
Brunson has attempted at least 25 field goals in each of his seven playoff games this season. The only other player in NBA history to record seven such games in a row to start a postseason is Bob McAdoo in 1975.
Anthony Edwards scored 27 points (11-17 field goals) in the Timberwolves’ win over the Nuggets. Edwards has scored at least 25 points while shooting better than 50% from the field in each of his last four games. No other player in franchise history has recorded even two such playoff games in a row.
The Timberwolves have won six straight playoff games, the longest such streak in franchise history. Prior to this postseason, they had never won more than two playoff games in a row.

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Brunson led all scorers last night with 43 points. He was followed by Edwards (27), Towns (27), and the Knicks’ Donte DiVincenzo (25, playoff career high).
The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic was the night’s top board man, hauling in 16 rebounds. Also recording double-digit boards were Hart (13), the Nuggets’ Jamal Murray (13, playoff career high), and Towns (12).
Four players tied for the nightly lead in assists with eight apiece: the Timberwolves’ Kyle Anderson (playoff career high), the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton, Hart, and Jokic.
Murray shot just 3-18 from the floor, a field goal percentage of 16.7%. Since the franchise joined the NBA in 1976, the only Nugget to record a lower such figure in a game with at least 15 attempts was Carmelo Anthony on April 27, 2004 (1-16, 6.3%).