NBA Player News

Lively had 12 points (5-6 FG, 2-3 FT), 15 rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal in 29 minutes during Saturday's 117-116 victory over the Thunder in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Lively continues to play well above his age, producing when it mattered most as the Mavericks eliminated the Thunder. Despite coming off the bench, Lively played the majority of the center minutes, recording his second straight double-double. Dallas will face either the Timberwolves or the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals, and either team will provide Lively with elite opposition at the center position.

Sims racked up one rebound, one assist and one block across four minutes during Friday's 116-103 loss to the Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Sims played four minutes of garbage time as the Knicks were soundly beaten by the Pacers. Though he is known for playing his stars heavy minutes, even in losses, common sense prevailed with Tom Thibodeau closing with his second unit. Despite another ankle injury to Mitchell Robinson, Sims has been unable to carve out a consistent role, something that doesn't bode well for his future when looking beyond this season.

Hartenstein contributed four points (1-3 FG, 2-2 FT), seven rebounds, six assists and one steal over 33 minutes during Friday's 116-103 loss to Indiana in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Hartenstein was unable to repeat his heroics from Game 5, grabbing just seven total rebounds in the loss. Coming off an astonishing 12 offensive rebounds, he struggled to have a meaningful impact as the Knicks were simply outclassed. With the series now deadlocked at 3-3, the two teams will face off one final time in Madison Square Garden on Sunday, with the winner moving on to face the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Porzingis (calf) is expected to miss the start of the Eastern Conference Finals, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports.

Porzingis has been sidelined since he sustained a calf injury in Game 4 of Boston's first-round series. Wojnarowski reports that Porzingis is making progress in his recovery, and there's some optimism that he could return at some point during the series. Boston will face the winner of the second-round series between the Knicks and Pacers, and the opening two games are slated for Tuesday and Thursday.

Jokic contributed 22 points (9-19 FG, 0-4 3Pt, 4-4 FT), nine rebounds and two assists across 36 minutes during Thursday's 115-70 loss to the Timberwolves in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Jokic delivered one of the best performances of his playoff career in Game 5 of the series, but he was unable to repeat those numbers in this woeful loss despite a respectable stat line. Jokic shot under 50 percent from the field for the third time in the series, and the Nuggets have lost every time that has happened. While the entire Nuggets offense must perform better in a do-or-die Game 7 contest on Sunday, Jokic will be the one who sets the tone early on.

Lively totaled 11 points (3-4 FG, 5-6 FT), 10 rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 23 minutes during Wednesday's 104-92 win over the Thunder in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Lively has been playing off the bench due to the solid play of Daniel Gafford down low, but the rookie out of Duke made his presence felt on both ends of the court Wednesday. Aside from missing just one shot from the field, Lively was active defensively and recorded the first playoff double-double of his career. Lively is averaging 7.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in the postseason, and while he looked very good in this pivotal win, he's not expected to move to a starting role ahead of Game 6 on Saturday.

Horford accumulated 22 points (8-15 FG, 6-13 3Pt), 15 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and one steal in 35 minutes during Wednesday's 113-98 win over the Cavaliers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Horford dominated the boards in a series-clinching win Wednesday, leading all players in the contest in rebounds to go along with a handful of assists, a team-high trio of blocks and ending as one of two Celtics with 20 or more points in a double-double performance. Horford reached double figures in rebounds for the first time this postseason, also crossing the 20-point mark for the first time.

Allen (ribs) has been ruled out for Wednesday's Game 5 in Boston, Spencer Davies of SI.com reports.

Allen will miss an eighth straight game due to a right rib contusion. Donovan Mitchell (calf) and Caris LeVert (knee) are also out, so Cleveland's starting lineup for Wednesday's potential elimination game features Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro, Max Strus, Dean Wade and Evan Mobley.

Jokic supplied 40 points (15-22 FG, 2-3 3Pt, 8-9 FT), seven rebounds, 13 assists, one block and two steals over 41 minutes during Tuesday's 112-97 victory over the Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Jokic took over during Game 5, leading the Nuggets to a third consecutive victory over the Timberwolves. Despite going up against Rudy Gobert, the Defensive Player of the Year, Jokic had no issues getting what he wanted around the basket and finished with a playoff-high 40 points. The series will head back to Minnesota, where Jokic and the Nuggets will look to wrap things up Thursday.

Reid contributed seven points (3-8 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 1-2 FT), three rebounds and one block in 20 minutes during Tuesday's 112-97 loss to the Nuggets in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Reid was a non-factor in the loss, continuing his recent struggles. Coming off a career-best regular season, Reid has been unable to produce consistently during the postseason. He has scored fewer than 15 points in eight of the Timberwolves' nine playoff games. Now facing a must-win matchup, Reid will look to turn things around in front of his home fans.