Pacers, Celtics advance; Nuggets win crucial Game 5; Pistons stay alive; NFL offseason grades

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🏀 Good morning to all, but especially to …

THE INDIANA PACERS …

The Pacers just pulled off one of the greatest comebacks we’ll ever see. That they did it to close out their series against the rival Bucks makes it all the more special. After trailing by seven with 35 seconds left in overtime, Indiana finished on a stunning 8-0 run to beat Milwaukee, 119-118, and advance in five games.

• This one looked all but over after a pair of Gary Trent Jr. 3-pointers (he finished with a game-high 33 points) and a fastbreak layup from Giannis Antetokounmpo (30 points, 20 rebounds, 13 assists).
• But then came a rally/meltdown — for the ages. After an A.J. Green free throw, Andrew Nembhard hit a deep 3, Trent turned it over on the ensuing inbounds, and Tyrese Haliburton scored an and-1 layup on Green. 118-117, Milwaukee.
• Then Trent fumbled a pass out of bounds, and Haliburton went right at Antetokounmpo to score the game-winning layup with 1.3 seconds left.

Haliburton finished with 26 points, five rebounds, nine assists, three steals and three blocks.

Things got ugly with several heated postgame confrontations, including one between Antetokounmpo and Haliburton’s dad, but the Pacers will certainly cherish vanquishing Milwaukee, and in dramatic fashion at that.

… AND THE DENVER NUGGETS

Perhaps the reports of the Nuggets‘ demise were greatly exaggerated, and perhaps all they needed was a healthy, playoff version of Jamal Murray. Perhaps. Denver is one game away from advancing to the second round after a 131-115 Game 5 win over the Clippers.

Murray scored 43 points, a Nuggets home playoff record and his sixth career 40-point playoff game, passing Nikola Jokić for most in franchise history. Jokić was relatively quiet but still had a triple-double.

Rather, it was Murray, Aaron Gordon (23 points) and Russell Westbrook (21 points) leading the way this time, an encouraging sign for a team that has struggled massively whenever Jokić sat. Sam has a great analysis on the dynamic of using James Harden to defend — yes, defend — Jokić.

• Quinn: “If this confuses you, well, that’s understandable. Aside from standing half a foot shorter than Jokić, Harden’s defensive reputation has typically been as a laughing stock. The truth is more complicated. While he has his share of low-effort lowlights from random nights in the regular season, he tends to hold up better in high-leverage situations. More importantly, he has a few consistent virtues: His basketball IQ, his lightning-quick hands, and, most importantly for our purposes, his strength. He can stand his ground in the post against most big men, and his defenses have historically taken advantage of that.”

Elsewhere …

• The Celtics eliminated the Magic with a 120-89 Game 5 win. Jayson Tatum scored 35 points to go along with eight rebounds and 10 assists, and Jaylen Brown added 23 points. Boston outscored Orlando 73-40 in the second half.
• The Magic, who only cracked triple digits once in five games this series, desperately need a scoring guard, Sam writes.
• The Pistons kept their season alive with a 106-103 Game 5 win at the Knicks. Cade Cunningham scored 24 points, and Ausar Thompson added 22 while playing terrific defense on Jalen Brunson (16 points on 4-for-16 shooting).

👍 Honorable mentions

🏀 And not such a good morning for …

THE MILWAUKEE BUCKS

The Bucks have been in this section the past few days, so we’ll keep this short. Antetokounmpo became the first player with a 30/20/10 game with multiple steals and blocks in a playoff game, and Trent was mostly magnificent … and Milwaukee still lost.

I just couldn’t stop thinking about Milwaukee’s finishing lineup.

• No Damian Lillard, one of the game’s all-time great closers. He tore his Achilles in Game 4.
• No Khris Middleton, a Bucks icon and bonafide closer. He was dumped to the Wizards in a midseason trade — along with other pieces — for Kyle Kuzma.
• Kuzma, in turn, was nowhere to be found down the stretch. He played just 13 minutes, going quietly after an awful series.
• No Brook Lopez, whose decline was especially pronounced. He played just eight minutes.

Blame the injuries. Blame the roster construction. Blame whatever you want. We’ve discussed why it’s time for an Antetokounmpo trade already. Antetokounmpo had sharp words for Haliburton’s father, who let the celebration go a bit too far. But later he was mum on his future. A long, uncertain offseason awaits.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 NFL Draft grades and offseason grades

Our 2025 NFL Draft grades continue to arrive, with Ryan Wilson (here) and former NFL defensive lineman Leger Douzable (here) the latest to do the honors. Ryan gave out five “A+” marks, and Leger gave out three. Two teams got an “A+” in both: the Raiders and the Falcons.

• Wilson: “The Raiders traded down 10 spots, grabbed Jack Bech at No. 58 and used the additional third-rounder to get the most athletic offensive tackle in this class, William & Mary’s Charles Grant. Bech is going to eat in the slot, in part because he’s a big wideout, great route runner and has a huge catch radius, but also because defenses have to concern themselves with Brock Bowers and first-rounder Ashton Jeanty.”
• Douzable: “The Falcons needed some pass-rush help in the worst way, and boy did they get it with OLB Jalon Walker, who I feel will be the best player in this draft when it’s all said and done. … Then the Falcons doubled down by taking EDGE James Pearce Jr., who can really get after the quarterback.”

This is one thing I love about the draft. People who know a ton about football can feel similarly … or completely differently. Many analysts panned Atlanta for trading a future first-round pick to get Pearce (I certainly didn’t love it), but here it earned high marks.

The draft, of course, is just one part of the offseason, and our offseason grades series is up and running with the NFC East, NFC West and AFC East. We usually focus on the positive, but one negative mark for a longtime power from Jordan Dajani caught my eye.

• Dajani: “49ers: D+ — The 49ers had the worst free agency of any NFL team, but general manager John Lynch said they had a plan, and that “big things are coming our way.” Is that the Brock Purdy extension, or was it their plans in the draft? It didn’t feel like San Francisco necessarily hit the draft out of the park despite making 11 selections.”

Again, it’s another example of how hard it can be to judge draft hauls; Ryan gave San Francisco’s class an “A+.”

⚽ PSG beats Arsenal 1-0 in first leg; Barcelona-Inter preview, picks

PSG has one foot into the UEFA Champions League final after a 1-0 first-leg win against Arsenal, a massive away result for Les Parisiens.

Ousmane Dembele scored on a wonderful strike just over three minutes in, and the combination of continued excellence from Gianluigi Donnarumma and PSG winning duels helped that goal stand up the rest of the night.

Though Dembele found the net, it was the teammate who assisted him who shared top marks with Donnarumma in Pardeep Cattry’s player ratings.

• Cattry: “Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was, once again, the star of PSG’s show … He makes Luis Enrique‘s system really work, giving opposition defenders plenty of trouble. His busy attacking night ensured PSG would return home with the advantage for next week’s second leg. 8.5“

There’s still a long way to go, though, and Enrique knows Arsenal is capable of a comeback.

Today, Inter visits Barcelona in their first-leg meeting. It’s a rematch of their wild 2010 semifinal, which Inter won 3-2. How will today’s match play out? In our expert predictions, Pardeep says …

• Cattry: “Barcelona 2, Inter 1 — Barcelona may be without Robert Lewandowski but they are still the favorites in this one and it’s not hard to see why. Saturday’s Copa del Rey triumph proved they can still find goals without the Poland international and also demonstrated Barcelona’s ability to not crumble under the pressure of expectation. That’s a far cry from Inter, whose treble hopes have been dashed and are now winless in their last four.”

📺 What we’re watching Wednesday

⚾ Tigers at Astros, 2:10 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Marlins at Dodgers, 3:10 p.m. on MLB Network
🏒 Canadiens at Capitals (Capitals lead 3-1), 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Royals at Rays or Diamondbacks at Mets, 7:05 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Warriors at Rockets (Warriors lead 3-1), 7:30 p.m. on TNT/truTV
🏒 Panthers at Lightning (Panthers lead 3-1), 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2
🏒 Blues at Jets (Series tied 2-2), 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Timberwolves at Lakers (Timberwolves lead 3-1), 10 p.m. on TNT/truTV