That first in the West (with two to play) feeling.

THE LINEUP 🏀

What’s inside today’s edition?

Nuggets reclaim 1st: Denver wins showdown with Minnesota to move atop the West

We meet again: The Mavs and Clippers will meet in the first round for the third time in five years

Cavs move up: A Cleveland win and Orlando loss has the Cavs back in the top four

Playoff Picture: The Lakers and Warriors are both locked in the Play-In with seeding TBD

Tonight: New York looks to avoid a five-game sweep to Boston, plus a trio of games with Play-In stakes

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Last night’s scores & what to watch today.

A TNT doubleheader leads a five-game Thursday, and features a pair of rare five-game season series that could end in sweeps. The Celtics look to go 5-0 against the Knicks (7:30 ET) before the Pelicans look to do the same to the Kings (10 ET).

1. NUGGETS WIN SHOWDOWN WITH WOLVES, BACK IN 1ST

Joker does it all: With first place on the line, Nikola Jokic made sure the Nuggets came out on top, dropping 41 points (on 80% shooting), 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals to lead Denver to a 116-107 win over Minnesota.

Jamal Murray added 20 points to help offset Anthony Edwards’ 25 (including this midair hand switch layup) for the Wolves. | Recap

• Jokic passes Wilt: Jokic’s seven dimes helped him pass Wilt Chamberlain (4,643) for the second-most assists by a center in NBA history. Only Kareem (5,660) has more
• What can Braun do for you? Christian Braun was Denver’s sixth-leading scorer (eight points), but his three 4th-quarter dunks were massive as the Nuggets pulled away

Thunder roll: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 26 points in 26 minutes, while Josh Giddey added 20 points, 12 boards and seven assists as the Thunder cruised past the Wemby-less Spurs, 127-89. | Recap

What’s ahead?: The Nuggets, Wolves and Thunder each have two games to play to decide the top three in the West. All three teams will be in action Friday and Sunday to close the season.

1. Denver: at San Antonio, at Memphis
2. Minnesota: vs. Atlanta, vs. Phoenix
3. OKC: vs. Milwaukee, vs. Dallas

2. MAVS-CLIPPERS FIRST ROUND MATCHUP SET

Mavs clinch Southwest Division: Dallas got a combined 54 points and nine 3s from Luka Doncic (29 pts, 9 reb, 9 ast, 4 3s) and Kyrie Irving (25 pts, 4 ast, 5 3s) to defeat Miami 111-92. | Recap

Dallas secured their first division title since 2021with the win, along with a first round matchup with the Clippers for the third time in five years.

• Mavs On A Roll: Dallas posted its third 5+ game win streak since the start of February. The Mavs have won 16 of their past 18 games with Luka nearly averaging a 30-point triple-double during that stretch (31.3 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 9.9 apg)

Suns close out Clippers: Phoenix closed the game on a 23-2 run to turn a five-point deficit into a 16-point win over LA. The Suns’ big three – Devin Booker (37 pts, 5 3s), Bradley Beal (26 pts, 4 3s) and Kevin Durant (24 pts, 9 reb) – combined for 87 points against the shorthanded Clippers (no Kawhi Leonard, Paul George or James Harden). | Recap

3. CAVS CLIMB TO 4TH IN EAST

Cavs rise to 4th: Donovan Mitchell (29 pts, 8 ast, 5 3s, 3 stl) had his highest-scoring game since Feb. 27 to lead the Cavs to a 110-98 win over the Grizzlies. Jarrett Allen had 16 points and 10 boards while Memphis’ Jake LaRavia had a career-high 32 points and eight 3s. | Recap

Bucks win without Giannis: With Antetokounmpo on the bench in a walking boot after suffering a strained calf 24 hours earlier, the Bucks got a combined 59 points from Bobby Portis (30 pts, 9 reb, 5 stl) and Damian Lillard (29 pts, 9 ast) to defeat the Magic 117-99. | Recap

Hornets rally past Hawks: Miles Bridges hit the game-winning layup with 3.8 seconds left as the Hornets overcame an 18-point deficit to spoil Trae Young’s return (14 pts, 11 ast in 21 min) with a 115-114 win.

• Brandon Miller scored a game-high 27 (including a poster dunk), while Bogdan Bogdanovic set a franchise record with his 234th trey of the season. | Recap

Nets win home finale: In their final home game of the season, the Nets outlasted the Raptors 106-102 in a game that saw 21 lead changes, 10 ties and no double-digit leads. Cam Thomas (23 pts, 5 3s) and Dennis Schroder (21 pts, 9 ast) combined for 44 to lead the Nets. | Recap

4. PLAYOFF PICTURE: FIRST MATCHUP SET

• ⬆️ 1. Denver: Claims 1st in the West, 1.0 games up on (2) Minnesota and (3) OKC
• ⬇️ 2. Minnesota: Falls to 2nd, holding tiebreaker over (3) OKC (better conference record), 1.0 GB of (1) Denver
• ↔️ 3. Oklahoma City: Remains 3rd via tiebreaker with Minnesota, 1.0 GB of (1) Denver
• ↔️ 4. LA Clippers: Remain 4th, will face Dallas in first round, 1.0 up on (5) Dallas in race for home-court advantage in the series (LA holds tiebreaker if needed)
• ↔️ ☑️ 5. Dallas: Clinches Southwest Division, remains 5th, 1.0 GB of (4) LA Clippers
• ↔️ 7. Phoenix: Remains 7th, 0.5 GB of (6) New Orleans, 1.5 up on (8) Sacramento
• ☑️ 9. L.A. Lakers & 10. Golden State: Locked into Play-In after Suns win

• ↔️ 2. Milwaukee: Remains 2nd, 1.5 up on (3) NY, guaranteed top four finish
• ☑️ 3. New York: Clinches playoff berth with Miami loss
• ⬆️ 4. Cleveland: Rises to 4th, 1.0 up on (5) Orlando and (6) Indy, 0.5 GB of (3) NY
• ⬇️ 5. Orlando: Falls to 5th via tiebreaker with (6) Indy, 1.0 up on (7) Philly, 1.0 GB of (4) Cleveland, 1.5 GB of (3) NY
• ↔️ 8. Miami: Remains 8th, 1.0 GB of (7) Philly, 2.0 GB of (6) Indy
• ↔️ 10. Atlanta: Remains 10th, 1.5 GB of (9) Chicago

Check out the updated bracket to see the matchups if the postseason started today.

5. TNT THURSDAY: A PAIR OF FIVE-GAME SERIES FINALES

Tonight’s TNT doubleheader features a new wrinkle in this year’s schedule – five-game season series, created by NBA In-Season Tournament results.

New York heads to Boston (7:30 ET) looking to avoid a series sweep at the hands of the Celtics. A win would also give the Knicks 45+ wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1999-200 and 2000-01.

This Knicks’ resurgence is in lockstep with their acquisition of Jalen Brunson in the 2022 offseason. Averaging career-highs of 28.4 ppg (4th in NBA) and 6.7 apg (12th), Brunson is three dimes shy of being the 21st player (and 2nd Knick) to tally 2,000 points and 500 assists in a season.

• 🗣️ Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra on Brunson: “He’s that good right now. His footwork, his cleverness, his aggressiveness, playing against your aggressiveness, [he has] the entire package…
• “You just have to be absolutely rock solid and disciplined and sometimes he’s going to make shots even when you do that.”
• 🗣️ Brunson On The Knicks’ Bond: “We low-key hate each other, but we like each other…. We always find something to make fun of the other person. Somehow that turns into great team chemistry.”

Another key piece to New York’s run to the No. 3 seed (with a shot to reach No. 2) is the midseason acquisition of OG Anunoby.

The Knicks are plus-321 in Anunoby’s 700 minutes over 20 games in NY (that’s an average of +16.1 per game). OG’s 100.2 defensive rating with the Knicks is best in the NBA among the 318 players that have played at least 1,400 possessions this season.

Thursday also features a trio of games with Play-In implications:

• Pelicans-Kings (10 ET, TNT): A Sacramento loss would lock the Kings into the Play-In, while a NOLA loss would drop the Pelicans into the Play-In via tiebreaker with Phoenix (Suns hold head-to-head tiebreaker)
• Warriors-Blazers (10 ET, NBA App): A Warriors win moves them to 9th as they would tie the Lakers at 45-35 and the Warriors hold the head-to-head tiebreaker
• Bulls-Pistons (7 ET, NBA App): A Bulls win clinches home-court advantage over the Hawks in the 9 vs. 10 Play-In. It would put Chicago up two games with two games to play, with the Bulls holding the head-to-head tiebreaker.