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Is Ant-Man really a superhero? Because only a villain would exact revenge like that.

Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Doug Christie and Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot! 🎉

Playoff Recap

Wolves grab series-evening 117-93 win over Golden State despite Edwards’ injury scare

Anthony Edwards (20 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST) bounced back from an ankle injury that caused him to leave the game briefly and Julius Randle flirted with a triple-double (24 PTS, 11 AST, 7 REB) as the Wolves made it a 1-1 series against Jimmy Butler (17 PTS, 7 REB) and the Warriors.

It’s not the first time this postseason that Edwards’ ankle has taken a hit, and in case this series turns into a battle of the benches with Steph Curry also injured, we have an idea who’ll benefit from it: Nickeil Alexander-Walker (20 PTS, 4 3PM), Donte DiVincenzo (9 PTS, 5 AST, 3 3PM) and Naz Reid (11 PTS, 5 AST, 3 3PM) turned in another incredible performance as Minnesota’s sixth, seventh, and eighth men last night.

Minnesota led this one from the jump, opening the game on a 13-0 run and never looking back. The Warriors will need to see someone step up if they want to keep this series competitive before Steph comes back—we know the game-winning IQ that veterans like Butler and Draymond Green (9 PTS, 5 AST) have in these playoff scenarios, so let’s see how well they fare back in the Bay for Game 3.

Knicks rally in Boston again, jump out to 2-0 series lead with 91-90 win over Celtics

After their electric comeback W in Game 1, the Knicks made hoops fans—a lot of whom predicted a Boston sweep—adjust their mindset about this series.

But again? In Game 2? Wild.

In the exact same fashion as their first matchup, Boston broke open a large lead over the Knicks in the first half of Game 2, a home matchup for the C’s. And then, in the exact same fashion as their first matchup, New York started to claw back in the third quarter, evening the game as the clock ticked. This time, it was Josh Hart (23 PTS, 6 REB, 2 BLK) and Mikal Bridges (14 PTS, all in 4Q) leading the charge.

After a Jayson Tatum (13 PTS, 14 REB, 5 AST) coast-to-coast dunk put the Celtics up 1 with under 20 seconds left, Jalen Brunson (17 PTS, 7 AST) found his way to the line and sunk two free throws to give New York the lead for good. It’s 2-0 Knicks, and we’re headed to New York.

Something about Villanova grads!

Thunder score playoff-record 87 points in first half, even series at 1-1 with 149-106 blowout of Nuggets

87 points in a half. That’s only a few shy of both Boston and New York’s full point totals from the same night!

The Thunder completely had their way with Denver on Wednesday, with eight OKC players scoring in double digits in an absolute offensive clinic. Shooting 56% from the floor and 44% from three, Oklahoma City was led by none other than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (34 PTS, 8 AST, 4 REB), who filled the stat sheet despite a quiet shooting night from the perimeter (1-2 3PT).

On Denver’s part, they couldn’t kick their offense into a high enough gear to even compete with the Thunder’s energy. Oklahoma City stole the ball 12 times, but it was still an otherwise inefficient night from Nikola Jokic (17 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST, 6-16 FG), who fouled out in the 3Q.

By the way: when Jokic got ejected with a minute left in the third quarter, the Thunder had already scored 117 points. Nuts.

Top Five Friday

The second round is more than underway, but let’s take a second to reflect on how we got here. Here are our five most Enjoy-able games of Round 1:

1. NYK 116 @ DET 113, G6 – Brunson drops 40, wins series for Knicks with last-second three: This one had it all—big dramatic runs, great individual performances, and a finale that would sell out most theaters. New York opened up two separate 12-point leads in this game, both of which were eliminated in the span of minutes by Malik Beasley’s hot shooting (20 PTS, 6 3PM). The Pistons converted on that momentum, holding a seven-point lead with two and half minutes left, but the Knicks rallied to tie the game and we all know what Jalen Brunson (40 PTS, 7 AST) did to finish it… 🔥

2. LAC 115 @ DEN 131, G5 – Jamal pours in 43, Nuggets take 3-2 lead: Some say he’s lost a step due to injuries throughout his career, but Jamal “Glitch” Murray is still a certified playoff riser in our eyes. His 43 PTS in Game 5 against the Clippers were as efficient (17-26 FG, 8-14 3PT) as they were ethical (1 FTA)—did we mention he also recorded seven assists and grabbed three steals all while only losing one turnover? Masterpiece. 🎨

3. MIL 118 @ IND 119, G5 – Pacers clinch series despite Giannis’ 30-20-10: We loved this game for two opposing reasons, and we stand by them. Because yes, Giannis Antetokounmpo (30 PTS, 20 REB, 13 AST) joined Nikola Jokic, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to record 30-20-10 games in the playoffs. But, the Pacers perfectly countered his brilliance with a well-rounded offensive attack (five players scoring 15+), and a clutch OT Tyrese Haliburton (26 PTS, 9 AST) layup sent Indiana one step closer to their second-straight ECF. A testament to the crazy nature of this game we Enjoy so much! 🤪

4. NYK 94 @ DET 93, G4 – Knicks complete 16-point comeback in Detroit: Yup, another Knicks moment! New York was down 11 early in the fourth quarter of this game thanks to a triple-double from Cade Cunningham (25 PTS, 10 AST, 10 REB). But Jalen Brunson (32 PTS, 11 AST) and Karl-Anthony Towns (27 PTS, 9 REB) stepped up when New York needed them most, powering the Knicks to a comeback W—with a KAT three as the dagger—and extending their series lead. 🌃

5. LAC 105 @ DEN 102, G2 – Kawhi’s 39 pushes Clippers over Nuggets: The Clippers didn’t move on to the second round, but this was too great of a game to not include at the end of this list. After a career full of high championship highs and low injury-ridden lows, Kawhi Leonard (39 PTS, 5 AST, 2 STL, 15-19 FG, 4-7 3PT) is one of those guys it’s too easy and too fun to root for. His vintage performance in Game 2 helped L.A. push this series to seven games and solidified it as one of the best contests of the first round. 💪

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Happy Friday, Enjoyers! Use this weekend to relax and reset yourself before Monday. Prioritize your goals and be smart about what you want to achieve. You got this!

Austin Zeglis