NBA Playoffs 2025: TV schedule, current series points, how to watch today’s game
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The Boston Celtics beat the Orlando Magic four games in the first round of the NBA playoffs, defeating the Orlando Magic, one step closer to winning the 19th NBA championship. The first seed of the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder have already won the championship in the semi-finals. Each team swept their respective series in four.
Thunder top scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads the league with 32.7 points per game and he is likely a MVP candidate, despite facing fierce competition from Nikola Jokić, who has easily earned his fourth MVP in the past five years. The Denver Nuggets Center became the third player in NBA history to average triple-double, finishing third in scoring (29.6 points per game) and rebounding (12.7 points per game) and assists second (10.2 points per game). The Nuggets Electric led 3-2 in the series against the La Clippers.
Luka Dončić, Lebron James and the Los Angeles Lakers – three LS – are the West’s third seeds, playing against Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round. Despite the Lakers’ star power, they raised three LS. Timberwolves entered the 3-1 advantage of Game 5 on Wednesday.
Game 4 between the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets featured a brilliant performance from Jimmy Butler, who has been his nickname in the playoffs. He scored 27 points for the Golden State Warriors and led the team to defeat the Houston Rockets. The Warriors led 3-1. They met again Wednesday night.
With some series over and others still in full swing, the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs is sure to make things interesting. Here’s everything you need to know or stream the NBA playoffs.
Luka Dončić and LeBron James position the Los Angeles Lakers as third in the West in the 2025 NBA playoffs.
What is the NBA playoff schedule today?
Here is the schedule for today’s game and the entire weekend (all times):
Wednesday, April 30
- Game 5: Rockets Warriors, TNT, TRUTV and MAX at 7:30 pm
- Game 5: Lakers’ Timberwolves, 10 pm on TNT, TRUTV and MAX
Thursday, May 1
- Game 6: The Pistons’ Knicks, 7:30 pm (TNT, TRUTV, MAX)
- Game 6: The Clippers’ Nuggets, 10 pm (TNT, TRUTV, MAX)
Friday, May 2
- Game 6 (if necessary): Warriors Rockets, TBD
- Game 6 (if necessary): TIMBERWOLVES, TBD’s Lakers
Saturday, May 3
- Game 7 (if necessary): Knicks’ Pistons, TBD
- Field 7 (if necessary): Block scissors, TBD
Sunday, May 4
- Game 7 (if necessary): Timberwolves’ Lakers, TBD
- Game 7 (if necessary): Rockets’ Warrior, TBD
- Semi-final 1: Cavalry Pacers, TBD
What is the NBA playoffs bracket like?
The Cleveland Cavaliers took the Boston Celtics to the top spot in the East, while the Oklahoma City Thunder ran with the highest seed in the West. This is the 2025 NBA playoff game, with each series standing in their remaining first round:
Eastern Conference
- 1st place Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 8 Heat (Cavs won the 4-0 series)
- No. 2 Boston Celtics vs No. 7 Orlando Magic (Celtics win 4-1 in the series)
- New York Knicks and No. 6 Detroit Pistons (Knicks Leading Series 3-2)
- No. 4 Indiana Pacers vs No. 5 Milwaukee Bucks (Pacers win series 4-1)
Western Conference
- No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder and No. 8 Grizzlies (Thunder 4-0 Series)
- No. 2 Houston Rockets and No. 7 Golden State Warriors (Warrior Leading Series 3-1)
- Third place Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota No. 6 Timberwolves (Timberwolves Lead Series 3-1)
- No. 4 Denver Nuggets and No. 5 Los Angeles Clippers (Nuggets Leading Series 3-2)
How to watch the NBA playoffs
The NBA playoffs will be exhibited on ABC, ESPN, TNT/TRUTV and NBA TV. You can watch the game using a cable subscription or live TV streaming service.
Three of the five major services provide all four channels. Hulu lacks NBA TV with live TV, which will only show a few playoffs. Fubo is missing TNT, which shows a large part of the NBA playoffs, which makes Fubo a bad choice for basketball fans. You can also use Max to watch the playoffs TNT/TRUTV broadcast.
YouTube TV costs $83 per month, including all four channels needed to watch every game in the NBA playoffs. Insert your postal code on its welcome page to see which local networks in your region.
Read our YouTube TV reviews.
DirecTV Stream’s monthly selection plan includes ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV. You can use its channel lookup tool to see if your place of residence is available. If you’re willing to skip a handful of games on your NBA TV, you can get three other channels using the basic $80 entertainment suite on DirecTV Stream.
Read our DirectV Streaming Review.
Hulu costs $83 per month with live TV, including ABC, ESPN and TNT. This is the only service that doesn’t offer NBA TV, even part of the add-on package. Click the View Channels in Your Zone link on its welcome page to view local channels available in the postal code.
Read our Hulu with live TV reviews.
You need a standard plan of $17 per month to watch live sports on Max. (Or it’s a premium plan for $21 per month to add 4K streams.) Max will show TNT/TRUTV broadcasts for the NBA playoffs. But with Max, you’ll miss games on ESPN, ABC and NBA TV.
Read our biggest review.
All live TV streaming services above can be cancelled at any time and require a strong internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming service guide.
