Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – In a night full of frustration for Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets were eliminated on Thursday by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the NBA playoffs, which saw the New York Knicks qualify with a shocking beating of the Atlanta Hawks.

First modification: 05/01/2026 - 04:53 Last modification: 05/01/2026 - 07:20

The Knicks, who defeated Atlanta 140-89, await the winner of the series between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, who forced a seventh and final game with their 106-93 victory on Thursday.

The big surprise of the day, however, was the elimination of the Nuggets, which leaves the project that Jokic has led since 2015 reeling.

Denver wasted Minnesota's significant injury losses, especially that of its star Anthony Edwards, until losing 110-98 and certifying its fall 4-2 overall.

The Timberwolves met Victor Wembanyama's San Antonio Spurs in the West semifinals after ending the illusions of a second ring for Jokic, winner of three league Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards.

The Serbian center had 28 points, 9 rebounds and 10 assists but around him only forward Cam Johnson responded with 27 points.

The team's second figure, point guard Jamal Murray, was shipwrecked with 12 points and a series of 4-17 in field goals.

Jokic ended up frustrated by Rudy Gobert's effective marking and received a technical foul after an exchange of shoves with substitute Jaylen Clark, sending him to the ground.

The Nuggets had not fallen in the first round since 2022, a year before playing in the only Finals of Jokic's career at 31 years old.

Last season the Nuggets already fired the champion team's coach, Michael Malone, and now they fear the possibility that Jokic will reject the expected renewal offer.

"I still want to be a Nugget forever," Jokic, who has an option to become a free agent in 2028, simply said after the game.

"We just lost in the first round. I think we are very far" from being contenders," he stressed. The changes that are needed "are not my decision. "Definitely, if we were in Serbia, we would all be fired."

Edwards in doubt

For their part, the Timberwolves, driven by 32 points and 10 rebounds from Jaden McDaniels, took advantage of the suffocating atmosphere generated by their crowd to achieve the victory they were missing even with the absences of Edwards, who averaged 18.5 points in the series, and two other of their main scorers, Ayo Dosunmu (21.8) and Donte DiVincenzo (10.8).

This win "shows that we've all done the work, so it's just what we expected," McDaniels said.

Edwards' return during the West semifinals is in serious doubt due to the left knee injury he suffered in the fourth game of this tie.

After limiting Jokic throughout this tie, Rudy Gobert (10 points and 13 rebounds) will now have the challenge of stopping another French giant, the phenomenon Victor Wembanyama.

Ridiculous in Atlanta

In the East, the Knicks punched their ticket with a 4-2 aggregate score and a final, overwhelming 140-89 victory on the Hawks' court, bordering on the biggest blowout in playoff history.

The Knicks did set a new record for a first half of a postseason game, with a lead of 47 points (83-36).

The Knicks had a maximum distance of 61 points (101-40) and Atlanta needed to fight until the last minute to avoid the biggest disadvantage in a playoff game, which will continue to be 58 points.

OG Anunoby, Knicks forward, was the game's leading scorer with 29 points, 26 of them in a frenetic first half.

Game 7 in Boston

New York, present for the fourth year in a row in the conference semifinals, longs to reach its first Finals since 1999.

To find out his next rival he will have to wait until Saturday, when the series between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers will be resolved, who on Thursday tied 3-3.

Shooting guard Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers who have grown with the return of Joel Embiid, who had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists.

Boston, second seed and big favorite at the beginning of this bracket, found no alternatives to its gray night in outside shooting, with 29% (12-41) in three-point shots.

Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum were left with just 18 and 17 points for the Celtics, who are on the verge of being just the fourteenth team to come back from a 3-1 lead.

© 2026 AFP

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