The New York Knicks and Boston Celtics aim to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs with road victories while the Denver Nuggets look to force a Game 7 against the injured Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night

Victor Wembanyama had 17 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks, and the San Antonio Spurs never trailed in eliminating the Portland Trail Blazers with a 114-95 victory in Game 5 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series

Jalen Brunson scored 39 points, nearly extending his own franchise record for 40-point playoff games, and the New York Knicks routed the Atlanta Hawks 126-97 for a 3-2 lead in the first-round playoff series

Joel Embiid scored 33 points, Tyrese Maxey had 25 points and 10 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers avoided elimination, beating the Boston Celtics 113-97 in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series

Houston’s Kevin Durant is out for Game 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers with a left ankle sprain

The NBA has moved closer to a slightly expanded 16-team lottery, one that will flatten odds of winning the No. 1 pick and try to deter tanking by drastically lowering the chances of winning for the teams that finish with the three worst records

Austin Reaves and the Los Angeles Lakers will wait until right before Game 5 to determine whether he is ready to return from nearly four weeks on the sidelines with a strained oblique muscle

Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones has become the first person to plead guilty in a gambling sweep that led to the arrests of more than 30 people, including reputed mobsters and other basketball figures

Oklahoma City’s first-round dominance in the NBA playoffs continues