The 2025 NBA playoff field is officially set.
The final two play-in games took place Friday night to finalize the field for the playoffs and determine the two No. 8 seeds in the postseason, which will kick off in earnest Saturday.
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On Tuesday night, the Orlando Magic dispatched the Atlanta Hawks, and the Golden State Warriors survived a close game against the Memphis Grizzlies. On Wednesday, the Miami Heat dominated the Chicago Bulls, while the Dallas Mavericks easily rolled the Sacramento Kings.
The Hawks and Heat squared off in a thriller in the East on Friday night, and then the Grizzlies hosted the Mavs in the nightcap.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 NBA play-in tournament, and a look back at all of the action from Friday night.
Grizzlies 120, Mavericks 106
Ja Morant, after a brief injury scare, appears to be totally fine.
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Morant and the Grizzlies absolutely rolled over the Dallas Mavericks in a blowout at FedEx Forum to secure a spot in the playoffs. The win set up a first-round series with the Oklahoma City Thunder and ended what has been a brutal second half of the year for Dallas after the shocking trade that sent star Luka Dončić to the Lakers.
Morant had 16 points, five assists and five rebounds in the first half while leading the Grizzlies to a dominant 17-point lead at the break. It would’ve been bigger, too, had Dallas not gone on a mini 8-0 run to end the half. The Mavericks struggled to stop Memphis in the first two quarters, and the Grizzlies flew ahead without any issue. Desmond Bane added 15 points in the first half, and Morant even threw down a wild one-handed putback dunk at one point.
The Mavericks came out of the locker room with a small push and even had a look to cut the lead to just four points very briefly in the third quarter. But, as quickly as it had come, their momentum completely disappeared. Jaren Jackson Jr. dropped 12 points in the third quarter to push the Grizzlies back to an 18-point advantage at the end of the period.
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From there, the Grizzlies held on and cruised to the win.
Anthony Davis led the Mavericks with 40 points and nine rebounds. He shot 16-of-29 from the field, too. It was Davis’ highest-scoring game since he was traded to the Mavericks in February. He was battling a groin injury throughout the night, and then he limped off the court briefly in the fourth quarter with an apparent right calf injury. Klay Thompson added 18 points, and Brandon Williams had 16 points and seven assists off the bench for the Mavs.
Jackson led the Grizzlies with 24 points and seven rebounds, though all of their starters hit double figures. Morant nearly had a triple-double with 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and Bane finished with 22 points and nine assists. They’ll now take on the Thunder, who racked up 68 wins on the season and had 54 of those by double digits — which is an NBA record.
Game 1 of that series is set for Sunday afternoon in Oklahoma City.
Heat 123, Hawks 114
The Miami Heat nearly did it again. During the regular season, Miami lost 15 games after taking a lead into the third quarter. No other NBA team lost that many games under those circumstances.
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Friday night’s NBA play-in tournament matchup versus the Atlanta Hawks almost became the 16th defeat after Miami took a an 86-77 into the fourth quarter.
Atlanta began the final frame with a 14-2 run capped by a Trae Young 3-pointer that finally gave the Hawks the lead, 91-88. Before that, the Hawks had trailed for the entire game.
Five consecutive points by Onyeka Okongwu extended Atlanta’s lead to 98-92 with five minutes remaining in regulation, and it appeared Miami might blow the game.
However, the Heat regained the lead, 99-98, on a 3 by Davion Mitchell and two consecutive baskets by Tyler Herro. After twice failing to regain the lead, Young tied the score at 106 on a layup with 1.1 seconds left to send the game into overtime.
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In the extra period, Miami quickly took control on a 3 by Herro followed by Mitchell hitting two more from long range. The Hawks countered with 3s from Okongwu and Young, but Herro sunk the dagger from behind the arc to give the Heat a 120-114 lead.
Herro finished with 30 points to lead all scorers, followed by 20 from Andrew Wiggins and Mitchell adding 16. Young led the Hawks with 29, while Okongwu added 28. Georges Niang also contributed 20 points off the bench.
With the win, Miami made some NBA play-in tournament history. No team that was a No. 10 seed had ever advanced through the play-in to the regular playoffs. The Heat now move on to face the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. Game 1 is scheduled for Sunday at 7 p.m. ET.
