Starting 5: Everything to know for tonight's pair of Game 6s

Facing a 9-point deficit with under 3 minutes remaining against the Pistons, the Cavaliers stormed back to force overtime and eventually prevail on the road in Game 5.

It’s Game 7 or Go Home

tonight, times two.

The Cavs and Spurs

can lock up the last two spots in the Conference Finals.

The Pistons and Wolves

look to extend their seasons.

Read on

to get ready for Friday’s pair of Game 6s.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

The Hard Way:

Uphill climb to series’ lead has Cavs & Harden ready for more

Been Here Before:

Down 3-2, Cade & the Pistons have the blueprint for another 7-game save

Another Draft Gem:

Spurs’ rookie Dylan Harper is turning heads this postseason

Beyond Heroics:

The only team to beat the Spurs four times this season, Ant’s Wolves must do it again

Jamal Crawford’s Mailbag:

The 20-year NBA vet answers your Playoff questions on OKC, bench scoring and more

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Tonight on Prime,

the Cavs can advance to the Conference Finals in front of their home fans, while the Spurs attempt to do the same in Minnesota.

Pistons at Cavaliers

(

7 ET, Prime

)

Spurs at Wolves

9:30 ET, Prime

NBA TV’s coverage

of the 2026 Draft Combine continues today at 3:30 ET. Get all the latest data at the

AWS Draft Combine Stats Hub

.

1. AFTER UPHILL COMEBACK, HARDEN & HOST CAVS READY FOR ANYTHING IN GAME 6

The Conference Semis

have marked the end of the line for the Cavs the past two seasons.

But tonight

(7 ET, Prime), hosting Game 6, Cleveland has a chance to move past the East Semis for the first time since 2018.

That’s thanks

to a three-win turnaround in the series after falling behind 0-2 — capped by a signature Game 5 victory in Detroit. Every possession was precious and nothing about it came easy:

Road Relief:

Cleveland conquered its biggest hurdle of these Playoffs so far on Wednesday, winning its first road game since April 6 in Memphis

Rare Rally:

It did so in rare form, as just the fourth team in the last 11 postseasons to come back from a deficit of nine points or more in the final 3 minutes of regulation

One More Wrinkle:

Comeback complete, Cleveland still faced overtime at the home of the East’s top seed, a scenario the team lost in on Feb. 27

Against all those odds

, the Cavs climbed the mountain for a 3-2 series lead, and now suit up back home where they’re 6-0 in these Playoffs.

“Our guys are seasoned,”

coach Kenny Atkinson said after Game 5.

Home Heat:

Cleveland joins the defending champion Thunder as the only teams still unbeaten at home this postseason, averaging 118 ppg (2nd), 51 FG% (2nd), 38.2 3P% (3rd), 14 3PG (1st) and a 120.4 OffRtg (3rd)

On The Fly:

This familiar Cavs core, in its third straight East Semis together, is now embracing a new look with Harden – less than 40 games in — driving key sequences

“James helps a lot … Just calm, all the time,”

Atkinson said of Harden. “You never know if you’re down 20, up 20.”

“We gotta find out who we are

in the moments, which is good for us,” said Harden, who has 185 career Playoff games. “This is how we’re shaping our story.”

Harden sent out

a reminder of his big-game experience in the Cavs’ three straight wins, as one of the main factors in this series’ turn.

Lifting The Land:

In the win streak, The Beard has posted 24.3 ppg, 8 apg and a +9.3 plus/minus, up from 16 ppg, 5 apg and a -11 in the opening losses

Dual Motives:

Harden looks to return to the Conference Finals for the first time since 2018 with Houston, while his backcourt mate aims for his first trip in his ninth try

Spida’s Specialty:

Mitchell, the Cavs’ star, will look to seize the chance to clinch at home. And he’s no slouch in closeout situations, averaging 31.4 ppg in his five career clinching games with Cleveland

2. BEHIND CADE & DETROIT’S BLUEPRINT FOR ANOTHER GAME 6 SAVE

Down 3-2

, on the road, facing elimination after a first-place season.

Daunting to most.

Been-there, survived-that for Detroit.

The East’s No. 1

seed needs a win in Cleveland tonight to extend its historic season. Lucky for them, they have a recent recipe for how to get it.

The Last Time:

In this same scenario in Round 1, the Pistons faced a 24-point 3rd-quarter deficit, after totaling just 38 points in the 1st half

What Flipped Then?

The same thing Detroit needs now: It’s East-leading defense. Motor City held Orlando to 19 2nd-half points in that Game 6, including a stretch of 23 straight misses

Defense First:

It worked in the 1st half of Game 5 against Cleveland as well, as Detroit’s D fed its offense with a 20-2 edge in points off turnovers, and an 8-point lead

“We just gotta execute better

, and mainly on the defensive end,” Daniss Jenkings said, looking ahead to Game 6

Cunningham

was also instrumental in Detroit’s last Game 6 save, piling up 19 points in the final frame with the season on the line. The Pistons need him to shine again, but he

can’t shine alone

Follow The Leader:

In three straight games facing elimination in the First Round, Cade averaged 36.3 ppg on 51.6% shooting, with 5 boards and 6.7 assists

“I made a lot of mistakes tonight.

The team, we made some mistakes,” Cunningham said after Game 5. “All those little things hurt, but you gotta learn from it, and got to be better for it.”

X-Factor?

Jenkins got his first Playoff start in Game 5, sharing the backcourt with Cunningham and providing his highest-scoring postseason outing with 19 points. The pairing could provide a boost again tonight

Difference-Maker:

Tobias Harris had rattled off eight straight games of 20+ points before 16-and 13-point outings in Games 4 and 5

Duren Double-Up:

After nearly averaging one in the First Round (10.6 ppg, 9.4 rpg), Jalen Duren hasn’t logged a double-double in this series since Game 1 (11/12) — with the 2026 All-Star looking to break out tonight against Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen

Being the No. 1 seed

hasn’t shielded Detroit from being tested, as the team has played more clutch games (8, 4-4) than any other team in these Playoffs.

New Nuggets?

The Pistons could play their fourth and fifth elimination games of this postseason, which would be the most through the first two rounds since the 2020 Nuggets, who played six in back-to-back 3-1 comebacks

3. SPURS’ HARPER FINDING HIS GROOVE ON GAME’S BIGGEST STAGE

Victor Wembanyama

isn’t the only Playoff first-timer turning heads in San Antonio this Spring.

Rookie Dylan Harper’s

standout postseason moments thus far have impressed both near and far, from the

Spurs’ Jackals

and

Manu Ginobili

, to Jamal Crawford (see Section 5 ⬇️) and

Reggie Miller

Ahead of tonight’s Game 6

(9:30 ET, Prime), where San Antonio goes for its second series win of these Playoffs, The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson II writes the Spurs’ youngest player looks as ready for the moment as any:

“If he played

for any other team in the league,” fellow Spurs rookie Carter Bryant said, “he’d be starting and probably be winning the Rookie of the Year right now…”

Harper belongs

at this level. In the postseason, in high-stakes games, in battles with the league’s elite. It’s visible in his calm. The game has already slowed down enough for him to know when to speed up. So he’s perfectly comfortable getting the ball off one rim and stubbornly, but smoothly, finishing at the other.

…

He’s already

staring at opponents after dunks and flexing after putting back tough rebounds.

Harper exudes

an unfazed aura on the court. A readiness. An expectation.

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Read More

4. ANT’S WOLVES LOOK TO FIND NEW LEVEL TO FORCE GAME 7 VS. SPURS

Just nine days after

hyperextending his left knee and bruising the bone, Anthony Edwards was back, adding to his team-leading 21.3 ppg.

Five games later,

he’s helped push the No. 2-seeded Spurs’ (and their youngsters) young group to a Game 6 in the West Semifinals.

And yet

, he’s the one on the hot seat tonight.

So, to extend

their season to a Game 7 and a chance to survive and advance, Ant and his Wolves must go even further beyond the highs and heroics they’ve already achieved.

More Than Four:

Getting to a Game 7 will require the Wolves to beat the Spurs for the fifth time this season (regular-season included), and only they know what a challenge that is

Rival Status:

No other team has beaten San Antonio more than three times this season, a group that includes the Thunder, who await the winner of this series in the West Finals

Edwards has already

shown what makes him elite all postseason. But history shows there’s still another level he can go to with his back against the wall.

All Caught Up:

Ant (21.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 2.8 apg) has scored a team-high 192 points this postseason despite missing two of 11 games to injury

Ant vs. Extermination:

But in eight career games when facing elimination (4-4), Edwards is up at 26.5 ppg, 7 rpg and 5.6 apg

The Wolves

will also look to their pair of star bigs, Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle, to find ways around Wemby’s impact.

Gobert

, a four-time Kia DPOY award-winner, is out to neutralize the reigning DPOY and fellow Frenchman Wembanyama — while Randle aims to reestablish his role as offensive spark inside.

Drives Dive:

Randle leads the Wolves with 12 drives per game this postseason, but he’s seen his points there drop from 8.2 ppg in the First Round to 4 ppg in this round

“It’s obviously different

when you got somebody who’s 7-6 down there … He’s a different challenge for sure,” Randle said of Wemby

Centerpiece:

There’s no mistaking Randle’s importance to the Wolves’ success, as they’ve averaged 34.2 PITP with him on the floor in these Playoffs … and only 16.4 while he’s off

Leading the team

in total assists (33), Randle has created 8.8 points off his assists in Minnesota’s six wins. In five losses, that number drops to 5.4

Randle will look

to build on the momentum of a 9-point 4th quarter last time out in Game 5.

“He played with force

, played through contact… stayed on-balance a little bit better,” coach Chris Finch noted.

5. JAMAL CRAWFORD’S MAILBAG: MUST-SEE PLAYOFF SCORERS AND MORE

In the latest NBA Mailbag

, 20-year NBA vet and NBC analyst Jamal Crawford answers your questions on the playoffs, OKC’s 8-0 start, scoring off the bench, and more:

Who are your favorite players to watch during these NBA playoffs?

– from Cole in San Luis Obispo, CA

“All the obvious guys

– Anthony Edwards. Wemby, of course, Jalen Brunson, Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. SGA, Cade, LeBron.

For more under-the-radar guys

, I’ll go with Dylan Harper and Ajay Mitchell.”

Are you surprised OKC started 8-0? Do you think they can be the first team to go 16-0?

– from Tim in Denver, CO

“I’m not surprised

they started 8-0. I think they’re that good. If they were a boxer, they would have so many different styles.

In boxing terms

, you could say they shoot the jab, they’re great defenders, they have a good chin, they’re a knockout puncher, they’re technical, they have everything that you want in a team.

So, I’m not surprised

they’re 8-0. But I do not think they’ll go 16-0.”

As a microwave scorer who often came off the bench, what was your specific routine or mental trick to feel warm and instantly effective in your first minute on the court?

– from Kylon in Tampa, FL

“…

One thing I thought about

a few nights ago with Naz Reid and the Wolves. When you come off the bench and your team is down, you get to be more aggressive. Your team is already down, so they’re looking for a bunch of offense right away.

If your team is up

and you come in, you don’t want to disrupt the flow of what they have going, and you just play off of them. Then in the second quarter, you start feeling more comfortable being aggressive.”