The 2025 NBA Playoffs have been filled with exciting moments. On Monday, the Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery after having a 1.8 per cent chance at the pick. Although the draft lottery isn’t an official part of the playoffs, the Mavericks winning the first pick was easily one of the most interesting moments since the playoffs started last month.
Social media went crazy after the Mavericks traded star guard Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for forward Anthony Davis. The NBA world has heavily criticized the team and general manager Nico Harrison since the trade. The team was crushed by injuries and missed the playoffs. The franchise’s luck turned around on Monday after winning the first pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Duke forward Cooper Flagg is the projected number one pick. Flagg gives the Mavericks a young potential star who they may be able to build their future around and a player who could potentially assuage the anger of Mavericks fans.
The Los Angeles Lakers lose in the first round following Luka Doncic trade
A ton of bettors placed bets on the Lakers to win the Western Conference and NBA Finals after the Doncic trade. A team with LeBron James and Doncic in the playoffs was attractive to a lot of bettors. BetMGM bettors bet the second most money on the Lakers to win the NBA Championship leading up to the playoffs, the Cleveland Cavaliers were first. The Lakers also had the second most money bet on them to win the Western Conference.
However, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Lakers 4-1 in the first round, ruining myriad of bets. And not only for bettors on BetMGM, a lot of bettors on all of the Canadian betting sites lost money betting on the Lakers. On the bright side, there were also bettors who won money from betting on the Timberwolves. If you’re a basketball fan or bettor, the Lakers losing to the Timberwolves in the first round was easily one of the top moments of the playoffs so far.
Aaron Gordon’s buzzer-beater
Aaron Gordon made a buzzer-beating dunk with less than one second on the clock in game four of the Denver Nuggets’ first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers. The game was tied 99-99 and the Clippers were up 2-1 in the series before Gordon made the dunk. It was one of the closest buzzer-beaters that you will ever see in your life. Gordon caught the ball with about 0.2 seconds left on the clock after Nikola Jokic missed a step-back jumper with about 1.6 seconds remaining in the game. Gordon somehow dunked the ball before the clock hit 0 and the red lights went on.
Not only is the dunk one of the closest buzzer-beaters that you will ever see, it’s also one of the most unique finishes to a game that you will see. That was the kind of finish to a game that you see in March Madness. It may take years before another buzzer-beating dunk like this one happens, especially in a playoff game. The Nuggets went on to win the series 4-3, advancing to the second round.
Stephen Curry’s injury
The Golden State Warriors looked like a serious championship contender after beating the second-seed Houston Rockets in the first round. Warriors forward Jimmy Butler joined the team earlier this year. The Warriors didn’t even have half a season with Butler on the team. They still found a way to beat the team with the second best record in the Western Conference. Heading into the second round, the Warriors were as hot as any team in the league.
Then Stephen Curry went down with a left hamstring strain in game one of the second-round series against the Timberwolves. After winning game one 99-88, the Warriors haven’t won another game in the series and are in serious danger of being eliminated from the playoffs. The Timberwolves are leading the series 3-1 and are one game away from the Western Conference Finals. Curry’s injury may have changed the outcome of the playoffs.
All road teams go up 1-0 in the second round
The first games of the second round were unpredictable. All four home teams lost the first game of the series. The Nuggets defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 121-119. The Knicks defeated the Celtics 108-105. The Pacers defeated the Cavaliers 121-112. And the Warriors defeated the Timberwolves 99-88. According to the NBA, this was the first time that all four road teams won game one of the conference semifinals since the start of the 16-team playoff format in 1984-85, easily one of the most interesting moments of the 2025 NBA Playoffs.
