Sixteen teams in total make the NBA playoffs, eight teams from both the Eastern and Western Conference. The top six seeds in each conference advance based on the regular season record. The final two seeds in each conference are determined by the NBA Play-In Tournament.

The Thunder and the Pacers hold the early lead in their respective NBA Conference Finals series. Here's what you need to know.

Whichever two teams emerge from the NBA's conference finals will produce a Finals matchup we've never seen before. But not all of them are created equal. As the conference finals heat up heading into Friday's Game 2 between the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers (8 p.

Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals between the Timberwolves and Thunder tips off Thursday night at 7:30 PM CT at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. The game will air on ESPN with Mike Breen, Doris Burke, Richard Jefferson and Lisa Salters on the call.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is making history with the Oklahoma City Thunder. After winning the 2025 NBA MVP, he shattered a franchise playoff record, cementing his place among Oklahoma City’s all-time greats.

At age 37, Curry is now the oldest guard in NBA history to make back-to back All-NBA teams. The two-time league MVP earned All-NBA Third-Team honors in 2024. Curry earned First-Team All-NBA honors in 2015, 2016, 2019, and 2021.

The audience for the 2025 NBA Playoffs on ESPN platforms ( ESPN and ABC) is up 12% from last year, according to Nielsen. Through the Conference Semifinals (22 games), ESPN is averaging 4,883,000 viewers, making it the second-most watched NBA Playoffs since 2011.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves play at 8:30 p.m. ET on TNT today in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. Use this chat to talk about tonight’s game. Enjoy!

The matchups are set for the 2025 NBA conference finals, as the Thunder will meet the Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals and the Knicks will play the Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.