Biggest Winners and Losers from NBA Playoffs Round 2 So Far
Every second-round NBA playoff series is now two games deep. That's plenty old enough for us to spot a handful of winners and losers.
Although there's time for some takeaways to change, we'll be leaning into the most impactful revelations through the first few games, as well as any developments with big-picture implications.
Second-round performances will inform who gets their flowers and who's going home with eastern skunk cabbage. But the entire postseason to date will also play a factor.
Winner: Minnesota Timberwolves
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Even after suffering a Game 2 beatdown, the legend of Minnesota Timberwolves: Playoff Edition continues to grow.
Anthony Edwards is playing on approximately 1.37 knees. Donte DiVincenzo is done for the season (and much longer) after undergoing surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles. Naz Reid is laboring through shoulder pain. Ayo Dosunmu missed the start of Round 2—and the end of Round 1—with a right calf injury.
Most of all, Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs are being billed as the league's foremost threat to the Oklahoma City Thunder. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone, at all, who gave the Wolves a puncher's chance in this series.
Minnesota seized home-court advantage anyway, on the back of a gritty-as-hell defensive masterclass in Game 1.
These Wolves are the consummate chaos grenade. They spend all regular season oozing should-be fatal flaws—turnovers, the defense without Rudy Gobert, crunch-time implosions, etc. Then, the playoffs roll around, and they turn into giant slayers.
That their streak of Western Conference Finals appearances remains alive is a testament to so many things. Some are predictable (Jaden McDaniels). Others are a pleasant surprise (Terrence Shannon Jr.). At least one doesn't make sense (Game 1 Mike Conley). It all coalesces into what we see now: a team to never count out.
Loser: Ayo Dosunmu
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Dosunmu appeared to have made himself a bunch of money entering free agency with his play in Round 1. A 43-point detonation in a Game 4 win over the Denver Nuggets was the primary catalyst, and he's emerged as the overall secondary lifeline the Timberwolves needed after they signed-and-traded Nickeil Alexander-Walker to the Atlanta Hawks.
Talk about a terrible time to get bitten by the injury bug.
Dosunmu missed the end of Round 1 and the start of Round 2 with a right calf injury. He returned to the lineup in Game 2 against the Spurs, without a minutes limit, but eventually left the court and did not return due to right heel pain.
Perhaps Minnesota was operating with an abundance of caution. The Spurs had people wondering whether the Timberwolves could invoke a mercy rule.
If this right heel issue is anything more than a footnote, though, Minnesota's guard rotation suddenly becomes too reliant on Mike Conley, Bones Hyland and Jaylen Clark. And from there, Dosunmu's stock entering a free agency period in which just three teams project to have cap space, takes a hit.
Winner: Cade Cunningham
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Cade Cunningham opened the Detroit Pistons' second-round matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers by going 6-of-19 from the floor, committing four turnovers and scoring just two fourth-quarter points through the first 11 minutes of the period.
In a series that also features Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and James Harden, he's already been the best player anyway.
Harping on Cunningham's efficiency and turnovers has always required proper context. Defenses are tilted entirely towards him because they aren't worried about anyone else. That's even truer now, when Detroit can't be sure whether Jalen Duren will score more than 12 points.
Cunningham's knack for turning defensive attention (bordering on obsession) into scoring opportunities for his teammates—he trails only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in potential assists per game—and trips to the foul line is not talked about enough. Yet, his ability to shoulder insane offensive usage while consistently bringing it on defense flies even further under the radar.
The Pistons are using Cunningham as the primary line of resistance against Harden. And Ausar Thompson is the only other player who has logged more reps guarding Mitchell. The all-everything for Detroit's offense is dabbling in a similar importance on defense. Really think about that.
This isn't a coming-out party for Cunningham. It's a reminder that he's one of the league's best two-way players. Period.
Loser: James Harden
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Playoff James jokes are no longer a source of comedic relief. They're too true to be funny at the moment.
With the exception of Game 2 against the Toronto Raptors (and maaaybe Game 4), Harden's impact has been dulled. His defense has mostly exceeded expectations, and the Cleveland Cavaliers continue to need his playmaking. But his scoring efficiency and involvement have been uneven, and he's posting what would be the worst turnover rate of his playoff career.
Whether you consider this problematic or just unspectacular, the early returns against the Pistons are an extension of it. Harden pumped in 13 fourth-quarter points to close out Game 1, but he finished with as many or more turnovers as assists for the fourth time this postseason. That became five in Game 2. Oh, and Cleveland lost. Twice.
Going from Toronto's defense to Detroit's defense is a special brand of torture. Harden is also 36, and the Cavs are supposedly built to minimize the pressure on his shoulders. But with another free agency jaunt scheduled for this summer (player option), his performance so far isn't doing himself or Cleveland any favors.
Winner: Ajay Mitchell
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Ajay Mitchell continues to give off "Would be an All-Star if he had his own team or was a perma-second option" vibes. Mitchell didn't shoot particularly well to open the Lakers series (7-of-16), but he provided a steadying ball-handling alternative for stretches without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and whenever L.A. pressured the ever-living hell out of the likely two-time NBA MVP.
While the 23-year-old isn't one of the top three reasons why the Thunder are a defensive slaughterhouse, we should talk more about how he can take up nearly any guard assignment, with reps against sizeable wings peppered throughout his workload. The Lakers, for the series, are averaging under 0.84 points per possession whenever Mitchell defends Austin Reaves or Marcus Smart. (That's bad…for Los Angeles.)
Spotty perimeter shooting is baked into the Mitchell experience, but he usually hits enough of his threes to play off the ball and enough of his pull-up middies to keep defenses on tilt. His 40 percent clip from beyond the arc for the playoffs opens up all sorts of possibilities.
More impressive than anything, nobody on the Thunder has logged more minutes without SGA. The Thunder are not only winning these stints handily, but they're posting a 127 offensive rating when doing so.
Envisioning Mitchell in a more prominent role inside or outside the comfy confines of OKC is a cinch when he's picking up so much slack during Jalen Williams' absence. More people will know his name and understand his value by the end of the postseason, making him a huge winner.
Of course, with Mitchell locked up for another two years at less than 2 percent of the salary cap, the Thunder remain the biggest winners of all.
Loser: Joel Embiid
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Joel Embiid simply cannot catch a break.
He missed the Philadelphia 76ers' first three playoff games while recovering from an emergency appendectomy. Though he went on to help the team come back from a 3-1 deficit against the Boston Celtics, he looked like he could barely walk by the end of Game 7.
That visual carried over into the start of the second round against the New York Knicks. Embiid was a shell of a shell of himself on defense and couldn't put any pressure on the paint or fire off his jumpers in a timely fashion at the other end.
The eye test apparently matched what the seven-footer was feeling. He missed Game 2 in New York after "experiencing increased soreness" in both his hip and ankle, and is considered day-to-day moving forward.
Frankly, given everything, it's a miracle Embiid has played at all. But it's an outright bummer for Embiid, Sixers fans and general hoops heads that they're constantly left wondering whether he's already appeared in his last game of the season.
Winner: New York Knicks
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Don't look now, but the New York Knicks are officially prohibitive favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference.
Jumping out to a 2-0 series lead over the Philadelphia 76ers is just part of the story. This always loomed as a good matchup for the Knicks—particularly Jalen Brunson. Joel Embiid's hip and ankle injuries add to the feeling of inevitability, but his absence isn't a boost they need.
New York has been firing on all cylinders since its Game 3 loss to the Hawks. Karl-Anthony Towns is being unlocked as a passer while playing perhaps the best defense of his career. Brunson is spending more time away from the ball, a wrinkle that's as useful for his workload management as the team's functional versatility.
OG Anunoby looks like the Knicks' third star... on both ends of the floor. Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart are playing spectacular defense. With the exception of Game 2 against Philadelphia, Deuce McBride is hitting threes again. Head coach Mike Brown is pressing all the right buttons, as New York has joined Oklahoma City as the only playoff teams with top-five offenses and defenses.
The list goes on. It not only includes but is headlined by unconvincing performances to date from the Cavs. Add it all up, and even with a potential absence from Anunoby looming, the East is now in "If not the Knicks, then who?" territory.
Loser: Los Angeles Lakers
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There is a found-money feeling to the Lakers' playoff run that could shield them from inclusion. Luka Dončić has yet to play while recovering from a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. Few gave them a chance against the Houston Rockets, let alone the reigning champs.
At the same time, the entire point of extending the season is to get Luka back, perhaps give the Thunder a real test, and most importantly, gain valuable information heading into the summer on what this roster needs most to compete with the very best.
So much for that.
Dončić has not explicitly been ruled out for the series, but it does not sound like he's close to returning. L.A. is little more than a stepping stone for OKC, even without Jalen Williams.
Now, the Lakers are poised to enter the offseason still not having seen Luka, LeBron James and Austin Reaves together in a playoff setting this year. And with LeBron entering free agency ahead of his age-42 season, there's a chance they never will again.
Winner: Dylan Harper
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It's official: After Victor Wembanyama, Dylan Harper is the second-most important player on the San Antonio Spurs.
Throw "long term" at the end of that if you're so inclined. I'm just not sure you need to.
Even as the Spurs dropped Game 1 to the shorthanded Timberwolves, the 20-year-old's value largely shined. He dropped 18 points and four assists on 7-13 shooting while committing zero turnovers. Most of his damage came in the first half, but that merely supports his case for more late-game involvement. He is fifth among San Antonio's rotation players for the playoffs in fourth-quarter usage rate.
The rookie already has a case as the Spurs' best from-scratch offensive creator, tamer Game 2 and all. De'Aaron Fox is leaned upon more, but Harper generates more rim pressure and has been the better long-range shooter. (Fox deserves credit for alleviating the pressure on him.) Harper is tied with Wemby for San Antonio's team lead in restricted-area makes, and Fox is the only player who's racked up more unassisted buckets.
Dotting this on-ball pressure with complementary shooting is impressive enough, especially in the postseason crucible. Harper cranks up the "WTF" factor with his defense. San Antonio predominantly has Harper guarding Terrence Shannon Jr.—which, mind you, is no small task these days—but he's pitched in with Anthony Edwards duty, too.
Dan Favale is a National NBA Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.
