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Four stars from Sunday's NBA playoffs
Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) walks away as New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) celebrates the win during game four of first round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena. David Reginek-Imagn Images

Four stars from Sunday's NBA playoffs

Sunday's NBA playoffs involved a number of nail-biters, some questionable calls, an ugly injury and four teams taking commanding leads in the first-round series. Here are four stars from the ninth day of the NBA playoffs.

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns | 27 points, nine rebounds

Jalen Brunson had 32 points and 11 assists in the New York Knicks' nail-biting 94-93 win over the Detroit Pistons, while Josh Hart had 10 rebounds and four steals. But it was Karl-Anthony Towns who came through with the game on the line, hitting the go-ahead three-pointer in the final minute after nailing a difficult fallaway jumper to get his team in striking range.

Towns scored eight of the Knicks' last 10 points as they took a 3-1 lead against the Pistons in yet another close game. In a game where the Knicks got severely outrebounded (54-38) and made less than a third of their two-pointers, Towns shooting 5-of-7 from deep was absolutely crucial in keeping the Knicks afloat against a tenacious Pistons defense.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards | 43 points, nine rebounds, six assists

LeBron James and Luka Doncic combined for 65 points in Game 4, so Anthony Edwards had to add 43 points to Julius Randle's 25 points to outscore the Los Angeles Lakers' dynamic duo. Edwards scored 16 of those points in the fourth quarter, including two crucial free throws with 10 seconds to go after a replay review turned an out-of-bounds call into a foul on James.

It was a clear foul on James, and even clearer that Edwards was unstoppable in the final quarter. He was 4-of-7 from the field, 3-of-4 from three-point range and 5-of-5 from the foul line, with two assists and zero turnovers. Oh, he also blocked a shot.

Thanks to Edwards, the Wolves are up 3-1 in their series and can close out the series in Los Angeles. If he keeps making four threes per game at 43.2 percent, the Lakers will really struggle to come back.

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum | 37 points, 14 rebounds

Bone bruise? What bone bruise? Jayson Tatum dominated the Boston Celtics' 107-98 win over the Orlando Magic in Game 4 of their first-round series, scoring 37 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. When the Magic roared back to tie the game with 4:18 to go, Tatum hit a big jump shot to give the Celtics a cushion, then went 7-of-7 on free throws to ice the game.

The All-NBA forward was 14-of-14 from the line for the game, showing that the injury he suffered in Game 1 was no longer affecting him at the line. Tatum played the entire final quarter and scored 16 points. If he's tired, it's no big deal — the Celtics have positioned themselves to get a lot of rest if they can close out the series in Boston on Tuesday.

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton | 17 points, 15 assists, eight rebounds

The Indiana Pacers had eight players score in double figures in their 129-103 Game 4 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, and that's a testament to the passing of Tyrese Haliburton. The Pacers' All-Star had 15 rebounds in just 34 minutes in a game where Indiana cracked 100 points in the first three quarters. When he wasn't finding his teammates, Haliburton was drilling shots, finishing 6-for-11 for an unselfish 17 points.

Damian Lillard's injury and the Bucks' generally porous defense help, but Haliburton has quarterbacked a Pacers offense that's averaging 117.5 points in this series, while Haliburton is putting up 12.3 assists. They'll go home with a 3-1 lead Tuesday night as Haliburton tries to pass his team into the second round.

Sean Keane

Sean Keane is a sportswriter and a comedian based in Oakland, California, with experience covering the NBA, MLB, NFL and Ice Cube’s three-on-three basketball league, The Big 3. He’s written for Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” ESPN the Magazine, and Audible. com

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