Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Denver’s Nikola Jokic and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo were the only players to appear on every MVP ballot this season.

Tyrese Haliburton scored 31 points, Pascal Siakam added 21 and the Indiana Pacers advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals with a 114-105 victory over Cleveland, eliminating the top-seeded Cavaliers in five games.

Donovan Mitchell thought this year’s Cleveland Cavaliers team would be the one to get him to a conference final for the first time.

These are the NBA playoffs of survival, where not even the stars are safe.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers, the top seeds in the playoffs and owners of the best regular-season records in the NBA, find themselves in dire need of wins as they host Game 5s in the conference semifinals on Tuesday night.

Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell is listed as questionable for Cleveland’s pivotal Game 5 of its second-round series against the Indiana Pacers after reaggravating a sprained left ankle.

Pascal Siakam scored 21 points and the Indiana Pacers tied an NBA playoff record by taking a 41-point halftime lead before routing the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers 129-109 on Sunday night for a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

A change of scenery certainly served the Cleveland Cavaliers well.

Donovan Mitchell had 43 points and nine rebounds, and the finally full-strength Cleveland Cavaliers beat Indiana 126-104 on Friday night to cut the Pacers’ lead to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Tyrese Haliburton made a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining and the Indiana Pacers scored the final eight points in 47.9 seconds to stun the short handed and top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers 120-119 to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinals series.

Kenny Atkinson’s biggest concern going into Cleveland’s Eastern Conference semifinal series against Indiana was trying to match up against the Pacers’ quick-tempo offense.

Defending champion Boston vs.

Tyrese Haliburton made a go-ahead 3-pointer midway through the fourth quarter that sparked a decisive burst for the Indiana Pacers, who stunned the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers 121-112 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Kenny Atkinson has one simple message for his Cleveland Cavaliers going into their Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Indiana Pacers.

Cleveland left no doubt on its way to Round 2 — and finished off the most lopsided series in NBA playoff history.

Cleveland took a 39-point halftime lead over Miami on Monday night in Game 4 of the teams’ Eastern Conference first-round series, the third-largest lead after two quarters in NBA playoff history.

Jarrett Allen scored 22 points, De’Andre Hunter added 21 and the Cleveland Cavaliers handed Miami its worst-ever playoff loss by topping the Heat 124-87 for a 3-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

All-Star guard Darius Garland was ruled out by the Cleveland Cavaliers for Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series Saturday against the Miami Heat because of a sprained left big toe.

Oklahoma City has a chance to secure its spot in Round 2.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, including 17 in the fourth quarter, and the Cleveland Cavaliers held on for a 121-112 victory over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell, Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Boston’s Jayson Tatum have been the driving forces for their teams throughout the season.

Ty Jerome had to wait five years to play in his first NBA playoff game.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, Ty Jerome had 16 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Miami Heat 121-100 on Sunday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.

Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers go into the NBA Playoffs as the top seed in the Eastern Conference, the highest-scoring offense during the regular season and one of the favorites for the championship.

Quenton Jackson scored 21 points, RayJ Dennis had seven in the second overtime and the Indiana Pacers rallied for a 126-118 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers after trailing by 23 points with 7:35 remaining in regulation.

Kenny Atkinson thought during training camp that realistic goals for the Cleveland Cavaliers would be 50 wins and a top-three seed in the Eastern Conference.

Darius Garland scored 28 points, Evan Mobley had 21 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference with a 135-113 win over the Chicago Bulls.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored a season-high 32 points and the Detroit Pistons beat the Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers 133-122 on Friday night to guarantee their first winning season since 2016.

Paolo Banchero scored 24 points, Franz Wagner added 22 and the Orlando Magic stunned Cleveland 108-103 to end the Cavaliers’ winning streak at 16 games.

The wins and accomplishments keep piling up for the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers.

Darius Garland scored 18 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter as the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for a 109-104 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, matching the longest winning streak in franchise history at 15.

Max Strus had 17 points to lead a balanced scoring attack as the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 112-100 for their 14th consecutive victory.

Donovan Mitchell scored 24 points and the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for their 13th straight victory, 118-117 over the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night.

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points, Darius Garland had 10 assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers survived some sloppiness in the final two minutes to win their 12th straight game, 112-107 over the banged-up Miami Heat.

With Celtics fans in a frenzy throughout TD Garden after the Boston Celtics blitzed to a 25-3 lead over the Cavaliers in the final matchup of Eastern Conference frontrunners, Cleveland star Donovan Mitchell didn’t panic.

Donovan Mitchell had 41 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, to help the Cleveland Cavaliers rally from 22 points down and stun the Boston Celtics 123-116 in the final regular-season meeting of the Eastern Conference’s top two teams.

Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points, Evan Mobley added 21 and the Cleveland Cavaliers bullied the New York Knicks from the start, winning 142-105 in a matchup of two of the East's best teams.

Mac McClung pulled off four perfect dunks for an unprecedented NBA dunk contest three-peat.

There are six first-time All-Stars set to play in Sunday's NBA midseason showcase in San Francisco.

Milwaukee forward Giannis Antetokounmpo will not play in next weekend’s All-Star Game because of a strained left calf.

LeBron James got drafted No. 1 again.

Jayson Tatum scored 22 points, Derrick White added 20 and the Boston Celtics showed their championship makeup down the stretch with a 112-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in a matchup of the Eastern Conference’s top teams.

The Cavaliers ran up the score on the undermanned, overmatched Mavericks.

The NBA All-Stars have been selected.

Tyler Herro spent All-Star weekend last year vacationing.

LeBron James is extending his All-Star records.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 40 points and eight assists in three quarters, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled past the Cleveland Cavaliers 134-114 in a matchup of teams with the best records in the NBA.

Andrew Nembhard scored 19 points, Pascal Siakam had 18 points and nine rebounds and the Indiana Pacers ended NBA-leading Cleveland’s winning streak at 12 games, beating the Cavaliers 108-93 on Sunday night.

The most-hyped game so far this season in the NBA didn’t disappoint.

Jarrett Allen scored 25 points, Evan Mobley added 21 and the Cleveland Cavaliers ended Oklahoma City’s 15-game winning streak by beating the Thunder 129-122 in a marquee meeting between the NBA’s top two teams.

Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo is the early leader in fan balloting for the NBA All-Star Game, and LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers seems well on his way toward extending his record and getting picked for a 21st time.

The NBA’s All-Star Game is going to be an All-Star tournament this season, with the league announcing that it has finalized plans to use a different format for the upcoming midseason showcase in San Francisco.

Donovan Mitchell scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter as the Cleveland Cavaliers ended Boston’s seven-game winning streak with a 115-111 victory over the Celtics in the second intense matchup between the Eastern Conference’s top teams this season.

The M-V-P chants weren't only directed at Cleveland All-Star Donvan Mitchell on Sunday night.

The streaking Cleveland Cavaliers tested themselves against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics and came away with a loss — and a lot to work on.

The defending NBA champions held off the league’s hottest team, with Jayson Tatum scoring 33 points and adding 12 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics to a 120-117 victory over Cleveland and hand the Cavaliers their first loss after 15 straight wins to open the season.

The Cavaliers will put their perfect start on the line in the perfect place.

Darius Garland scored 25 points, Ty Jerome matched his career-high with 24 in place of Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers stayed unbeaten with a 128-114 win over the Charlotte Hornets.

The floor and ball both looked different.

Donovan Mitchell scored a season-high 37 points, Darius Garland had 29 and the Cleveland Cavaliers continued one of the best starts in league history, improving to 14-0 with a 144-126 win over the Chicago Bulls in an NBA Cup game.

Donovan Mitchell scored a season-high 36 points, and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Chicago Bulls 119-113 to become the eighth NBA team to begin a season with 12 straight wins.

Evan Mobley had 23 points and 16 rebounds, and Donovan Mitchell scored 22 as the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for a 105-100 win over the Brooklyn Nets, becoming the 12th team in NBA history to start a season 11-0.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are returning home in rare air.

Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 131-122 to open 9-0 for the first time in their 55-year NBA history.

Darius Garland scored 39 points, Evan Mobley added 17 and the Cleveland Cavaliers improved to 8-0 with a 116-114 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, wo played without injured superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Darius Garland scored 25 points, Donovan Mitchell added 22 and the Cleveland Cavaliers improved to 6-0 with a 120-109 victory over the Orlando Magic, who played their first game without injured star Paolo Banchero.

A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen has agreed to a three-year, $91 million contract extension with Cleveland.

A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that the Cleveland Cavaliers and forward Evan Mobley have agreed to a five-year, $224 million contract extension.

A person familiar with the decision says All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell has agreed to a three-year, $150.3 million contract extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

A person familiar with the meeting tells The Associated Press that the Cleveland Cavaliers will interview Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori for their head coaching vacancy in the next few days.

J.

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So much about the journey the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers have taken to the Eastern Conference finals has been about who – they haven’t had to face to get to here.

The Celtics are back in the Eastern Conference finals for the third consecutive season following their 4-1 series victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Jayson Tatum had 25 points and 10 rebounds, and the Boston Celtics beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 113-98 on to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight season.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will try to extend their season without star Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert, who were both ruled out prior to Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinals matchup with Boston.

Jayson Tatum scored 33 points with LeBron James watching from a courtside seat and the Boston Celtics beat the severely short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers 109-102 in Game 4 to take a commanding 3-1 lead in their East semifinal series.

Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell missed Game 4 against the Boston Celtics on Monday with a left calf injury, a devastating loss that will make it even tougher for Cleveland to get back in the series.

Donovan Mitchell did his part for the Cavaliers.

Jayson Tatum scored 33 points, Jaylen Brown added 28 and the Boston Celtics looked more like themselves after stumbling at home, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-93 in Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points and Evan Mobley had 21 points and 10 rebounds to help the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the top-seeded Boston Celtics 118-94 and tie their second-round playoff series at one game apiece.

Jaylen Brown scored 32 points and the Boston Celtics powered past the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-95 in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.

It took Donovan Mitchell’s magnificence, a historic comeback and plenty of grit for the Cavaliers to escape the first round.

Paolo Banchero’s first taste of the NBA playoffs ended bitterly.

Donovan Mitchell scored 39 points, Caris LeVert added 15 and the Cleveland Cavaliers avoided a potentially franchise-shifting loss by rallying for a 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic in Game 7.

The Cavs and Magic are going to the limit.

Donovan Mitchell went for 50 points on Orlando Magic, but it wasn't enough to help the Cleveland Cavaliers close out the first-round NBA playoff series between the teams.

Paolo Banchero scored 10 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Orlando Magic hold off the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-96 and force a decisive Game 7 in the their first-round NBA playoff series.

The Orlando Magic desperately want an opportunity to go back on the road.

Donovan Mitchell scored 28 points, Evan Mobley blocked Franz Wagner’s layup in the final seconds and the Cleveland Cavaliers survived a scare from Orlando, holding off Paolo Banchero and the Magic 104-103 in Game 5.

Perhaps neither Milwaukee nor Philadelphia would’ve been good enough to beat a Boston team that ran away to the NBA’s best record.

Franz Wagner had 34 points and 13 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic held the Cleveland Cavaliers scoreless for a second-half stretch of almost seven minutes Saturday in a 112-89 victory that tied the Eastern Conference first-round series at 2-2.

Jalen Suggs made a stunning comeback for Orlando in Game 2.

Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid are the NBA’s main men in the middle, the two centers combining for the last three MVP awards in the regular season with perhaps another coming soon.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, Jarrett Allen had 18 rebounds and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Orlando Magic 97-83 in Game 1 of their playoff series.

The Cavaliers have waited a year to redeem themselves in the NBA playoffs.

Nick Smith Jr. scored a season-high 24 points and Steve Clifford won his coaching farewell as the Charlotte Hornets rallied to beat the playoff-bound Cleveland Cavaliers 120-110.

Donovan Mitchell is back and not a moment too soon for the Cavaliers.

Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert believes All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell will sign a long-term contract to chase an NBA championship with Cleveland.

Cavaliers All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell could miss at least another week after breaking his nose in Cleveland’s loss at Houston last weekend.