We now know the four teams in the Western Conference semifinals of the 2025 NBA Playoffs. On the weekend there were two first round game sevens in the Western Conference as the Denver Nuggets beat the Los Angeles Clippers 120-101 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Houston Rockets 103-89 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. With the wins, the Nuggets play the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round, and the Warriors will face the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In the Nuggets win over the Clippers, six Nuggets reached double figures in points. Forward Aaron Gordon of San Jose, California led the way with 22 points, shooting guard Christian Braun of Burlington, Kansas had 21 points, Canadian guard Jamal Murray of Kitchener, Ontario, center Nikola Jokic of Sombor, Serbia, and point guard Russell Westbrook of Long Beach, California all had 16 points, and small forward Michael Porter Jr. of Indianapolis, Indiana had 15 points. Jokic, meanwhile had the double-double, as he had 10 rebounds, all of the defensive variety. Gordon had quite the series for Denver, as he had a buzzer beating dunk to win the game for the Nuggets in game four.
Denver had an excellent middle part of the game. In the second and third quarters, they outscored the Clippers 72-40.
In the Warriors win over the Timberwolves, shooting guard Buddy Hield of Freeport, Bahamas, had a playoff career high 33 points. Three other Warriors players reached double digits in points. Point guard Stephen Curry of Akron, Ohio had 22 points, small forward Jimmy Butler of Houston, Texas had 20 points, and forward Draymond Green of Saginaw, Michigan had 16 points. Curry had a double double, as he had 10 rebounds.
