LeBron James returned to the court after his latest injury as the Los Angeles Lakers boosted their hopes of avoiding the play-in tournament with a 122-115 win over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.
James had missed 26 of the Lakers' past 28 matches due to an ankle injury sustained on March 20 but played 28 minutes in his return against the Pacers.
The four-time MVP scored 24 points and had seven rebounds and eight assists, while Anthony Davis added 28 points with 10 rebounds.
Dennis Schroder also returned to the Lakers side, contributing 14 points in a positive sign ahead of the post-season.
The Lakers still have work to do to make the top six, needing to win their final game on Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans and hope that the Portland Trail Blazers lose to the Denver Nuggets.
If the Lakers miss the top six, they will compete in the play-in tournament in the West, between sides finishing seventh to 10th.
Nets' big three reunited but rusty
The Brooklyn Nets also enjoyed a return of their own, with James Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving hitting the court together for the first time since February 13 in their 105-91 win over the Chicago Bulls.
The Nets' big three have only played together eight times, improving that record to 6-2 ahead of the playoffs where they are likely to be second seed in the East.
Harden, who has had a hamstring injury, only managed five points, five rebounds and seven assists, while Kyrie Irving added 22 points.
Durant had 12 points, nine rebounds and six assists, although he was 4-for-17 from the field in a rusty display.
Valuable contributions from reserves Nicolas Claxton (10 points and eight rebounds) and Jeff Green (19 points) aided Brooklyn's cause.
The Milwaukee Bucks kept the pressure on the Nets for second seeding in the East with a 122-108 win over the Miami Heat.
Jrue Holiday (20 points, five rebounds and 10 assists), Khris Middleton (21 points, seven rebounds and seven assists) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (15 points, nine rebounds and four assists) all made key contributions.
The result means the Bucks can still move above the Nets into second if they win against the Bulls and the Nets lose to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Sunday's final regular season matches.
Jayson Tatum stepped up in Jaylen Brown's absence with 26 points and 11 rebounds in the Boston Celtics' 124-108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The win ends the Celtics' four-game losing run.
Hornets stung again
The Charlotte Hornets are destined for the Eastern Conference play-in tournament but they have now worryingly lost four in a row ahead of the post-season, going down 118-109 to the New York Knicks in overtime. Charlotte have had a tough run of fixtures, losing to the Knicks, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Denver Nuggets and the New Orleans Pelicans.
Suns burning bright
The Phoenix Suns' 140-103 win over the San Antonio Spurs keeps alive their hopes of clinching top seed in the West. But it was also the Suns' 50th win for the season, representing the first time they have achieved that feat since the 2009-2010 season which was the last time they made the playoffs.
Saturday's results
Brooklyn Nets 105-91 Chicago Bulls
New York Knicks 118-109 Charlotte Hornets (OT)
Los Angeles Lakers 122-115 Indiana Pacers
Boston Celtics 124-108 Minnesota Timberwolves
Phoenix Suns 140-103 San Antonio Spurs
Milwaukee Bucks 122-108 Miami Heat
Nuggets at Trail Blazers
The fine margin between sixth and seventh, thus a playoff and play-in tournament spot, is on the line when the Portland Trail Blazers host the Denver Nuggets, with the Los Angeles Lakers hoping for a Portland defeat whilst needing to win at the New Orleans Pelicans.
Nuggets beat Heat to get within one win of franchise's first NBA championship
Aaron Gordon provided a huge lift with 27 points and the Denver Nuggets received contributions from several sources in a 108-95 victory over the Miami Heat on Friday to get within one win of the franchise’s first NBA championship.
Nikola Jokic worked around foul trouble to tally 23 points and 12 rebounds and Bruce Brown scored 11 of 21 points down the stretch to help the Nuggets take a 3-1 lead in the series. Denver can wrap up the title at home in Game 5 on Monday.
Jamal Murray scored 15 points on 5-of-17 shooting but had 12 assists. His shooting struggles were offset by Gordon, who was 11 of 15 from the field with six rebounds and six assists. Brown connected on 8 of 11 field goals and his third 3-pointer of the night with 1:21 left pushed the advantage to 108-91.
Jokic went to the bench with 9:24 to play after he committed his fifth foul with Denver holding a 10-point lead. He checked back in just over five minutes later with the Nuggets leading 96-87.
Jimmy Butler scored 25 points and Bam Adebayo added 20 with 11 rebounds, but the Heat had their final lead at 23-20 early in the second quarter. They cut the deficit to 94-87 midway through the fourth before Brown scored Denver’s next eight points to make it 102-91.
Miami appears to be wearing down with its sixth loss in eight games since taking a 3-0 lead over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals.
Denver Nuggets with one hand on NBA trophy after taking 3-1 finals series lead
The Denver Nuggets are within one game of claiming their first NBA championship after dismantling the Miami Heat 108-95 in the fourth game of the NBA finals.
The Nuggets return to Denver for game five of the seven-game series, where they will aim to win the franchise’s first Larry O’Brien trophy in their 56-year history.
Nikola Jokic again proved a mismatch for Miami, wthe Serbian posting 23 points and 10 rebounds.
He was ably supported by Aaron Gordon, who finished with a game-high 27 points in one of the best performances of his career.
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo combined for 45 points for the Heat, who were ultimately let down by another poor shooting effort from three.
Miami shot just 32 per cent from deep, while the Nuggets drained half of their three-point attempts.
The Heat kept pace with the Nuggets early, maintaining just a four-point deficit at the half.
But Denver exploded for 31 points in the third quarter, claiming an advantage which, despite a rally late in the fourth, Miami were ultimately unable to overcome.
Jokic: Nuggets following 'phenomenal' Muray in NBA Finals
The Denver Nuggets are following the "phenomenal" Jamal Murray in the NBA Finals, says Nikola Jokic.
Jokic and Murray became the teammates in NBA Finals history to record triple-doubles as the Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat 109-94 on Wednesday to take a 2-1 lead in the series.
Two-time NBA MVP Jokic had 32 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists for the first such game in Finals history, or at least the first since assists were tracked.
The triple-double was his 10th this postseason and 16th of his career, a number that trails only LeBron James (28).
Murray had 34 points and 10 assists and completed his first career playoff triple-double with a rebound with nine seconds remaining, and Jokic lauded his teammate for leading the Nuggets through the playoffs so far.
"He's playing phenomenally, I think, the whole playoffs," Jokic said of Murray.
"We're just following him and he's a really good leader. His energy is amazing, and we are just following.
"He's reading the game really well. He's getting guys involved, and I think he's mature, if that makes any sense, and he knows where to find the guys and how to control the game.
"It's not just us, it's the team, and like I said even before the series started, the Denver Nuggets need to beat Miami, not me and Jamal and whoever is on the other side. We as a group need to beat them."
Asked how proud he was of his record-achieving performance, Jokic replied: "To be honest, I just think it's a win because if you lose, nobody is going to even mention it. I don't care. It's just a stat."
The Nuggets' win came after they had lost Game 2 of the series at home.
Jokic added: "When you lose the game, of course it's a bad atmosphere, whatever, it's a bad momentum. But maybe it helped us to refocus and just be better in the details. But that doesn't mean that we can relax now or whatever. We need to have the same effort because they're going to be even better."
Nuggets coach Michael Malone eulogised over the performances of his star players.
"I think it's the first time in Finals history or maybe NBA history that two guys have 30, 10 triple-doubles, so that's incredible right there," Malone said.
"Regarding Nikola, nothing he does surprises me ever. This guy has shown time and time again that he's built for these moments. He thrives in these moments, the biggest stage. He did that once again tonight.
"I'm really proud of Jamal, and I could tell speaking to him yesterday, being around him the last 48 hours, that he was putting a lot of Game 2 on him, and it wasn't just him. It was me and every one of our players. It was collective.
"But that's what champions do. That's what warriors do. They battled back. I felt his presence all day long. Forget the stats for a second. I felt Jamal's presence, his energy, and he was here in the moment and for him and Nikola to do what they did tonight in a game that we needed to take, regain home-court advantage of the series was special to watch."
Reflecting on his performance in Game 2, Murray said: "I felt like I didn't bring the intensity that the moment called for. Even though I didn't play terrible, I felt like I could have done a lot more.
"Most people that have watched the Nuggets play, when I have a game like that, I'm most likely going to bounce back. Just one of those days. I think not just me but everybody bounced back. Everybody brought the energy.
"Everybody was just coming into the game and wanting to bring the intensity that we're used to playing with."
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