# 2011 NBA playoffs

The 2011 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks defeating the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals. Dirk Nowitzki was named NBA Finals MVP.

## Overview
### Western Conference

The San Antonio Spurs entered their fourteenth consecutive postseason. They also entered as the top seed in the Western Conference for the first time since 2006, in addition to entering the postseason with 50+ regular season wins for the twelfth consecutive season.
The two-time defending champions, the Los Angeles Lakers entered their sixth consecutive postseason. However, this would be their first since 2007 without posting the top seed in the Western Conference.
The Dallas Mavericks entered their eleventh consecutive postseason, and their eleventh straight appearance having won 50+ games in the regular season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder entered the playoffs with their first Northwest Division title under this incarnation.
The Denver Nuggets entered their eighth consecutive postseason and their first since 1995 without Carmelo Anthony on the roster.
The Portland Trail Blazers entered their third consecutive postseason.
The New Orleans Hornets also returned to the playoffs for the third time in four seasons. However, this was also their final postseason appearance before the franchise was renamed the Pelicans before the 2013–14 season. They lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games, and would not return to the playoffs until 2015.
The Memphis Grizzlies also made the playoffs for the first time since 2006. Unlike their previous three appearances, in which they were swept in the first round, The Grizzlies broke their trend by winning Game 1 of their series against the Spurs, their first playoff win in franchise history.
The Phoenix Suns, despite a run to the Western Conference finals last postseason, missed the playoffs for the second time in three seasons. This would also mark the start of a ten-season postseason drought for the Suns.
The Utah Jazz missed the playoffs for the first time since 2006.

### Eastern Conference

The Chicago Bulls achieved several "firsts" since 1998: the East's best record, a Central Division title, and over 60 victories. They also clinched the NBA's best record for the first time since 1997, guaranteeing home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
The Miami Heat entered their third consecutive postseason, and their first in the Big 3 era of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh. They would also open the playoffs at home for the first time since 2006. Their in–state rivals, the Orlando Magic, entered their fifth consecutive postseason. In addition, for the first time, both franchises would open their playoff runs at home.
The New York Knicks made the playoffs for the first time since 2004, but this was their first playoff appearance as an above-.500 team since 2001. However, they were swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round.
The Philadelphia 76ers appeared for the third time in four seasons. However, they lost in the first round to the Miami Heat.
The Indiana Pacers made the playoffs for the first time since 2006, despite posting a sub .500 record. However, they lost to the Chicago Bulls in the first round.

### First Round

By losing Game 1 of their series against the New Orleans Hornets, the Los Angeles Lakers joined the San Antonio Spurs as the first top seeds to lose an opening game of the playoffs since the 16–team playoff format was introduced.
In Game 1 of the first round series between the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic tied a franchise record with 46 points (31 in the first half), tying Tracy McGrady's total in Game 2 of the 2003 First Round against the Detroit Pistons. This also marked the first home playoff game with new Amway Center (now called Kia Center)
In Game 4 of their first round series against the Dallas Mavericks, the Portland Trail Blazers overcame a 23-point deficit to tie the series at 2. However, the Mavericks would go on to win the series in six games, giving the Trail Blazers their sixth consecutive first round series loss. They would not return to the playoffs until 2014.
With their first round win over the Denver Nuggets, the Oklahoma City Thunder won their first playoff series since relocating from Seattle. This also marked the first playoff series win for Kevin Durant.
With their first round sweep of the New York Knicks, the Boston Celtics swept a best–of–7 playoff series for the first time since winning the 1986 Eastern Conference finals with a 4–game sweep of the Bucks; prior to the series win they had not swept a series overall since 1992, in Larry Bird's final season. However, they lost to the Miami Heat in the conference semifinals.
With their first round series victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, the Miami Heat won their first playoff series since 2006, when they last won the NBA Championship. It also marked the first playoff series win for Erik Spoelstra as a head coach.
With their first round series win over the Indians Pacers, the Chicago Bulls won their first playoff series since 2007.
In Game 6 of their first round series against the San Antonio Spurs, the Memphis Grizzlies followed up their first playoff win by winning their first playoff series. They became the fourth eighth seeded team to beat a top seeded team in the first round, and the second team to do so since the first round expanded to a best–of–seven format in 2003. The Golden State Warriors were the most recent team to accomplish this feat.
With their series loss to the Atlanta Hawks, the Orlando Magic became the first team coached by Stan Van Gundy to lose a first round playoff series.
For the first time since the current NBA Playoff format was introduced in 2003, no first-round series was pushed to a Game 7.

### Conference semifinals

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks met in the playoffs for the first time since 1988. It also marked the lone postseason meeting that Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki would ever have. The series was extremely notable for the following reasons.
* Game 1: The Dallas Mavericks overcame a 16-point fourth quarter deficit to win the game.
* Game 2: The Los Angeles Lakers lost the first two games of a playoff series at home.
* Game 3: The Los Angeles Lakers blew a 7-point fourth quarter lead to lose 92–98.
* Game 4
** The Dallas Mavericks set an NBA record with 20 three pointers (with Jason Terry shooting nine of them).
** Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom getting ejected 45 seconds apart
** With a 122–86 victory, the Dallas Mavericks not only swept the Los Angeles Lakers, but they also made the conference finals for the first time since 2006 (and fourth overall), and vindicated themselves following their shocking first round exit four years earlier.
** This would also prove to be Phil Jackson's final game as an NBA head coach.
* Their series loss to the Dallas Mavericks marked the Los Angeles Lakers' first series loss despite having home court advantage since 1996. It also marked Phil Jackson's first time being swept in a playoff series.
Game 4 of the Heat–Celtics series was Shaquille O'Neal's final NBA game; he would announce his retirement three weeks later. It also marked the second time (the first being 2007) that his and Kobe Bryant's teams were eliminated in the same playoff series since the duo broke up in 2004.
With their conference semifinals win over the Atlanta Hawks, the Chicago Bulls returned to the conference finals for the first time since 1998, when they last made the NBA Finals.
Game 7 of the Grizzlies–Thunder series also ensured a 12th straight postseason with at least one Game 7 played. The last without one was the 1999 NBA playoffs. The 2011 Playoffs also marked the first time since 2007 that only one series went to a Game 7. By winning this game, the Oklahoma City Thunder made their first Western Conference finals appearance since 1996 (when they were known as the Seattle SuperSonics), and their first under the current incarnation.

### Conference finals

For the first time since 2007, no #1 or #2 seed participated in the Western Conference finals.
With their Western Conference finals series win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Dallas Mavericks returned to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2006.
With their Eastern Conference finals series win over the Chicago Bulls, the Miami Heat returned to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2006, guaranteeing an NBA Finals rematch with the Dallas Mavericks. It also marked the first time since 1990 that the Chicago Bulls lost an Eastern Conference finals series, and the first time since 1989 that the Bulls lost the ECF at home. As of 2024, this was the Bulls' most recent Eastern Conference finals appearance.

### NBA Finals

In a rematch of the 2006 NBA Finals, there were some extremely notable moments.
* Game 2: The Dallas Mavericks came back from a fifteen-point deficit to win the game, 95–93. Ironically enough, they held a nine-point lead in the first half before falling behind in the second half. LeBron James only scored two points in the final quarter.
* Game 4: LeBron James did not score any points in the fourth quarter as the Dallas Mavericks won, 86–83. Dirk Nowitzki, on the other hand, played despite having a fever.
* Game 5: LeBron James scored only two points in the fourth quarter for the third time in four games, allowing the Dallas Mavericks to take a 3–2 series lead back to Miami.
* Game 6: With the win, the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games to win the championship. The Dallas Mavericks also became the first team in NBA History to win the NBA Finals despite trailing 1–0 and 2–1 in the same finals series. Dirk Nowitzki, despite shooting 1 for 12 in the first half of the game, was Finals MVP. The Mavericks would not win another playoff series until 2022.

## Format

The 3 division winners and 5 other teams with the most wins from each conference qualified for the playoffs. The seedings are based on each team's record. However, a division champion is guaranteed to be ranked at least fourth, regardless of their record and their winnings.

### Tiebreak procedures

The tiebreakers that determined seedings were:
* Division leader wins tie against team not leading a division
* Head-to-head record
* Division record (if all tied teams are in the same division)
* Conference record
* Record vs. playoff teams, own conference (top 8 of the conference east/west) (including tied teams)
* Record vs. playoff teams, other conference (top 8 of the conference east/west) (including tied teams) (this tiebreaker does not apply if 3 or more tied teams)
* Point differential, all games

## Playoff qualifying
### Eastern Conference

| Seed | Team | Record | Clinched | Clinched | Clinched | Clinched |
| Seed | Team | Record | Playoff berth | Division title | Best record in Conference | Best record in NBA |
| 1 | Chicago Bulls | 62–20 | March 9 | March 9 | April 8 | April 13 |
| 2 | Miami Heat | 58–24 | March 10 | April 3 | — | — |
| 3 | Boston Celtics | 56–26 | March 7 | March 20 | — | — |
| 4 | Orlando Magic | 52–30 | March 16 | — | — | — |
| 5 | Atlanta Hawks | 44–38 | March 26 | — | — | — |
| 6 | New York Knicks | 42–40 | April 3 | — | — | — |
| 7 | Philadelphia 76ers | 41–41 | April 1 | — | — | — |
| 8 | Indiana Pacers | 37–45 | April 6 | — | — | — |

### Western Conference

| Seed | Team | Record | Clinched | Clinched | Clinched |
| Seed | Team | Record | Playoff berth | Division title | Best record in Conference |
| 1 | San Antonio Spurs | 61–21 | March 9 | April 3 | April 6 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Lakers | 57–25 | March 20 | March 20 | — |
| 3 | Dallas Mavericks | 57–25 | March 20 | — | — |
| 4 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 55–27 | March 27 | April 6 | — |
| 5 | Denver Nuggets | 50–32 | April 3 | — | — |
| 6 | Portland Trail Blazers | 48–34 | April 5 | — | — |
| 7 | New Orleans Hornets | 46–36 | April 6 | — | — |
| 8 | Memphis Grizzlies | 46–36 | April 8 | — | — |
— = Did not achieve
Notes
* 1 2 Los Angeles Lakers clinched #2 seed over Dallas Mavericks based on winning Pacific Division.
* 1 2 New Orleans Hornets clinched #7 seed over Memphis Grizzlies based on Southwest Division winning percentage. (.563 vs .500)

## Bracket

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage for the playoffs does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams with home court advantage are shown in italics. If two teams with same record met in a round use normal tiebreakers. Tiebreakers in NBA Finals are head-to-head and record vs opposite conference.
| First Round | First Round | First Round | | | Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| E1 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Indiana | 1 | | | E1 | Chicago* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E5 | Atlanta | 2 | | | | | | | |
| E4 | Orlando | 2 | | | E5 | Atlanta | 2 | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Atlanta | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Atlanta | 4 | | | | | | E1 | Chicago* | 1 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E1 | Chicago* | 1 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | |
| E3 | Boston* | 4 | | | | | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | |
| E6 | New York | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E6 | New York | 0 | | | E3 | Boston* | 1 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Philadelphia | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E7 | Philadelphia | 1 | | | | | | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 2 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | W3 | Dallas | 4 |
| W1 | San Antonio* | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | W3 | Dallas | 4 |
| W8 | Memphis | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W8 | Memphis | 4 | | | W8 | Memphis | 3 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W4 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W4 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | W4 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W5 | Denver | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W5 | Denver | 1 | | | | | | W4 | Oklahoma City* | 1 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W4 | Oklahoma City* | 1 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W3 | Dallas | 4 | | | | |
| W3 | Dallas | 4 | | | | | | | | | W3 | Dallas | 4 | | | | |
| W6 | Portland | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W6 | Portland | 2 | | | W3 | Dallas | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 0 | | | | | | | |
| W2 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | W2 | LA Lakers* | 0 | | | | | | | |
| W7 | New Orleans | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage

## First round

    All times are in Eastern Daylight Time (UTC−4)

### Eastern Conference first round
#### (1) Chicago Bulls vs. (8) Indiana Pacers

* ESPN
* April 16 1:00 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 99, Chicago Bulls 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–23, 28–28, 24–20, 20–33 |||
| Pts: Danny Granger 24 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 8 Asts: Darren Collison 9 | Pts: Derrick Rose 39 Rebs: Joakim Noah 11 Asts: Derrick Rose 6 |
| Chicago leads series, 1–0 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,986 Referees: Joe Crawford, Violet Palmer, Bennett Salvatore
* TNT
* April 18 9:30 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 90, Chicago Bulls 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–17, 29–27, 20–23, 23–29 |||
| Pts: Danny Granger 19 Rebs: Hansbrough, McRoberts 6 each Asts: Dunleavy, Granger 4 each | Pts: Derrick Rose 36 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 16 Asts: Derrick Rose 6 |
| Chicago leads series, 2–0 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,480 Referees: Bob Delaney, Marc Davis, Rodney Mott
* NBA TV
* April 21 7:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 88, Indiana Pacers 84 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–17, 21–25, 23–22, 23–20 |||
| Pts: Derrick Rose 23 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 11 Asts: Luol Deng 6 | Pts: Danny Granger 21 Rebs: Paul George 12 Asts: Collison, Dunleavy, George, Granger 2 each |
| Chicago leads series, 3–0 |||
* Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Mike Callahan, John Goble, Ken Mauer
* TNT
* April 23 2:30 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 84, Indiana Pacers 89 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–23, 14–26, 23–18, 28–22 |||
| Pts: Joakim Noah 21 Rebs: Joakim Noah 14 Asts: Derrick Rose 10 | Pts: Danny Granger 24 Rebs: Granger, Hibbert 10 each Asts: Danny Granger 4 |
| Chicago leads series, 3–1 |||
* Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Scott Foster, David Jones, Michael Smith
* TNT
* April 26 8:00 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 89, Chicago Bulls 116 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–36, 21–18, 19–30, 24–32 |||
| Pts: Danny Granger 20 Rebs: Tyler Hansbrough 11 Asts: Darren Collison 5 | Pts: Derrick Rose 25 Rebs: Joakim Noah 8 Asts: Deng, Watson 7 each |
| Chicago wins series, 4–1 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,822 Referees: Dan Crawford, Zach Zarba, Bill Kennedy

##### Regular-season series

Chicago won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 13, 2010
Recap
Indiana Pacers 73, Chicago Bulls 92
United Center, Chicago, Illinois
January 14, 2011
Recap
Chicago Bulls 99, Indiana Pacers 86
Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
January 29, 2011
Recap
Indiana Pacers 89, Chicago Bulls 110
United Center, Chicago, Illinois
March 18, 2011
Recap
Chicago Bulls 108, Indiana Pacers 115
Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis :
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bulls winning the first meeting.
Chicago leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
1998
Chicago Bulls 4, Indiana Pacers 3
1998 Eastern Conference finals :
This series pitted the team with the best record in the regular season against the team with the worst record in the playoffs. As such, this series was expected to be a very easy one for the Bulls. However, despite the Bulls winning 4–1, the series was more competitive than the outcome would indicate. Every game but the last was tightly contested; the first four games were each decided by six points or fewer. The series could easily have gone six or seven games had the Pacers been more successful in the closing moments of each of the first three games. However, the Bulls advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals for just the second time since the Michael Jordan era (the first being 2007).

#### (2) Miami Heat vs. (7) Philadelphia 76ers

* ABC
* April 16 3:30 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 89, Miami Heat 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 31–19, 18–35, 20–26, 20–17 |||
| Pts: Thaddeus Young 20 Rebs: Thaddeus Young 11 Asts: Andre Iguodala 9 | Pts: Chris Bosh 25 Rebs: LeBron James 14 Asts: James, Wade 5 each |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,600 Referees: Bob Delaney, Bill Spooner, Sean Wright
* TNT
* April 18 7:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 73, Miami Heat 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 13–19, 18–30, 21–26, 21–19 |||
| Pts: Thaddeus Young 18 Rebs: Brand, Iguodala 7 each Asts: Andre Iguodala 7 | Pts: LeBron James 29 Rebs: Chris Bosh 11 Asts: LeBron James 6 |
| Miami leads series, 2–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,204 Referees: Scott Foster, Tony Brown, Ron Garretson
* TNT
* April 21 8:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 100, Philadelphia 76ers 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–29, 29–23, 23–23, 27–19 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 32 Rebs: LeBron James 15 Asts: Dwyane Wade 8 | Pts: Elton Brand 21 Rebs: Elton Brand 10 Asts: Andre Iguodala 10 |
| Miami leads series, 3–0 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,404 Referees: Greg Willard, David Jones, Zach Zarba
* ABC
* April 24 1:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 82, Philadelphia 76ers 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–28, 31–18, 19–18, 16–22 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 31 Rebs: Dwyane Wade 8 Asts: LeBron James 6 | Pts: Turner, Williams 17 each Rebs: Elton Brand 11 Asts: Jrue Holiday 5 |
| Miami leads series, 3–1 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 19,048 Referees: Joe Crawford, David Guthrie, Dick Bavetta
* TNT
* April 27 7:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 91, Miami Heat 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–27, 19–18, 25–27, 24–25 |||
| Pts: Brand, Iguodala 22 each Rebs: Iguodala, Turner 10 each Asts: Jrue Holiday 8 | Pts: Dwyane Wade 26 Rebs: Bosh, Wade 11 each Asts: LeBron James 8 |
| Miami wins series, 4–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,896 Referees: Steve Javie, Tony Brothers, Bennett Salvatore

##### Regular-season series

Miami won 3–0 in the regular-season series :
October 27, 2010
Recap
Miami Heat 97, Philadelphia 76ers 87
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
November 26, 2010
Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 90, Miami Heat 99
American Airlines Arena, Miami
March 25, 2011
Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 99, Miami Heat 111
American Airlines Arena, Miami :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Heat and the 76ers.
The newly revamped Heat, with the much-publicized off-season acquisitions of All-Stars and franchise players LeBron James and Chris Bosh, were heavy favorites going into this series against the Philadelphia 76ers. Along with Dwyane Wade, James and Bosh comprised the "Big 3" and were eager to show critics that they could compete in the playoffs after some slip-ups during the regular season (a 9–8 start, a five-game losing streak and a somewhat suspect record against the best teams in the league). However, many pundits believed that the end of the season showed the Heat playing the best they had all season. Although the Sixers offered some resistance, including some close losses and a come-from-behind victory in Game 4, the Heat were able to take it in five games and advance out of the first round for the first time since their NBA Championship in 2006.

#### (3) Boston Celtics vs. (6) New York Knicks

* TNT
* April 17 7:00 pm
* Recap
New York Knicks 85, Boston Celtics 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–24, 28–15, 13–20, 21–28 |||
| Pts: Amar'e Stoudemire 28 Rebs: Amar'e Stoudemire 11 Asts: Anthony, Billups 4 each | Pts: Ray Allen 24 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 13 Asts: Rajon Rondo 9 |
| Boston leads series, 1–0 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Jason Phillips, Tom Washington, Monty McCutchen
* TNT
* April 19 7:00 pm
* Recap
New York Knicks 93, Boston Celtics 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–23, 24–21, 22–30, 26–22 |||
| Pts: Carmelo Anthony 42 Rebs: Carmelo Anthony 17 Asts: Carmelo Anthony 6 | Pts: Rajon Rondo 30 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 7 |
| Boston leads series, 2–0 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bennett Salvatore, Michael Smith
* ESPN
* April 22 7:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 113, New York Knicks 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–20, 25–24, 34–19, 27–33 |||
| Pts: Paul Pierce 38 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 12 Asts: Rajon Rondo 20 | Pts: Shawne Williams 17 Rebs: Carmelo Anthony 11 Asts: Carmelo Anthony 6 |
| Boston leads series, 3–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City Attendance: 19,763 Referees: Dan Crawford, Marc Davis, Gary Zielinski
* ABC
* April 24 3:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 101, New York Knicks 89 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–23, 26–15, 27–34, 19–17 |||
| Pts: Kevin Garnett 26 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 12 | Pts: Carmelo Anthony 32 Rebs: Amar'e Stoudemire 12 Asts: Anthony Carter 4 |
| Boston wins series, 4–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City Attendance: 19,763 Referees: Mike Callahan, Derrick Collins, Ken Mauer

##### Regular-season series

Boston won 4–0 in the regular-season series :
October 29, 2010
Recap
New York Knicks 101, Boston Celtics 105
TD Garden, Boston
December 15, 2010
Recap
Boston Celtics 118, New York Knicks 116
Madison Square Garden, New York City
March 21, 2011
Recap
Boston Celtics 96, New York Knicks 86
Madison Square Garden, New York City
April 13, 2011
Recap
New York Knicks 102, Boston Celtics 112
TD Garden, Boston :
This was the 14th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning seven of the first 13 meetings.
Boston leads 7–6 in all-time playoff series :
1951
Boston Celtics 0, New York Knicks 2
1951 Eastern Division semifinals
1952
Boston Celtics 1, New York Knicks 2
1952 Eastern Division semifinals
1953
Boston Celtics 1, New York Knicks 3
1953 Eastern Division finals
1954
Boston Celtics 2, New York Knicks 0
1954 Eastern Division Round Robin Semifinals
1955
Boston Celtics 2, New York Knicks 1
1955 Eastern Division semifinals
1967
Boston Celtics 3, New York Knicks 1
1967 Eastern Division semifinals
1969
Boston Celtics 4, New York Knicks 2
1969 Eastern Division finals
1972
Boston Celtics 1, New York Knicks 4
1972 Eastern Conference finals
1973
Boston Celtics 3, New York Knicks 4
1973 Eastern Conference finals
1974
Boston Celtics 4, New York Knicks 1
1974 Eastern Conference finals
1984
Boston Celtics 4, New York Knicks 3
1984 Eastern Conference semifinals
1988
Boston Celtics 3, New York Knicks 1
1988 Eastern Conference First Round
1990
Boston Celtics 2, New York Knicks 3
1990 Eastern Conference First Round :
Due to the Celtics' struggles at the end of the regular season and the star power of the Knicks' Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony, many observers predicted a first-round upset victory for New York. In the first two games, the Knicks were indeed able to show they could contend with the defending Eastern Conference champions. In Game 1, Ray Allen made a game-winning three-pointer after being freed up by a controversial screen. The Celtics captured Games 3 and 4 fairly easily as injuries to both Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups took their toll on the Knicks. This was the only sweep of the first round.

#### (4) Orlando Magic vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks

* ESPN
* April 16 7:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 103, Orlando Magic 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–19, 38–29, 30–23, 18–22 |||
| Pts: Joe Johnson 25 Rebs: Josh Smith 8 Asts: Crawford, Johnson 5 each | Pts: Dwight Howard 46 Rebs: Dwight Howard 19 Asts: Hedo Türkoğlu 5 |
| Atlanta leads series, 1–0 |||
* Amway Center, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 19,108 Referees: Scott Foster, Derrick Collins, Ron Garretson
* NBA TV
* April 19 7:30 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 82, Orlando Magic 88 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–16, 20–32, 12–17, 28–23 |||
| Pts: Jamal Crawford 25 Rebs: Al Horford 10 Asts: Joe Johnson 5 | Pts: Dwight Howard 33 Rebs: Dwight Howard 19 Asts: Hedo Türkoğlu 5 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Amway Center, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 19,160 Referees: Mike Callahan, David Guthrie, Bill Spooner
* ESPN2
* April 22 8:00 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 84, Atlanta Hawks 88 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–25, 17–26, 20–15, 22–22 |||
| Pts: Dwight Howard 21 Rebs: Dwight Howard 15 Asts: Jameer Nelson 10 | Pts: Jamal Crawford 23 Rebs: Josh Smith 10 Asts: Joe Johnson 5 |
| Atlanta leads series, 2–1 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,865 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Dick Bavetta, Leon Wood
* TNT
* April 24 7:00 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 85, Atlanta Hawks 88 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–25, 20–21, 24–20, 24–22 |||
| Pts: Dwight Howard 29 Rebs: Dwight Howard 17 Asts: Jameer Nelson 6 | Pts: Jamal Crawford 25 Rebs: Al Horford 12 Asts: Jamal Crawford 6 |
| Atlanta leads series, 3–1 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,490 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ed Malloy, Pat Fraher
* NBA TV
* April 26 7:30 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 76, Orlando Magic 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 13–26, 22–32, 18–21, 23–22 |||
| Pts: Josh Smith 22 Rebs: Al Horford 14 Asts: Al Horford 6 | Pts: Jason Richardson 17 Rebs: Dwight Howard 8 Asts: Jameer Nelson 5 |
| Atlanta leads series, 3–2 |||
* Amway Center, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 19,091 Referees: Joe Crawford, Marc Davis, Jason Phillips
* NBA TV
* April 28 7:30 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 81, Atlanta Hawks 84 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–23, 18–19, 19–20, 26–22 |||
| Pts: Dwight Howard 25 Rebs: Dwight Howard 15 Asts: Jameer Nelson 6 | Pts: Joe Johnson 23 Rebs: Al Horford 12 Asts: Al Horford 6 |
| Atlanta wins series, 4–2 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,282 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Michael Smith, Bill Kennedy

##### Regular-season series

Atlanta won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
November 8, 2010
Recap
Atlanta Hawks 89, Orlando Magic 93
Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
December 6, 2010
Recap
Atlanta Hawks 80, Orlando Magic 74
Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
December 20, 2010
Recap
Orlando Magic 81, Atlanta Hawks 91
Philips Arena, Atlanta
March 30, 2011
Recap
Orlando Magic 82, Atlanta Hawks 85
Philips Arena, Atlanta :
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Magic winning the first two meetings.
Orlando leads 2–0 in all-time playoff series :
1996
Atlanta Hawks 1, Orlando Magic 4
1996 Eastern Conference semifinals
2010
Atlanta Hawks 0, Orlando Magic 4
2010 Eastern Conference semifinals :
Despite defeating Orlando in three of their four regular-season meetings, the Atlanta Hawks were considered underdogs entering this series against the Magic, led by Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard. The Hawks were utterly unable to contain Howard in the first game; he scored 46 points and grabbed 19 rebounds. However, by limiting the contributions of the Magic's role players, Atlanta garnered a victory and stole the home-court advantage from the Magic. Although Orlando won the next game, better play by the Hawks down the stretch and the inability of the Magic to convert three-point shots gave the Hawks a 3–1 lead (the Magic shot 2-of–23 from beyond the arc in Game 4). The teams split the next two games and the Hawks advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the third straight year.

### Western Conference first round
#### (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) Memphis Grizzlies

* TNT
* April 17 1:00 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 101, San Antonio Spurs 98 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–22, 18–21, 25–31, 31–24 |||
| Pts: Zach Randolph 25 Rebs: Zach Randolph 14 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 10 | Pts: Tony Parker 20 Rebs: Tim Duncan 13 Asts: Tony Parker 5 |
| Memphis leads series, 1–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Ed Malloy, Pat Fraher
* NBA TV
* April 20 8:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 87, San Antonio Spurs 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–17, 27–24, 21–25, 22–27 |||
| Pts: Sam Young 17 Rebs: Marc Gasol 17 Asts: Conley, Mayo 4 each | Pts: Manu Ginóbili 17 Rebs: Tim Duncan 10 Asts: Tony Parker 7 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,760 Referees: Scott Foster, Ron Garretson, Leon Wood
* ESPN
* April 23 7:30 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 88, Memphis Grizzlies 91 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–29, 22–23, 24–19, 22–20 |||
| Pts: Manu Ginóbili 23 Rebs: Tim Duncan 11 Asts: Tim Duncan 6 | Pts: Zach Randolph 25 Rebs: Marc Gasol 9 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 8 |
| Memphis leads series, 2–1 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Greg Willard, Tom Washington, John Goble
* TNT
* April 25 8:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 86, Memphis Grizzlies 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–21, 24–27, 15–30, 21–26 |||
| Pts: Tony Parker 23 Rebs: Tiago Splitter 9 Asts: Manu Ginóbili 4 | Pts: Mike Conley Jr. 15 Rebs: Gasol, Randolph 9 each Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 7 |
| Memphis leads series, 3–1 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Bill Spooner, Eric Lewis
* NBA TV
* April 27 8:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 103, San Antonio Spurs 110 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 14–20, 28–30, 26–15, 29–32, Overtime: 6–13 |||
| Pts: Zach Randolph 26 Rebs: Marc Gasol 17 Asts: Zach Randolph 6 | Pts: Manu Ginóbili 33 Rebs: Tim Duncan 12 Asts: Tony Parker 9 |
| Memphis leads series, 3–2 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Bob Delaney, David Jones, Ken Mauer
* ESPN
* April 29 9:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 91, Memphis Grizzlies 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–24, 27–22, 23–24, 25–29 |||
| Pts: Tony Parker 23 Rebs: Tim Duncan 10 Asts: Tony Parker 4 | Pts: Zach Randolph 31 Rebs: Marc Gasol 13 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 3 |
| Memphis wins series, 4–2 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Dan Crawford, Jason Phillips, Bennett Salvatore

##### Regular-season series

Tied 2–2 in the regular-season series :
December 18, 2010
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 106, San Antonio Spurs 112
AT&T Center, San Antonio
February 27, 2011
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 88, San Antonio Spurs 95
AT&T Center, San Antonio
March 1, 2011
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 93, Memphis Grizzlies 109
FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
March 27, 2011
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 104, Memphis Grizzlies 111
FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee :
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Spurs winning the first meeting.
San Antonio leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
2004
Memphis Grizzlies 0, San Antonio Spurs 4
2004 Western Conference First Round :
The eighth-seeded Grizzlies won their first playoff game in franchise history by defeating the top-seeded Spurs 101–98 in Game 1. The Spurs evened the series in Game 2, but the Grizzlies won Games 3 and 4 to take a 3–1 lead. With San Antonio 1.7 seconds away from elimination in Game 5, Gary Neal connected on a three-point buzzer beater to force overtime. The Spurs would win in OT, 110–103. However, the Grizzlies defeated the Spurs in Game 6, 99–91, to win a playoff series for the first time. In so doing, Memphis became just the second eighth-seeded team to knock off a top-seeded team since the NBA began using a best-of-seven format in the first round.

#### (2) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (7) New Orleans Hornets

* ABC
* April 17 3:30 pm
* Recap
New Orleans Hornets 109, Los Angeles Lakers 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–24, 29–23, 18–25, 36–28 |||
| Pts: Chris Paul 33 Rebs: Ariza, Paul 7 each Asts: Chris Paul 14 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 34 Rebs: Ron Artest 11 Asts: Pau Gasol 6 |
| New Orleans leads series, 1–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Dan Crawford, Greg Willard, Greg Zielinski
* TNT
* April 20 10:30 pm
* Recap
New Orleans Hornets 78, Los Angeles Lakers 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–23, 18–24, 15–16, 22–24 |||
| Pts: Trevor Ariza 22 Rebs: Aaron Gray 8 Asts: Chris Paul 9 | Pts: Andrew Bynum 17 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 11 Asts: Steve Blake 5 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Steve Javie, Tony Brothers, Bill Kennedy
* ESPN
* April 22 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 100, New Orleans Hornets 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–23, 21–19, 24–26, 25–18 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 30 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 11 Asts: Derek Fisher 5 | Pts: Carl Landry 23 Rebs: Trevor Ariza 12 Asts: Chris Paul 8 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 2–1 |||
* New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana Attendance: 18,340 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bennett Salvatore, Sean Wright
* TNT
* April 24 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 88, New Orleans Hornets 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–22, 20–27, 22–20, 21–24 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 17 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 9 Asts: Kobe Bryant 8 | Pts: Chris Paul 27 Rebs: Chris Paul 13 Asts: Chris Paul 15 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* New Orleans Arena, New Orleans Attendance: 18,083 Referees: Bob Delaney, Marc Davis, Zach Zarba
* TNT
* April 26 10:30 pm
* Recap
New Orleans Hornets 90, Los Angeles Lakers 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–23, 19–31, 21–25, 18–27 |||
| Pts: Trevor Ariza 22 Rebs: Aaron Gray 6 Asts: Chris Paul 12 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 19 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 10 Asts: Bryant, Gasol 4 each |
| LA Lakers lead series, 3–2 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Ed Malloy, Rodney Mott
* TNT
* April 28 8:00 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 98, New Orleans Hornets 80 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–16, 22–18, 29–23, 29–23 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 24 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 12 Asts: Ron Artest 5 | Pts: Carl Landry 19 Rebs: Chris Paul 8 Asts: Chris Paul 11 |
| LA Lakers win series, 4–2 |||
* New Orleans Arena, New Orleans Attendance: 17,949 Referees: Mike Callahan, Ron Garretson, Tom Washington

##### Regular-season series

Los Angeles won 4–0 in the regular-season series :
December 29, 2010
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 103, New Orleans Hornets 88
New Orleans Arena, New Orleans
January 7, 2011
Recap
New Orleans Hornets 97, Los Angeles Lakers 101
Staples Center, Los Angeles
February 5, 2011
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 101, New Orleans Hornets 95
New Orleans Arena, New Orleans
March 27, 2011
Recap
New Orleans Hornets 84, Los Angeles Lakers 102
Staples Center, Los Angeles :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Lakers and the New Orleans Pelicans/Hornets franchise.

#### (3) Dallas Mavericks vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers

* ESPN
* April 16 9:30 pm
* Recap
Portland Trail Blazers 81, Dallas Mavericks 89 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–21, 15–26, 20–14, 24–28 |||
| Pts: LaMarcus Aldridge 27 Rebs: Marcus Camby 18 Asts: Andre Miller 6 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 28 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 10 Asts: Jason Kidd 4 |
| Dallas leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas Attendance: 20,541 Referees: Mike Callahan, David Jones, Ken Mauer
* TNT
* April 19 9:30 pm
* Recap
Portland Trail Blazers 89, Dallas Mavericks 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–22, 28–28, 20–23, 17–28 |||
| Pts: LaMarcus Aldridge 24 Rebs: LaMarcus Aldridge 10 Asts: Andre Miller 8 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 33 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 10 Asts: Jason Kidd 8 |
| Dallas leads series, 2–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas Attendance: 20,620 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ed Malloy, Pat Fraher
* TNT
* April 21 10:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 92, Portland Trail Blazers 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–28, 29–26, 20–21, 20–22 |||
| Pts: Jason Terry 29 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 9 Asts: Jason Terry 7 | Pts: Wesley Matthews 25 Rebs: Gerald Wallace 11 Asts: Andre Miller 7 |
| Dallas leads series, 2–1 |||
* Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 20,217 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Eric Lewis, Jason Phillips
* TNT
* April 23 5:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 82, Portland Trail Blazers 84 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–11, 21–24, 30–14, 15–35 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 20 Rebs: Shawn Marion 11 Asts: Jason Kidd 4 | Pts: Brandon Roy 24 Rebs: Gerald Wallace 11 Asts: Brandon Roy 5 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 20,357 Referees: Steve Javie, Bill Kennedy, Tony Brothers
* NBA TV
* April 25 8:30 pm
* Recap
Portland Trail Blazers 82, Dallas Mavericks 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–15, 23–29, 20–31, 19–18 |||
| Pts: Andre Miller 18 Rebs: Aldridge, Wallace 9 each Asts: Andre Miller 7 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 25 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 20 Asts: Jason Kidd 14 |
| Dallas leads series, 3–2 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas Attendance: 20,837 Referees: Scott Foster, John Goble, Tom Washington
* TNT
* April 28 10:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 103, Portland Trail Blazers 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–27, 33–16, 23–19, 28–34 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 33 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 11 Asts: Jason Terry 8 | Pts: Gerald Wallace 32 Rebs: Gerald Wallace 12 Asts: Andre Miller 4 |
| Dallas wins series, 4–2 |||
* Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 20,494 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Greg Willard, Gary Zielinski

##### Regular-season series

Tied 2–2 in the regular-season series :
December 15, 2010
Recap
Portland Trail Blazers 98, Dallas Mavericks 103
American Airlines Center, Dallas
January 4, 2011
Recap
Portland Trail Blazers 81, Dallas Mavericks 84
American Airlines Center, Dallas
March 15, 2011
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 101, Portland Trail Blazers 104
Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon
April 3, 2011
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 96, Portland Trail Blazers 104
Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon :
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Trail Blazers winning two of the first three meetings.
Portland leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series :
1985
Dallas Mavericks 1, Portland Trail Blazers 3
1985 Western Conference First Round
1990
Dallas Mavericks 0, Portland Trail Blazers 3
1990 Western Conference First Round
2003
Dallas Mavericks 4, Portland Trail Blazers 3
2003 Western Conference First Round :
The Mavericks won the first two games, but the Trail Blazers won Games 3 and 4 to tie the series. Portland played most of Game 4 from behind, including trailing Dallas by 23 points late in the third quarter. Although the Mavericks held a 67–49 lead after three quarters, the Trail Blazers pulled off their biggest fourth-quarter comeback in franchise history and won, 84–82, behind 18 points from Brandon Roy in the final quarter. Dallas recovered quickly from their Game 4 collapse, however, winning Games 5 and 6 to eliminate Portland.

#### (4) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (5) Denver Nuggets

* TNT
* April 17 9:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 103, Oklahoma City Thunder 107 :
| Scoring by quarter: 33–24, 27–35, 22–27, 21–21 |||
| Pts: Nenê 22 Rebs: Chandler, Nenê 8 each Asts: Raymond Felton 8 | Pts: Kevin Durant 41 Rebs: Kevin Durant 9 Asts: Russell Westbrook 7 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 1–0 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Steve Javie, Zach Zarba, Bill Kennedy
* TNT
* April 20 8:00 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 89, Oklahoma City Thunder 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 15–31, 29–28, 22–22, 23–25 |||
| Pts: Ty Lawson 20 Rebs: Nenê 9 Asts: Ty Lawson 3 | Pts: Kevin Durant 23 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 12 Asts: Russell Westbrook 7 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 2–0 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Dick Bavetta, Rodney Mott
* ESPN
* April 23 10:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 97, Denver Nuggets 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–31, 30–18, 15–24, 26–21 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 26 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 16 Asts: Russell Westbrook 8 | Pts: Martin, Nenê, Smith 15 each Rebs: Nenê 10 Asts: Felton, Lawson, Nenê 4 each |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–0 |||
* Pepsi Center, Denver Attendance: 19,958 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Jason Phillips, Eric Lewis
* TNT
* April 25 10:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 101, Denver Nuggets 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–26, 25–19, 24–26, 32–33 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 31 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 14 Asts: Harden, Westbrook 5 each | Pts: Ty Lawson 27 Rebs: Martin, Nenê 9 each Asts: Danilo Gallinari 4 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–1 |||
* Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 19,155 Referees: Greg Willard, Ron Garretson, Michael Smith
* TNT
* April 27 9:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 97, Oklahoma City Thunder 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–25, 22–25, 26–22, 21–28 |||
| Pts: Arron Afflalo 15 Rebs: Kenyon Martin 10 Asts: Felton, Lawson 4 each | Pts: Kevin Durant 41 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 9 Asts: Russell Westbrook 4 |
| Oklahoma City wins series, 4–1 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Scott Foster, Bill Spooner, Pat Fraher

##### Regular-season series

Oklahoma City won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 25, 2010
Recap
Denver Nuggets 106, Oklahoma City Thunder 114
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
January 19, 2011
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 107, Denver Nuggets 112
Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
April 5, 2011
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 101, Denver Nuggets 94
Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
April 8, 2011
Recap
Denver Nuggets 89, Oklahoma City Thunder 104
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City :
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Nuggets winning two of the first three meetings. All previous meetings took place while the Thunder franchise were still known as the Seattle SuperSonics.
Denver leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series :
1978
Denver Nuggets 2, Seattle SuperSonics 4
1978 Western Conference finals
1988
Denver Nuggets 3, Seattle SuperSonics 2
1988 Western Conference First Round
1994
Denver Nuggets 3, Seattle SuperSonics 2
1994 Western Conference First Round :

## Conference semifinals
### Eastern Conference semifinals
#### (1) Chicago Bulls vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks

* TNT
* May 2 8:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 103, Chicago Bulls 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–18, 23–32, 21–21, 31–24 |||
| Pts: Joe Johnson 34 Rebs: Al Horford 13 Asts: Jeff Teague 5 | Pts: Derrick Rose 24 Rebs: Joakim Noah 9 Asts: Derrick Rose 10 |
| Atlanta leads series, 1–0 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,890 Referees: Monty McCutchen, John Goble, Ken Mauer
* TNT
* May 4 8:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 73, Chicago Bulls 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–25, 18–23, 21–17, 15–21 |||
| Pts: Jeff Teague 21 Rebs: Al Horford 14 Asts: Al Horford 6 | Pts: Derrick Rose 25 Rebs: Joakim Noah 14 Asts: Derrick Rose 10 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,872 Referees: Scott Foster, Mike Callahan, Sean Wright
* ESPN
* May 6 7:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 99, Atlanta Hawks 82 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–23, 27–20, 24–20, 19–19 |||
| Pts: Derrick Rose 44 Rebs: Joakim Noah 15 Asts: Derrick Rose 7 | Pts: Jeff Teague 21 Rebs: Josh Smith 13 Asts: Josh Smith 4 |
| Chicago leads series, 2–1 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,521 Referees: Greg Willard, Marc Davis, Ron Garretson
* TNT
* May 8 8:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 88, Atlanta Hawks 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–28, 20–19, 23–20, 19–33 |||
| Pts: Derrick Rose 34 Rebs: Joakim Noah 11 Asts: Derrick Rose 10 | Pts: Joe Johnson 24 Rebs: Josh Smith 16 Asts: Josh Smith 8 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,263 Referees: Dan Crawford, Bennett Salvatore, Gary Zielinski
* TNT
* May 10 8:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 83, Chicago Bulls 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–32, 21–16, 26–21, 15–26 |||
| Pts: Jeff Teague 21 Rebs: Al Horford 10 Asts: Jeff Teague 7 | Pts: Derrick Rose 33 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 12 Asts: Derrick Rose 9 |
| Chicago leads series, 3–2 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,980 Referees: Steve Javie, Tom Washington, Bill Kennedy
* ESPN
* May 12 8:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 93, Atlanta Hawks 73 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–17, 18–18, 25–18, 23–20 |||
| Pts: Carlos Boozer 23 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 10 Asts: Derrick Rose 12 | Pts: Joe Johnson 19 Rebs: Zaza Pachulia 13 Asts: Joe Johnson 4 |
| Chicago wins series, 4–2 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,378 Referees: Joe Crawford, Ed Malloy, Bob Delaney

##### Regular-season series

Chicago won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
March 2, 2011
Recap
Chicago Bulls 80, Atlanta Hawks 83
Philips Arena, Atlanta
March 11, 2011
Recap
Atlanta Hawks 76, Chicago Bulls 94
United Center, Chicago, Illinois
March 22, 2011
Recap
Chicago Bulls 114, Atlanta Hawks 81
Philips Arena, Atlanta :
This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the each team winning two series apiece.
Tied 2–2 in all-time playoff series :
1967
St. Louis Hawks 3, Chicago Bulls 0
1967 Western Division semifinals
1970
Atlanta Hawks 4, Chicago Bulls 1
1970 Western Division semifinals
1993
Atlanta Hawks 0, Chicago Bulls 3
1993 Eastern Conference First Round
1997
Atlanta Hawks 1, Chicago Bulls 4
1997 Eastern Conference semifinals :

#### (2) Miami Heat vs. (3) Boston Celtics

* ABC
* May 1 3:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 90, Miami Heat 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 14–20, 22–31, 26–25, 28–23 |||
| Pts: Ray Allen 25 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 8 Asts: Rajon Rondo 7 | Pts: Dwyane Wade 38 Rebs: Chris Bosh 12 Asts: James, Wade 5 each |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,021 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ed Malloy, Derrick Collins
* TNT
* May 3 7:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 91, Miami Heat 102 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–27, 16–20, 25–25, 24–30 |||
| Pts: Rajon Rondo 20 Rebs: Jermaine O'Neal 9 Asts: Rajon Rondo 12 | Pts: LeBron James 35 Rebs: Chris Bosh 11 Asts: Chris Bosh 4 |
| Miami leads series, 2–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,104 Referees: Joe Crawford, Jason Phillips, Greg Willard
* ABC
* May 7 8:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 81, Boston Celtics 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–27, 25–17, 15–28, 20–25 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 23 Rebs: Joel Anthony 11 Asts: Dwyane Wade 7 | Pts: Kevin Garnett 28 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 18 Asts: Rajon Rondo 11 |
| Miami leads series, 2–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Steve Javie, Bob Delaney, Bill Kennedy
* TNT
* May 9 7:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 98, Boston Celtics 90 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–31, 22–22, 19–20, 17–13, Overtime: 12–4 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 35 Rebs: LeBron James 14 Asts: Dwyane Wade 4 | Pts: Paul Pierce 27 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 5 |
| Miami leads series, 3–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Tony Brothers, Monty McCutchen, Derrick Stafford
* TNT
* May 11 7:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 87, Miami Heat 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–16, 25–31, 24–24, 14–26 |||
| Pts: Ray Allen 18 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 11 Asts: Paul Pierce 4 | Pts: Dwyane Wade 34 Rebs: Chris Bosh 11 Asts: Dwyane Wade 5 |
| Miami wins series, 4–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,208 Referees: Scott Foster, Ron Garretson, Bill Spooner
* Game 4 is Shaquille O'Neal's final NBA game.

##### Regular-season series

Boston won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
October 26, 2010
Recap
Miami Heat 80, Boston Celtics 88
TD Garden, Boston
November 11, 2010
Recap
Boston Celtics 112, Miami Heat 107
American Airlines Arena, Miami
February 13, 2011
Recap
Miami Heat 82, Boston Celtics 85
TD Garden, Boston
April 10, 2011
Recap
Boston Celtics 77, Miami Heat 100
American Airlines Arena, Miami :
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning the first meeting.
Boston leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
2010
Boston Celtics 4, Miami Heat 1
2010 Eastern Conference First Round :
The series was seen as an opportunity for Heat small forward LeBron James to exact revenge on the Celtics after Boston eliminated James' former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, in 2008 and 2010. James called the series "personal", saying "...You don't want to keeping getting beat by the same team, the same team keep sending you home to plan a vacation..."
The Heat won the first two games, but the Celtics won Game 3, 97–81. In that game, Boston point guard Rajon Rondo dislocated his left elbow on a bizarre play in the third quarter where he became tangled up with Dwyane Wade. Rondo still contributed to the Celtics' victory, scoring four points in the fourth quarter after the injury and finishing with 11 assists. However, his left arm was visibly limp for the remainder of the series and he was unable to play at his usual level of ability.
Miami bounced back after the Game 3 loss to win the series, 4–1, returning to their first Eastern Conference finals since the 2006 NBA playoffs.

### Western Conference semifinals
#### (2) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) Dallas Mavericks

* TNT
* May 2 10:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 96, Los Angeles Lakers 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–23, 19–30, 27–25, 25–16 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 28 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 14 Asts: Jason Kidd 11 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 36 Rebs: Lamar Odom 12 Asts: Pau Gasol 7 |
| Dallas leads series, 1–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Steve Javie, Bob Delaney, Michael Smith
* TNT
* May 4 10:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 93, Los Angeles Lakers 81 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–20, 25–29, 17–13, 25–19 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 24 Rebs: Shawn Marion 9 Asts: Jason Kidd 6 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 23 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 13 Asts: Derek Fisher 5 |
| Dallas leads series, 2–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Bennett Salvatore, Bill Spooner
* ESPN
* May 6 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 92, Dallas Mavericks 98 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–29, 24–18, 21–19, 20–32 |||
| Pts: Andrew Bynum 21 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 10 Asts: Kobe Bryant 6 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 32 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 9 Asts: Jason Kidd 9 |
| Dallas leads series, 3–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 21,156 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Ed Malloy, Tom Washington
* ABC
* May 8 3:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 86, Dallas Mavericks 122 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–27, 16–36, 23–23, 24–36 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 17 Rebs: Pau Gasol 8 Asts: Pau Gasol 6 | Pts: Jason Terry 32 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 9 Asts: José Juan Barea 8 |
| Dallas wins series, 4–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 21,087 Referees: Jason Phillips, Ron Garretson, Scott Foster

##### Regular-season series

Los Angeles won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
January 19, 2011
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 100, Dallas Mavericks 109
American Airlines Center, Dallas
March 12, 2011
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 96, Dallas Mavericks 91
American Airlines Center, Dallas
March 31, 2011
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 82, Los Angeles Lakers 110
Staples Center, Los Angeles :
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning the first three meetings.
Los Angeles leads 3–0 in all-time playoff series :
1984
Dallas Mavericks 1, Los Angeles Lakers 4
1984 Western Conference semifinals
1986
Dallas Mavericks 2, Los Angeles Lakers 4
1986 Western Conference semifinals
1988
Dallas Mavericks 3, Los Angeles Lakers 4
1988 Western Conference finals :
The Mavericks won the first two games in Los Angeles, including overcoming a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter of Game 1. Dallas overcame another second-half deficit to win Game 3, 98–92. In Game 4, the Mavericks blew out the Lakers, 122–86, sweeping the two-time defending NBA champions. Dallas equaled an NBA record in that game by sinking 20 three-pointers. Mavericks sixth man Jason Terry led the team in scoring with 32 points while making nine of his ten long-range attempts, tying another NBA playoff record that would go unequaled for nearly five years. Also in the same game, Andrew Bynum was ejected—and eventually fined and suspended for five games of the next season—after committing a flagrant foul on J. J. Barea.
This series was the one and only time a team coached by Phil Jackson was swept out of the NBA Playoffs.

#### (4) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (8) Memphis Grizzlies

* ABC
* May 1 1:00 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–24, 29–23, 27–24, 30–30 |||
| Pts: Zach Randolph 34 Rebs: Marc Gasol 13 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 7 | Pts: Kevin Durant 33 Rebs: Durant, Ibaka 11 each Asts: Russell Westbrook 6 |
| Memphis leads series, 1–0 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Joe Crawford, Marc Davis, Zach Zarba
* TNT
* May 3 9:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 102, Oklahoma City Thunder 111 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–28, 27–26, 24–22, 34–35 |||
| Pts: Mike Conley Jr. 24 Rebs: Marc Gasol 10 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 8 | Pts: Kevin Durant 26 Rebs: Nick Collison 7 Asts: Russell Westbrook 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Tony Brothers, Bill Kennedy
* ESPN
* May 7 5:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 93, Memphis Grizzlies 101 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–22, 31–21, 25–20, 10–23, Overtime: 7–15 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 23 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 13 Asts: Russell Westbrook 12 | Pts: Zach Randolph 21 Rebs: Zach Randolph 21 Asts: Conley, Mayo 4 each |
| Memphis leads series, 2–1 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Mike Callahan, Ken Mauer, Pat Fraher
* TNT
* May 9 9:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 133, Memphis Grizzlies 123 (3OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–28, 33–25, 22–19, 25–24, Overtime: 13–13, 10–10, 14–4 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 40 Rebs: Kevin Durant 13 Asts: James Harden 7 | Pts: Zach Randolph 34 Rebs: Marc Gasol 21 Asts: Conley, Mayo 5 each |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Greg Willard, John Goble, Bill Spooner
* TNT
* May 11 9:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 72, Oklahoma City Thunder 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–17, 18–29, 17–25, 20–28 |||
| Pts: Marc Gasol 15 Rebs: Zach Randolph 17 Asts: Conley, Mayo 4 each | Pts: Kevin Durant 19 Rebs: Nick Collison 10 Asts: Eric Maynor 9 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–2 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Bennett Salvatore, Jason Phillips
* ESPN
* May 13 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 83, Memphis Grizzlies 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–23, 33–21, 14–28, 15–23 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 27 Rebs: Durant, Perkins 7 each Asts: James Harden 5 | Pts: Zach Randolph 30 Rebs: Zach Randolph 13 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 12 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Scott Foster, Marc Davis, Ron Garretson
* ABC
* May 15 3:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 90, Oklahoma City Thunder 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–21, 17–21, 24–30, 32–33 |||
| Pts: Mike Conley Jr. 18 Rebs: Zach Randolph 10 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 6 | Pts: Kevin Durant 39 Rebs: Nick Collison 12 Asts: Russell Westbrook 14 |
| Oklahoma City wins series, 4–3 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Steve Javie, Ed Malloy, Mike Callahan

##### Regular-season series

Memphis won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
January 4, 2011
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 105, Memphis Grizzlies 110
FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
January 8, 2011
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 100, Oklahoma City Thunder 109
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
February 8, 2011
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 105, Oklahoma City Thunder 101 (OT)
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
March 7, 2011
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 101, Memphis Grizzlies 107
FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Grizzlies and the Thunder.
The Grizzlies and Thunder split the first two games. Memphis took a 2–1 series lead after overcoming a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter of Game 3. The Thunder tied the series back up in Game 4 with a 133–123 victory in triple overtime. Oklahoma City blew out the Grizzlies in Game 5, 99–72, but Memphis tied the series again in Game 6. The Thunder finally advanced to their first conference finals since they moved from Seattle by eliminating the Grizzlies in seven games. In the finale, Russell Westbrook became the fifth player to record a triple double in a Game 7.

## Conference finals
### Eastern Conference finals
#### (1) Chicago Bulls vs. (2) Miami Heat

* TNT
* May 15 8:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 82, Chicago Bulls 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–20, 25–28, 15–24, 19–31 |||
| Pts: Chris Bosh 30 Rebs: Chris Bosh 9 Asts: LeBron James 6 | Pts: Derrick Rose 28 Rebs: Joakim Noah 14 Asts: Derrick Rose 6 |
| Chicago leads series, 1–0 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,874 Referees: Dan Crawford, Michael Smith, Ken Mauer
* TNT
* May 18 8:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 85, Chicago Bulls 75 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–26, 29–20, 23–19, 14–10 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 29 Rebs: LeBron James 10 Asts: LeBron James 5 | Pts: Derrick Rose 21 Rebs: Boozer, Noah 8 each Asts: Derrick Rose 8 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 23,007 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Derrick Stafford, Jason Phillips
* TNT
* May 22 8:30 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 85, Miami Heat 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 15–18, 25–25, 25–25, 20–28 |||
| Pts: Carlos Boozer 26 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 17 Asts: Joakim Noah 6 | Pts: Chris Bosh 34 Rebs: Dwyane Wade 9 Asts: LeBron James 10 |
| Miami leads series, 2–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,123 Referees: Steve Javie, Mike Callahan, Ron Garretson
* TNT
* May 24 8:30 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 93, Miami Heat 101 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–16, 27–28, 22–19, 17–22, Overtime: 8–16 |||
| Pts: Derrick Rose 23 Rebs: Joakim Noah 14 Asts: Noah, Rose 6 each | Pts: LeBron James 35 Rebs: Haslem, Miller 9 each Asts: LeBron James 6 |
| Miami leads series, 3–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,125 Referees: Joe Crawford, Ed Malloy, Bennett Salvatore
* TNT
* May 26 8:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 83, Chicago Bulls 80 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–25, 17–20, 19–17, 26–18 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 28 Rebs: LeBron James 11 Asts: LeBron James 6 | Pts: Derrick Rose 25 Rebs: Noah, Thomas 8 each Asts: Derrick Rose 8 |
| Miami wins series, 4–1 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 23,057 Referees: Scott Foster, Marc Davis, Greg Willard

##### Regular-season series

Chicago won 3–0 in the regular-season series :
January 15, 2011
Recap
Miami Heat 96, Chicago Bulls 99
United Center, Chicago, Illinois
February 24, 2011
Recap
Miami Heat 89, Chicago Bulls 93
United Center, Chicago, Illinois
March 6, 2011
Recap
Chicago Bulls 87, Miami Heat 86
American Airlines Arena, Miami :
This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bulls winning four of the first five meetings.
Chicago leads 4–1 in all-time playoff series :
1992
Chicago Bulls 3, Miami Heat 0
1992 Eastern Conference First Round
1996
Chicago Bulls 3, Miami Heat 0
1996 Eastern Conference First Round
1997
Chicago Bulls 4, Miami Heat 1
1997 Eastern Conference finals
2006
Chicago Bulls 2, Miami Heat 4
2006 Eastern Conference First Round
2007
Chicago Bulls 4, Miami Heat 0
2007 Eastern Conference First Round :
Chicago swept Miami in the regular season en route to the league's best record and also blew out the Heat in Game 1 of the conference finals, 103–82. However, Miami advanced to the NBA Finals by capturing the next four games. In Game 5, the Heat erased a 12-point deficit with three minutes remaining to eliminate the Bulls, 83–80.
This series marked the only time all season that the Bulls lost more than two consecutive games.

### Western Conference finals
#### (3) Dallas Mavericks vs. (4) Oklahoma City Thunder

* ESPN
* May 17 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 112, Dallas Mavericks 121 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–20, 21–35, 31–35, 33–31 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 40 Rebs: Kevin Durant 8 Asts: Kevin Durant 5 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 48 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 8 Asts: Jason Kidd 11 |
| Dallas leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,911 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bill Kennedy, Zach Zarba
* ESPN
* May 19 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 106, Dallas Mavericks 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–31, 33–26, 18–19, 29–24 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 24 Rebs: Collison, Harden 7 each Asts: Durant, Harden, Westbrook 4 each | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 29 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 13 Asts: Jason Kidd 7 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 21,051 Referees: Greg Willard, Bill Spooner, Tom Washington
* ESPN
* May 21 9:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 93, Oklahoma City Thunder 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–12, 25–24, 18–20, 23–31 |||
| Pts: Marion, Nowitzki 18 each Rebs: Tyson Chandler 15 Asts: Jason Kidd 8 | Pts: Russell Westbrook 30 Rebs: Kevin Durant 12 Asts: Kevin Durant 5 |
| Dallas leads series, 2–1 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Scott Foster, Marc Davis, Bob Delaney
* ESPN
* May 23 9:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 112, Oklahoma City Thunder 105 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–31, 32–28, 23–22, 24–20, Overtime: 11–4 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 40 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 8 Asts: Jason Kidd 7 | Pts: Kevin Durant 29 Rebs: Kevin Durant 15 Asts: Russell Westbrook 8 |
| Dallas leads series, 3–1 |||
* Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Dan Crawford, Tony Brothers, Ken Mauer
* ESPN
* May 25 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 96, Dallas Mavericks 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–26, 28–26, 21–20, 20–28 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 31 Rebs: Nick Collison 12 Asts: James Harden 6 | Pts: Marion, Nowitzki 26 each Rebs: Chandler, Nowitzki 9 each Asts: Jason Kidd 10 |
| Dallas wins series, 4–1 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 21,092 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Jason Phillips, Derrick Stafford

##### Regular-season series

Dallas won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
November 24, 2010
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 111, Oklahoma City Thunder 103
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
December 27, 2010
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 103, Oklahoma City Thunder 93
Oklahoma City Arena, Oklahoma City
January 6, 2011
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 99, Dallas Mavericks 95
American Airlines Center, Dallas :
This was the third playoff series between these two teams, with each team having won one of the prior series. Both previous meetings took place when the Thunder franchise was still known as the Seattle SuperSonics.
Tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series :
1984
Dallas Mavericks 3, Seattle SuperSonics 2
1984 Western Conference First Round
1987
Dallas Mavericks 1, Seattle SuperSonics 3
1987 Western Conference First Round :
In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas set a playoff record for most free throws made without a miss with 24, previously held by Paul Pierce (21) in 2003. The Mavericks won, 121–112. The Thunder and Mavericks then split the next two games. In Game 4, Dallas rallied from a 15-point deficit with five minutes left in regulation to win in overtime for a 3–1 series lead. The Mavericks then wiped out another deficit late in Game 5 to win the game, 100–96, and reach their first NBA Finals since 2006. It would be the last time that neither a #1 seed nor a #2 seed reached a Conference finals until 2020.

## NBA Finals: (E2) Miami Heat vs. (W3) Dallas Mavericks

* ABC
* May 31 9:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 84, Miami Heat 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–16, 27–27, 17–22, 23–27 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 27 Rebs: Shawn Marion 10 Asts: Jason Kidd 6 | Pts: LeBron James 24 Rebs: Dwyane Wade 10 Asts: Dwyane Wade 6 |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Steve Javie, Mike Callahan, Bill Kennedy
* ABC
* June 2 9:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 95, Miami Heat 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–28, 23–23, 20–24, 24–18 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 24 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 11 Asts: Terry, Kidd 5 each | Pts: Dwyane Wade 36 Rebs: James, Bosh 8 each Asts: Dwyane Wade 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Joe Crawford, Ed Malloy, Ken Mauer
* ABC
* June 5 8:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 88, Dallas Mavericks 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–22, 18–20, 20–22, 21–22 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 29 Rebs: Dwyane Wade 11 Asts: LeBron James 9 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 34 Rebs: Chandler, Nowitzki 11 each Asts: Jason Kidd 10 |
| Miami leads series, 2–1 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,340 Referees: Dan Crawford, Scott Foster, Derrick Stafford
* ABC
* June 7 9:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 83, Dallas Mavericks 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–21, 26–24, 22–20, 14–21 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 32 Rebs: LeBron James 9 Asts: LeBron James 7 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 21 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 16 Asts: José Juan Barea 4 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,340 Referees: Monty Mccutchen, Marc Davis, Greg Willard
* ABC
* June 9 9:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 103, Dallas Mavericks 112 :
| Scoring by quarter: 31–30, 26–30, 22–24, 24–28 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 23 Rebs: James, Bosh 10 each Asts: LeBron James 10 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 29 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 7 Asts: Kidd, Terry 6 each |
| Dallas leads series, 3–2 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,340 Referees: Joe Crawford, Mike Callahan, Bill Kennedy
* ABC
* June 12 8:00 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 105, Miami Heat 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–27, 21–24, 28–21, 24–23 |||
| Pts: Jason Terry 27 Rebs: Dirk Nowitzki 11 Asts: Jason Kidd 8 | Pts: LeBron James 21 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 9 Asts: Mario Chalmers 7 |
| Dallas wins series, 4–2 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Steve Javie, Scott Foster, Derrick Stafford

### Regular-season series

Dallas won 2–0 in the regular-season series :
November 27, 2010
Recap
Miami Heat 95, Dallas Mavericks 106
American Airlines Center, Dallas
December 20, 2010
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 98, Miami Heat 96
American Airlines Arena, Miami :
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Heat winning the first meeting.
Miami leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
2006
Dallas Mavericks 2, Miami Heat 4
2006 NBA Finals :

## Statistic leaders

| Category | High | High | High | Average | Average | Average | Average |
| Category | Player | Team | Total | Player | Team | Avg. | Games played |
| Points | Dirk Nowitzki | Dallas Mavericks | 48 | Kevin Durant | Oklahoma City Thunder | 28.6 | 17 |
| Rebounds | Marc Gasol Zach Randolph | Memphis Grizzlies Memphis Grizzlies | 21 | Dwight Howard | Orlando Magic | 15.5 | 6 |
| Assists | Rajon Rondo | Boston Celtics | 20 | Chris Paul | New Orleans Hornets | 11.5 | 6 |
| Steals | Kobe Bryant Luol Deng Joe Johnson Jason Kidd | Los Angeles Lakers Chicago Bulls Atlanta Hawks Dallas Mavericks | 5 | Manu Ginóbili | San Antonio Spurs | 2.6 | 5 |
| Blocks | Serge Ibaka | Oklahoma City Thunder | 9 | Serge Ibaka | Oklahoma City Thunder | 3.1 | 17 |