# 2012 NBA playoffs

The 2012 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2011–12 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat defeating the Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder, 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals. LeBron James was named NBA Finals MVP.

## Overview
### Western conference

The Los Angeles Clippers made the playoffs for the first time since 2006, while the Utah Jazz returned after a one-year hiatus. It was also Utah's first postseason appearance without Jerry Sloan as head coach since 1988. Ironically, both teams would be swept by the San Antonio Spurs.
The San Antonio Spurs entered their fifteenth consecutive postseason, continuing the longest active playoff streak at the time.
The defending champion Dallas Mavericks entered their twelfth consecutive postseason, the second longest active playoff streak in the Western Conference.
The Memphis Grizzlies earned home–court advantage for the first time in franchise history.

### Eastern conference

All eight teams were the same from 2011. They also all had records over .500, the first time since 2005.
The Orlando Magic entered their sixth consecutive postseason, the longest active postseason streak in the eastern conference at the time. Their in–state rivals, the Miami Heat entered their fourth consecutive postseason. The Orlando Magic and Miami Heat gained notoriety for opening their postseason runs against the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks despite recent tragedies rocking their respective cities. The Orlando Magic opened their NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers just 2 months after the killing of Trayvon Martin in nearby Sanford, Florida, just 30 miles from where they play their games at Amway Center. Meanwhile, the Miami Heat opened their NBA Playoffs against the New York Knicks just 15 days after a drunk driver caused a devastating crash in southwest Miami-Dade County, just 18 miles from where they play their games at American Airlines Arena.
The Indiana Pacers opened the playoffs at home for the first time since 2004.
The New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers entered their second consecutive postseason.

### First round

For the first time since 2000, the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks met in the postseason, reigniting the Heat–Knicks rivalry.
For the fourth time since 2006, a division winner (in this case the Atlantic Division champion Boston Celtics) opened the playoffs on the road. Despite not having home court advantage, the Boston Celtics beat the Atlanta Hawks in six games. The Hawks would not open the playoffs at home again until 2015.
Game 1 of the Bulls–Sixers series was extremely notable as Derrick Rose tore his ACL in the waning minutes of the Bulls’ 103–91 victory.
With their Game 3 loss to the Miami Heat, the New York Knicks lost their 13th straight playoff game, breaking Memphis' record from 2004 to 2006 for the longest playoff losing streak. However, they broke that streak with a Game 4 victory against The Heat at Madison Square Garden.
With their Game 4 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the defending champions Dallas Mavericks were swept in the first round, becoming the third defending champion to be swept in the First Round after the Philadelphia Warriors in 1957 and Miami Heat in 2007, and second after Miami to be done so in a seven-game series. It was the first time the Mavericks were swept in a seven-game series, and only their second sweep since 1990.
With their Game 5 win against the New York Knicks, the Miami Heat beat their arch rivals in a playoff series for the first time since 1997. During the series, however, the Knicks lost Baron Davis and Iman Shumpert to knee injuries.
With their Game 5 win against the Orlando Magic, the Indiana Pacers won their first playoff series since 2005. The Magic would not return to the postseason until 2019.
With their Game 6 win over the Chicago Bulls, the eighth–seeded Philadelphia 76ers became only the 5th eighth seeded team in NBA history to beat a top seed in the first round. Following the Grizzlies' 2011 upset of the 1st–seeded Spurs, this marked the first time in straight seasons an 8th–seed upset a #1 seed. In addition to losing Rose, the Bulls also lost Joakim Noah to injury during the series. This was the most recent occurrence of an eighth seed eliminating a top seed in the first round of the playoffs until 2023, when the eighth-seeded Miami Heat knocked out the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks.
Game 7 of the Lakers–Nuggets series ensured a 13th straight postseason with at least one Game 7 played. The last without one was the 1999 NBA playoffs.
With their Game 7 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, the Los Angeles Clippers won their first playoff series since 2006.

### Conference semifinals

During their conference semifinals series against the Indiana Pacers, the Miami Heat lost Chris Bosh to injury (although he would return in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals). As a result, the Heat fell behind two games to one before reeling off three straight wins to beat the Pacers in six games.
For the first time since 1999, back to backs were played in the conference semifinals, thanks to the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers sharing the same arena to avoid scheduling conflicts. It also marked the first time both Los Angeles teams appeared in the Conference Semifinals in the same season. As of 2023, this was the most recent occurrence of back to backs being played in the same postseason.
With their Game 4 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, the San Antonio Spurs became the fourth team in NBA History (and first in the Western Conference) to go 8–0 through the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Heat in 2005, Cavs in 2009 and Magic in 2010, also went 8–0 through the first two rounds. In addition, all 3 lost Game 1 of their Conference Finals. The Spurs broke this trend with a Game 1 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
Game 5 of the Lakers-Thunder series was Kobe Bryant's final NBA playoff game. In addition, this was also his final NBA Playoff appearance before his retirement in 2016.
With their Game 7 win over the Philadelphia 76ers, the Boston Celtics returned to the Conference Finals for the third time in five seasons. With the loss, the Philadelphia 76ers suffered the same fate as last season's Memphis Grizzlies by beating a top seed, taking their fourth seed opponent to a Game 7, only to lose on the road. The 76ers would not return to the playoffs until 2018.

### Conference finals

For the third consecutive season, the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics met in the postseason.
With their Game 2 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, the San Antonio Spurs won 20 straight games. As a result, they set an NBA record for the longest winning streak carried over from the regular season to the playoffs, which was broken with the Game 3 loss, and finished a win short of tying the longest unbeaten playoff run in a single postseason.
Game 5 of the Heat-Celtics series was notable for the return of Chris Bosh and the Boston Celtics overcoming a 2–0 series deficit to take a 3–2 lead going back to Boston. However, the Miami Heat would force a Game 7 thanks to LeBron James’ 45 point Game 6 performance in the Miami Heat's 98–79 win at TD Garden.
With a Game 6 win over the San Antonio Spurs, the Oklahoma City Thunder returned to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1996 (when they were known as the Seattle SuperSonics). The Spurs, on the other hand, lost the series 4–2 despite leading 2–0.
With a Game 7 win over the Boston Celtics, the Miami Heat returned to the NBA Finals for the second straight season. It marked the first time a LeBron James-led team beat the Boston Celtics in a playoff series despite trailing 3–2. With the loss, this was the second time that the Celtics lost a playoff series despite leading 3–2. The Celtics would not win another playoff series, let alone return to the conference finals, until 2017.
Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals was Ray Allen's last game as a member of the Boston Celtics, effectively ending their “Big 3 era,” which began in 2007.

### NBA finals

The 2012 NBA Finals had several noteworthy events.
For the first time since 1998, no team from California or Texas represented the western conference in the NBA Finals. Ironically, the Oklahoma City Thunder eliminated the last three Western Conference finalists: the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the San Antonio Spurs, all in sequential order.
For the first time in franchise history, the Miami Heat faced a team other than the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.
Game 1 of the 2012 NBA Finals was the first NBA Finals game ever played in the State of Oklahoma. The Thunder won this game 105–94.
With a Game 5 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Miami Heat won their second NBA championship. By winning the 2012 NBA Finals, the Heat became the second team to win the NBA Finals by overcoming three series deficits (2–1 in the conference semifinals, 3–2 in the conference finals, and 0–1 in the finals) in the same playoffs. The last team to accomplish this feat was the 1995 Houston Rockets. It was also the third (and final time) under the 2–3–2 format that the home team won the middle three games of the NBA Finals.

### Connection with NBA lockout

In May 2012, with the Bulls, Knicks, and Heat losing players to injuries, then-Commissioner David Stern initially said there was no connection between the injuries and the lockout that compressed the regular season to 66-game in 124 days; however, he later backed off those comments, saying more research was needed.

## Format

The 6 division winners and 10 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 winner is guaranteed to be ranked at least fourth, regardless of record.

### Tiebreak procedures

The tiebreakers that determine seedings are:
* Division leader wins tie from team not leading a division
* Head-to-head record
* Division record (if all the tied teams are in the same division)
* Conference record
* Record vs. playoff teams, own conference
* Record vs. playoff teams, other conference (only in 2-way tie)
* Point differential, all games
If there were more than two teams tied, the team that wins the tiebreaker gets the highest seed, while the other teams were "re-broken" from the first step until all ties were resolved. Since the three division winners were guaranteed a spot in the top four, ties to determine the division winners had to be broken before any other ties.

## 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 | 50-16 | March 24 | April 12 | April 24 | April 26 |
| 2 | Miami Heat | 46-20 | April 3 | April 15 | — | — |
| 3 | Indiana Pacers | 42-24 | April 13 | — | — | — |
| 4 | Boston Celtics | 39-27 | April 14 | April 18 | — | — |
| 5 | Atlanta Hawks | 40-26 | April 16 | — | — | — |
| 6 | Orlando Magic | 37-29 | April 15 | — | — | — |
| 7 | New York Knicks | 36-30 | April 23 | — | — | — |
| 8 | Philadelphia 76ers | 35-31 | April 19 | — | — | — |
— = Did not achieve

### Western Conference

| Seed | Team | Record | Clinched | Clinched | Clinched | Clinched |
| Seed | Team | Record | Playoff berth | Division title | Best record in Conference | Best record in NBA |
| 1 | San Antonio Spurs | 50-16 | March 24 | April 14 | April 23 | — |
| 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 47-19 | April 1 | April 7 | — | — |
| 3 | Los Angeles Lakers | 41-25 | April 15 | April 24 | — | — |
| 4 | Memphis Grizzlies | 41-25 | April 18 | — | — | — |
| 5 | Los Angeles Clippers | 40-26 | April 16 | — | — | — |
| 6 | Denver Nuggets | 38-28 | April 18 | — | — | — |
| 7 | Dallas Mavericks | 36-30 | April 19 | — | — | — |
| 8 | Utah Jazz | 36-30 | April 22 | — | — | — |
— = Did not achieve
Notes
* 1 2 Los Angeles Lakers clinched #3 seed over Memphis Grizzlies based on winning Pacific Division.
* 1 2 Dallas Mavericks clinched #7 seed over Utah Jazz based on 3–1 regular season series record.

## 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 belongs to the team with the better regular season record, regardless of seed. (If two teams with the same record meet in a round, the tiebreakers used are head-to-head and record vs. opposite conference.) Teams with home court advantage are shown in italics in the chart below.
| 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* | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Philadelphia | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E8 | Philadelphia | 4 | | | E8 | Philadelphia | 3 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E4 | Boston* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E4 | Boston* | 4 | | | E4 | Boston* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Atlanta | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E5 | Atlanta | 2 | | | | | | E4 | Boston* | 3 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E4 | Boston* | 3 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | |
| E3 | Indiana | 4 | | | | | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | |
| E6 | Orlando | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E6 | Orlando | 1 | | | E3 | Indiana | 2 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| E7 | New York | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| E7 | New York | 1 | | | | | | | | | | E2 | Miami* | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 1 |
| W1 | San Antonio* | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 1 |
| W8 | Utah | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W8 | Utah | 0 | | | W1 | San Antonio* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W5 | LA Clippers | 0 | | | | | | | |
| W4 | Memphis | 3 | | | W5 | LA Clippers | 0 | | | | | | | |
| W5 | LA Clippers | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W5 | LA Clippers | 4 | | | | | | W1 | San Antonio* | 2 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W1 | San Antonio* | 2 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | |
| W3 | LA Lakers* | 4 | | | | | | | | | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | |
| W6 | Denver | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| W6 | Denver | 3 | | | W3 | LA Lakers* | 1 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W2 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | W2 | Oklahoma City* | 4 | | | | | | | |
| W7 | Dallas | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
* * 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) Philadelphia 76ers

* TNT
* April 28 1:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 91, Chicago Bulls 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–28, 18–25, 24–26, 25–24 |||
| Pts: Elton Brand 19 Rebs: Brand, Holiday 7 each Asts: Iguodala, Turner 5 each | Pts: Derrick Rose 23 Rebs: Joakim Noah 13 Asts: Derrick Rose 9 |
| Chicago leads series, 1–0 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 21,943 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Jason Phillips, Michael Smith,
* TNT
* May 1 8:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 109, Chicago Bulls 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–28, 22–27, 36–14, 26–23 |||
| Pts: Jrue Holiday 26 Rebs: Lavoy Allen 9 Asts: Holiday, Turner, Williams 6 each | Pts: Joakim Noah 21 Rebs: Joakim Noah 8 Asts: Hamilton, Noah 5 each |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,067 Referees: Greg Willard, Courtney Kirkland, Rodney Mott,
* ESPN2
* May 4 8:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 74, Philadelphia 76ers 79 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–19, 19–21, 21–11, 14–28 |||
| Pts: Carlos Boozer 18 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 10 Asts: Richard Hamilton 7 | Pts: Spencer Hawes 21 Rebs: Thaddeus Young 11 Asts: Jrue Holiday 6 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 2–1 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,381 Referees: Joe Crawford, Tony Brothers, Eric Lewis,
* ABC
* May 6 1:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 82, Philadelphia 76ers 89 :
| Scoring by quarter: 15–24, 27–20, 21–20, 19–25 |||
| Pts: Carlos Boozer 23 Rebs: Taj Gibson 12 Asts: Boozer, Watson 4 each | Pts: Spencer Hawes 22 Rebs: Andre Iguodala 12 Asts: Jrue Holiday 6 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 3–1 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,412 Referees: Dan Crawford, Dick Bavetta, Marc Davis,
* NBA TV
* May 8 9:30 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 69, Chicago Bulls 77 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–17, 10–18, 22–22, 21–20 |||
| Pts: Jrue Holiday 16 Rebs: Spencer Hawes 14 Asts: Jrue Holiday 4 | Pts: Luol Deng 24 Rebs: Carlos Boozer 13 Asts: C. J. Watson 7 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 3–2 |||
* United Center, Chicago Attendance: 22,093 Referees: Ken Mauer, Bill Kennedy, Leon Wood,
* NBA TV
* May 10 7:00 pm
* Recap
Chicago Bulls 78, Philadelphia 76ers 79 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–24, 18–24, 23–15, 15–16 |||
| Pts: Deng, Hamilton 19 each Rebs: Luol Deng 17 Asts: C. J. Watson 10 | Pts: Andre Iguodala 20 Rebs: Spencer Hawes 10 Asts: Andre Iguodala 7 |
| Philadelphia wins series, 4–2 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,362 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Ron Garretson, Sean Wright,
The Bulls came into the playoffs as the first overall seed for the second straight year. The 76ers, meanwhile, came into the playoffs as the team with the worst record in the playoffs. The Bulls made quick work of the 76ers, winning Game 1. However, with the Bulls leading by 12 with 1:20 to go in the fourth, Derrick Rose tore his ACL and he was ruled out for the playoffs, putting the Bulls championship hopes in serious jeopardy. The 76ers took the next three games to put the Bulls on the brink of elimination. In Game 3, Joakim Noah was injured when he stepped on Andre Iguodala's foot, ruling him out for the next two games. The Bulls staved off elimination by winning Game 5 at home. In Game 6, with the Bulls up 1 with 7 seconds to go, Ömer Aşık missed two crucial free-throws. Iguodala managed to rebound the ball and sprinted to the other side of the court. He got fouled by Aşık while going for a shot. Iguodala gave the 76ers the lead by making the free-throws. The Bulls, who were out of timeouts, had one last chance to force a Game 7 but C. J. Watson's halfcourt heave bounced off the back of the rim, giving the 76ers the series. They advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2003. The Bulls, meanwhile, became the fifth first-seeded team to be upset by the eighth-seed.

##### Regular-season series

Chicago won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
February 1, 2012
Recap
Chicago Bulls 82, Philadelphia 76ers 98
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
March 4, 2012
Recap
Chicago Bulls 96, Philadelphia 76ers 91
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
March 17, 2012
Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 80, Chicago Bulls 89
United Center, Chicago, Illinois :
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bulls winning the first two meetings.
Chicago leads 2–0 in all-time playoff series :
1990
Chicago Bulls 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1
1990 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1991
Chicago Bulls 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1
1991 Eastern Conference Semifinals :

#### (2) Miami Heat vs. (7) New York Knicks

* ABC
* April 28 3:30 pm
* Recap
New York Knicks 67, Miami Heat 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–24, 13–30, 16–27, 20–19 |||
| Pts: J. R. Smith 17 Rebs: Carmelo Anthony 10 Asts: Carmelo Anthony 3 | Pts: LeBron James 32 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 8 Asts: Mario Chalmers 9 |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,621 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ed Malloy, Gary Zielinski,
* TNT
* April 30 7:00 pm
* Recap
New York Knicks 94, Miami Heat 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–27, 23–26, 22–25, 25–26 |||
| Pts: Carmelo Anthony 30 Rebs: Carmelo Anthony 9 Asts: Baron Davis 6 | Pts: Dwyane Wade 25 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 8 Asts: LeBron James 9 |
| Miami leads series, 2–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,684 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bennie Adams, Bill Spooner,
* TNT
* May 3 7:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 87, New York Knicks 70 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–19, 17–21, 22–16, 29–14 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 32 Rebs: Chris Bosh 10 Asts: LeBron James 5 | Pts: Carmelo Anthony 22 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 15 Asts: Baron Davis 3 |
| Miami leads series, 3–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City Attendance: 19,763 Referees: Mike Callahan, David Guthrie, Eddie F. Rush,
* ABC
* May 6 3:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 87, New York Knicks 89 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–20, 26–18, 17–26, 26–25 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 27 Rebs: Chris Bosh 9 Asts: Dwyane Wade 6 | Pts: Carmelo Anthony 41 Rebs: Amar'e Stoudemire 10 Asts: Anthony, Smith 4 each |
| Miami leads series, 3–1 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City Attendance: 19,763 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Derrick Collins, Tom Washington,
* TNT
* May 9 7:00 pm
* Recap
New York Knicks 94, Miami Heat 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–28, 20–27, 23–26, 27–25 |||
| Pts: Carmelo Anthony 35 Rebs: Tyson Chandler 11 Asts: Mike Bibby 6 | Pts: LeBron James 29 Rebs: LeBron James 8 Asts: LeBron James 7 |
| Miami wins series, 4–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,754 Referees: Greg Willard, James Capers, John Goble
The Heat defeated the Knicks in Game 1 by 33 points. Game 2 was much closer, even without Knicks' starting rookie guard Iman Shumpert who suffered an ACL injury the previous game, but the Heat still won by 10. In Game 3 in MSG, the Heat found themselves on the wrong end in the first half, trailing by as much as 11 points, before closing the half with a 7–0 run. The Heat led by 2 after the 3rd quarter. However, LeBron James quickly sparked an 8–0 run to start the 4th quarter, giving them a 10-point lead. The Knicks never recovered. James himself outscored the Knicks in the fourth, 17–14. By losing Game 3, the Knicks set a new league record by losing 13 straight playoff games, their last win coming April 29, 2001, in their series versus the Raptors. In Game 4, Knicks' starting guard Baron Davis injured himself in the third quarter and had to be carried off the court on a stretcher. But led by Carmelo Anthony's 41, the Knicks won 89–87, escaping a sweep as Wade's potential series-winning 3 missed at the buzzer. In Game 5, the Knicks started strong but Miami took over the rest of the way. The Heat led by 11 at the end of the first half. The Heat never squandered the lead, effectively sealing the game and the series with a 3-pointer by Battier that gave the Heat a 14-point lead with a minute left in the game. The Knicks were led by Anthony's 35. Amar'e Stoudemire, meanwhile, was plagued by foul trouble. He fouled out with about 4 minutes left in the game.

##### Regular-season series

Miami won 3–0 in the regular-season series :
January 27, 2012
Recap
New York Knicks 89, Miami Heat 99
American Airlines Arena, Miami
February 23, 2012
Recap
New York Knicks 88, Miami Heat 102
American Airlines Arena, Miami
April 15, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 93, New York Knicks 85
Madison Square Garden, New York City :
This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Knicks winning three of the first four meetings.
New York leads 3–1 in all-time playoff series :
1997
Miami Heat 4, New York Knicks 3
1997 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1998
Miami Heat 2, New York Knicks 3
1998 Eastern Conference First Round
1999
Miami Heat 2, New York Knicks 3
1999 Eastern Conference First Round
2000
Miami Heat 3, New York Knicks 4
2000 Eastern Conference Semifinals :

#### (3) Indiana Pacers vs. (6) Orlando Magic

* ESPN
* April 28 7:00 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 81, Indiana Pacers 77 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–22, 30–22, 13–19, 17–14 |||
| Pts: Nelson, Richardson 17 each Rebs: Glen Davis 13 Asts: Jameer Nelson 9 | Pts: David West 19 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 13 Asts: Darren Collison 5 |
| Orlando leads series, 1–0 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Ken Mauer, David Jones, Leon Wood,
* NBA TV
* April 30 7:30 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 78, Indiana Pacers 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–24, 23–18, 13–30, 21–21 |||
| Pts: Glen Davis 18 Rebs: Glen Davis 10 Asts: Nelson, Redick, Richardson 3 each | Pts: Granger, Hill, West 18 each Rebs: Roy Hibbert 13 Asts: David West 4 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Bill Kennedy, Gary Zielinski,
* NBA TV
* May 2 7:30 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 97, Orlando Magic 74 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–14, 21–24, 32–17, 21–19 |||
| Pts: Danny Granger 26 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 10 Asts: Paul George 4 | Pts: Glen Davis 22 Rebs: Quentin Richardson 10 Asts: Jameer Nelson 5 |
| Indiana leads series, 2–1 |||
* Amway Center, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 18,846 Referees: Dan Crawford, Bennie Adams, Bill Spooner,
* ESPN
* May 5 2:00 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 101, Orlando Magic 99 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–19, 24–25, 27–17, 16–28, Overtime: 12–10 |||
| Pts: David West 26 Rebs: David West 12 Asts: Darren Collison 9 | Pts: Jason Richardson 25 Rebs: Glen Davis 11 Asts: Jameer Nelson 11 |
| Indiana leads series, 3–1 |||
* Amway Center, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 18,846 Referees: Mike Callahan, Ed Malloy, Violet Palmer,
* NBA TV
* May 8 7:00 pm
* Recap
Orlando Magic 87, Indiana Pacers 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–28, 28–22, 24–19, 16–36 |||
| Pts: Jameer Nelson 27 Rebs: Glen Davis 8 Asts: Jameer Nelson 5 | Pts: Danny Granger 25 Rebs: David West 8 Asts: Darren Collison 6 |
| Indiana wins series, 4–1 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Marc Davis, David Guthrie,
The Pacers were considered the heavy favorites in the series as the Magic would try to defeat the Pacers without Dwight Howard. The Magic defied the odds in Game 1, as the Pacers went scoreless in the final 4 minutes of the game, allowing the Magic to go on an 11–0 run to finish the game and take a 1–0 series lead. The Pacers quickly took revenge, winning the next two games at home and on the road by an average of 19 points. Game 4 was close, with the game going to overtime. However, George Hill hit two free-throws with 2 seconds left to give the Pacers a 3–1 lead in the series. Game 5 was close throughout the first three quarters, with Magic taking a two-point lead heading to the 4th quarter. However, Indiana outscored the Magic 36–16 in the fourth to give the Pacers the series victory 4–1. This would be last playoff appearance for the Magic until 2019.

##### Regular-season series

Orlando won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
January 24, 2012
Recap
Orlando Magic 102, Indiana Pacers 83
Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
January 29, 2012
Recap
Indiana Pacers 106, Orlando Magic 85
Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
February 4, 2012
Recap
Orlando Magic 85, Indiana Pacers 81
Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
March 11, 2012
Recap
Indiana Pacers 94, Orlando Magic 107
Amway Center, Orlando, Florida :
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series apiece.
Tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series :
1994
Indiana Pacers 3, Orlando Magic 0
1994 Eastern Conference First Round
1995
Indiana Pacers 3, Orlando Magic 4
1995 Eastern Conference Finals :

#### (4) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks

* TNT
* April 29 7:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 74, Atlanta Hawks 83 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–31, 17–18, 18–16, 21–18 |||
| Pts: Garnett, Rondo 20 each Rebs: Kevin Garnett 12 Asts: Rajon Rondo 11 | Pts: Josh Smith 22 Rebs: Josh Smith 18 Asts: Joe Johnson 5 |
| Atlanta leads series, 1–0 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,292 Referees: Mike Callahan, Marc Davis, John Goble,
* NBA TV
* May 1 7:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 87, Atlanta Hawks 80 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 17–20, 20–22, 26–14 |||
| Pts: Paul Pierce 36 Rebs: Paul Pierce 14 Asts: Kevin Garnett 5 | Pts: Joe Johnson 22 Rebs: Josh Smith 12 Asts: Johnson, Smith 5 each |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,308 Referees: Scott Foster, Ed Malloy, Scott Wall,
* ESPN
* May 4 7:30 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 84, Boston Celtics 90 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–17, 19–23, 20–20, 22–20, Overtime: 4–10 |||
| Pts: Joe Johnson 29 Rebs: Marvin Williams 11 Asts: Jeff Teague 6 | Pts: Paul Pierce 21 Rebs: Rajon Rondo 14 Asts: Rajon Rondo 12 |
| Boston leads series, 2–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Ron Garretson, Zach Zarba,
* TNT
* May 6 7:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 79, Boston Celtics 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–32, 22–32, 22–26, 16–11 |||
| Pts: Josh Smith 15 Rebs: Josh Smith 13 Asts: Josh Smith 5 | Pts: Paul Pierce 24 Rebs: Allen, Bass, Garnett 5 each Asts: Rajon Rondo 16 |
| Boston leads series, 3–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Joe Crawford, Tony Brothers, Pat Fraher,
* TNT
* May 8 8:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 86, Atlanta Hawks 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–15, 19–25, 24–26, 22–21 |||
| Pts: Garnett, Pierce 16 each Rebs: Bass, Garnett 7 each Asts: Rajon Rondo 12 | Pts: Al Horford 19 Rebs: Josh Smith 16 Asts: Josh Smith 6 |
| Boston leads series, 3–2 |||
* Philips Arena, Atlanta Attendance: 19,319 Referees: Dan Crawford, David Jones, Tom Washington,
* TNT
* May 10 8:00 pm
* Recap
Atlanta Hawks 80, Boston Celtics 83 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–20, 18–27, 22–20, 17–16 |||
| Pts: Josh Smith 18 Rebs: Horford, Smith 9 each Asts: Jeff Teague 6 | Pts: Kevin Garnett 28 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 14 Asts: Rajon Rondo 8 |
| Boston wins series, 4–2 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Bill Kennedy, Eric Lewis,
The Hawks had homecourt advantage for the series despite being the lower seeded team by having the better season-record of the two; the Celtics took the 4th-seed by winning their division title. The Hawks won Game 1 by nine points, but the Celtics took the next three games, pushing the Hawks to the brink of elimination. Games 2 and 3 were close victories for the Celtics with Game 4 being a blowout victory for them. Game 5 in Atlanta was a close one. In the final seconds, with the Hawks up by one, Rajon Rondo stole an inbound pass, giving the Celtics a chance to finish off the Hawks. However, Josh Smith stripped a Rondo pass intended for Kevin Garnett, letting the Hawks survive and force a Game 6. In Game 6, Garnett led the Celtics to an 83–80 victory and advance. The Hawks had a chance to tie the game through free throws. However, Al Horford missed his first free throw that could have cut the lead to one. It was the Hawks' only miss at the free throw line the entire night. He made his second to cut it to one and the Hawks quickly fouled Paul Pierce. Pierce made both free throws to extend Celtics' lead to 3. With a chance to tie the game, Jeff Teague fumbled a pass, sealing the series for Boston.

##### Regular-season series

Boston won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
March 19, 2012
Recap
Boston Celtics 79, Atlanta Hawks 76
Philips Arena, Atlanta
April 11, 2012
Recap
Atlanta Hawks 86, Boston Celtics 88
TD Garden, Boston
April 20, 2012
Recap
Boston Celtics 92, Atlanta Hawks 97
Philips Arena, Atlanta :
This was the 11th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning nine of the first ten meetings.
Boston leads 9–1 in all-time playoff series :
1957
Boston Celtics 4, St. Louis Hawks 3
1957 NBA Finals
1958
Boston Celtics 2, St. Louis Hawks 4
1958 NBA Finals
1960
Boston Celtics 4, St. Louis Hawks 3
1960 NBA Finals
1961
Boston Celtics 4, St. Louis Hawks 1
1961 NBA Finals
1972
Atlanta Hawks 2, Boston Celtics 4
1972 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1973
Atlanta Hawks 2, Boston Celtics 4
1973 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1983
Atlanta Hawks 1, Boston Celtics 2
1983 Eastern Conference First Round
1986
Atlanta Hawks 1, Boston Celtics 4
1986 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1988
Atlanta Hawks 3, Boston Celtics 4
1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals
2008
Atlanta Hawks 3, Boston Celtics 4
2008 Eastern Conference First Round :

### Western Conference first round
#### (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) Utah Jazz

* ESPN
* April 29 1:00 pm
* Recap
Utah Jazz 91, San Antonio Spurs 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 25–26, 23–31, 21–21 |||
| Pts: Paul Millsap 20 Rebs: Jefferson, Millsap 9 each Asts: Jamaal Tinsley 5 | Pts: Tony Parker 28 Rebs: Tim Duncan 11 Asts: Tony Parker 8 |
| San Antonio leads series, 1–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Dick Bavetta, Rodney Mott,
* TNT
* May 2 7:00 pm
* Recap
Utah Jazz 83, San Antonio Spurs 114 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–28, 11–25, 25–34, 30–27 |||
| Pts: Howard, Jefferson 10 each Rebs: Enes Kanter 10 Asts: Gordon Hayward 4 | Pts: Tony Parker 18 Rebs: Tim Duncan 13 Asts: Tony Parker 9 |
| San Antonio leads series, 2–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Tony Brown, Bill Kennedy,
* TNT
* May 5 10:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 102, Utah Jazz 90 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–28, 22–22, 23–18, 27–22 |||
| Pts: Tony Parker 27 Rebs: Tiago Splitter 8 Asts: Manu Ginóbili 10 | Pts: Harris, Jefferson 21 each Rebs: Favors, Jefferson, Millsap 11 each Asts: Harris, Hayward 5 each |
| San Antonio leads series, 3–0 |||
* EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City Attendance: 19,911 Referees: Ken Mauer, James Capers, Leon Wood,
* TNT
* May 7 8:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 87, Utah Jazz 81 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–19, 28–23, 18–16, 19–23 |||
| Pts: Manu Ginóbili 17 Rebs: Stephen Jackson 6 Asts: Tony Parker 3 | Pts: Al Jefferson 26 Rebs: Paul Millsap 19 Asts: Devin Harris 7 |
| San Antonio wins series, 4–0 |||
* EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City Attendance: 19,911 Referees: Scott Foster, John Goble, Jason Phillips,
The Spurs were touted the heavy favorites in the series, following their 10-game winning streak to end the regular season and their 3–1 season series victory over the Jazz. They quickly worked their way through the Jazz, scoring 31 points in the third quarter to blow the game open. They eventually won Game 1 106–91. In Game 2, the Spurs shot 10 three-pointers and shot more than 50% as they blew out the Jazz 114–83 to take a 2–0 series lead. Game 3 was close throughout the first half, with the Spurs leading only by 2 after the first half. However, the Spurs blew the game open in the second half and won by 12 to take a 3–0 lead in the series. The odds were stacked against the Jazz as no team in NBA history have managed to win a series after trailing 3–0. Notably, before Game 4 had even been played, Jazz forward Al Jefferson commented that he didn't think any team would defeat the Spurs In Game 4, it seemed like the Spurs would complete the sweep when they had a 21-point lead. However, the Jazz eventually cut the lead to just 4 with 49.4 seconds left in the fourth. However, Tony Parker and Manu Ginóbili eventually sealed the series by stealing the ball and scoring on a basket respectively. The Spurs eventually completed the sweep, winning Game 4 by 6.

##### Regular-season series

San Antonio won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 31, 2011
Recap
Utah Jazz 89, San Antonio Spurs 104
AT&T Center, San Antonio
February 20, 2012
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 106, Utah Jazz 102
EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City
April 8, 2012
Recap
Utah Jazz 104, San Antonio Spurs 114
AT&T Center, San Antonio
April 9, 2012
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 84, Utah Jazz 91
EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City :
This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Jazz winning three of the first four meetings.
Utah leads 3–1 in all-time playoff series :
1994
San Antonio Spurs 1, Utah Jazz 3
1994 Western Conference First Round
1996
San Antonio Spurs 2, Utah Jazz 4
1996 Western Conference Semifinals
1998
San Antonio Spurs 1, Utah Jazz 4
1998 Western Conference Semifinals
2007
San Antonio Spurs 4, Utah Jazz 1
2007 Western Conference Finals :

#### (2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (7) Dallas Mavericks

* ESPN
* April 28 9:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 98, Oklahoma City Thunder 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–22, 25–26, 22–21, 25–30 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 25 Rebs: Shawn Marion 8 Asts: Kidd, Terry 5 each | Pts: Russell Westbrook 28 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 8 Asts: Russell Westbrook 5 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 1–0 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Joe Crawford, Tony Brothers, David Guthrie,
* TNT
* April 30 9:30 pm
* Recap
Dallas Mavericks 99, Oklahoma City Thunder 102 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–32, 26–25, 27–22, 22–23 |||
| Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 31 Rebs: Shawn Marion 8 Asts: Jason Kidd 7 | Pts: Russell Westbrook 29 Rebs: Kevin Durant 10 Asts: James Harden 5 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 2–0 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Ken Mauer, James Capers, Zach Zarba,
* TNT
* May 3 9:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 95, Dallas Mavericks 79 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–26, 18–15, 25–16, 20–22 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 31 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 11 Asts: Kevin Durant 6 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 17 Rebs: Shawn Marion 10 Asts: Jason Terry 6 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,640 Referees: Greg Willard, Marc Davis, David Jones,
* TNT
* May 5 7:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 103, Dallas Mavericks 97 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–24, 21–23, 21–34, 35–16 |||
| Pts: James Harden 29 Rebs: Kevin Durant 11 Asts: Russell Westbrook 6 | Pts: Dirk Nowitzki 34 Rebs: Vince Carter 8 Asts: Jason Kidd 8 |
| Oklahoma City wins series, 4–0 |||
* American Airlines Center, Dallas Attendance: 20,533 Referees: Scott Foster, Bill Spooner, Sean Wright,
The Mavericks came into the playoffs only as the 7th-seed, one of the lowest placements for a defending champion. Game 1 was a very close affair, with both teams going back and forth in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. However, Kevin Durant scored on a one-handed jumper with just about 1 second remaining. The Mavs still tried to win but Shawn Marion failed to get a shot off at the buzzer, giving the Thunder a one-point victory and a 1–0 series lead. Game 2 was also a close one but the Thunder held on and managed to squeak a 102–99 win and 2–0 series lead over the defending champs. In Game 3, the Mavs were no match for the Thunder, with the Thunder eventually blowing out the defending champs 95–79 to send the Mavs into the brink of a sweep. In Game 4, it looked as if the Mavs would stave off elimination when they led by 13 at the end of the third quarter. However, the Thunder outscored the Mavs 35–16 in the fourth and held on for a 103–97 victory over the Mavs. Following the sweep, the Mavs became just the 3rd defending champion to be swept in the first round.

##### Regular-season series

Oklahoma City won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 29, 2011
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 102, Oklahoma City Thunder 104
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
January 2, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 87, Dallas Mavericks 100
American Airlines Center, Dallas
February 1, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 95, Dallas Mavericks 86
American Airlines Center, Dallas
March 5, 2012
Recap
Dallas Mavericks 91, Oklahoma City Thunder 95
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma :
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Mavericks winning two of the first three meetings.
Dallas leads 2–1 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
2011
Dallas Mavericks 4, Oklahoma City Thunder 1
2011 Western Conference Finals :

#### (3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Denver Nuggets

* ABC
* April 29 3:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 88, Los Angeles Lakers 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 14–27, 26–23, 24–27, 24–26 |||
| Pts: Danilo Gallinari 19 Rebs: Faried, Miller 8 each Asts: Andre Miller 7 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 31 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 13 Asts: Pau Gasol 8 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 1–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Scott Foster, Derrick Collins, Ron Garretson,
* TNT
* May 1 10:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 100, Los Angeles Lakers 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–32, 23–23, 26–26, 26–23 |||
| Pts: Ty Lawson 25 Rebs: Kenneth Faried 10 Asts: Andre Miller 8 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 38 Rebs: Hill, Gasol 10 each Asts: Pau Gasol 5 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 2–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Pat Fraher, Tom Washington,
* ESPN
* May 4 10:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 84, Denver Nuggets 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 14–30, 25–25, 26–17, 19–27 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 22 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 12 Asts: Bryant, Sessions 6 each | Pts: Ty Lawson 25 Rebs: Faried, McGee 15 each Asts: Ty Lawson 7 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 2–1 |||
* Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 19,155 Referees: Dan Crawford, Jason Phillips, Michael Smith,
* TNT
* May 6 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 92, Denver Nuggets 88 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–28, 19–23, 25–20, 22–17 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 22 Rebs: Jordan Hill 11 Asts: Bryant, Gasol 6 each | Pts: Danilo Gallinari 20 Rebs: Faried, Miller 7 each Asts: Ty Lawson 6 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 3–1 |||
* Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 19,155 Referees: Greg Willard, David Jones, Bill Kennedy,
* TNT
* May 8 10:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 102, Los Angeles Lakers 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–23, 23–20, 27–22, 26–34 |||
| Pts: Andre Miller 24 Rebs: JaVale McGee 14 Asts: Lawson, Miller 8 each | Pts: Kobe Bryant 43 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 11 Asts: Ramon Sessions 6 |
| LA Lakers lead series, 3–2 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Joe Crawford, Tony Brothers, Zach Zarba,
* TNT
* May 10 10:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 96, Denver Nuggets 113 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–30, 25–24, 23–36, 28–23 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 31 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 16 Asts: Kobe Bryant 4 | Pts: Ty Lawson 32 Rebs: Kenneth Faried 11 Asts: Afflalo, Gallinari 7 each |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 19,770 Referees: Ken Mauer, Ed Malloy, Rodney Mott,
* TNT
* May 12 10:30 pm
* Recap
Denver Nuggets 87, Los Angeles Lakers 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–25, 18–23, 26–21, 19–27 |||
| Pts: Lawson, Harrington 24 each Rebs: JaVale McGee 14 Asts: Andre Miller 8 | Pts: Pau Gasol 23 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 18 Asts: Kobe Bryant 8 |
| LA Lakers win series, 4–3 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Mike Callahan, Bill Spooner,
The Lakers won the opening game 103–88 after Andrew Bynum had a triple-double with 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots. The blocked shots broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's franchise record of nine, and tied the NBA playoff record set by Mark Eaton and Hakeem Olajuwon. Kobe Bryant scored 31 points and Pau Gasol added 13 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. The Lakers then won a close Game 2 but the Nuggets proceeded to blow out the Lakers in Game 3 99–84 to prevent the Lakers from taking a commanding 3–0 lead. Game 4 was close but Sessions and Blake hit pivotal 3's to put the Lakers in the lead for good and take a 3–1 series lead. Before Game 5, Bynum said that "Close-out games are actually kind of easy." The Nuggets responded by taking Game 5 102–99. The game saw the Lakers erase a 90–75 deficit with 6:35 left in the fourth quarter. In Game 6, Bryant played despite having a stomach illness, but still managed to score 31 points. However, with little contribution from Gasol and Bynum, the Nuggets forced Game 7 with a 113–96 blowout win over the Lakers. The Lakers won the series 4–3, and avoided becoming the ninth team in NBA history to be eliminated after blowing a 3–1 series lead. Gasol had 23 points, 17 rebounds and six assists, Bynum had 16 points and a playoff career-high 18 rebounds, and Steve Blake scored a playoff career-high 19 points in a 96–87 win in Game 7. The Lakers blew a 16-point lead in the second half before Gasol put the Lakers ahead for good with a tip-in basket with 6:30 left. Kobe Bryant sealed Denver's fate by hitting a 3 with 48.3 seconds left to put the Lakers up 8. Denver had 19 turnovers in the game and shot just 7-of-27 in the fourth quarter. Returning from his seven-game suspension, Metta World Peace scored 15 points, while Bryant had 17 points, and 8 assists.

##### Regular-season series

L.A. Lakers won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 31, 2011
Recap
Denver Nuggets 89, Los Angeles Lakers 92
Staples Center, Los Angeles
January 1, 2012
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 90, Denver Nuggets 99
Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
February 3, 2012
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 93, Denver Nuggets 89
Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
April 13, 2012
Recap
Denver Nuggets 97, Los Angeles Lakers 103
Staples Center, Los Angeles :
This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning the first five meetings.
Los Angeles leads 5–0 in all-time playoff series :
1979
Denver Nuggets 1, Los Angeles Lakers 2
1979 Western Conference First Round
1985
Denver Nuggets 1, Los Angeles Lakers 4
1985 Western Conference Finals
1987
Denver Nuggets 0, Los Angeles Lakers 3
1987 Western Conference First Round
2008
Denver Nuggets 0, Los Angeles Lakers 4
2008 Western Conference First Round
2009
Denver Nuggets 2, Los Angeles Lakers 4
2009 Western Conference Finals :

#### (4) Memphis Grizzlies vs. (5) Los Angeles Clippers

* TNT
* April 29 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 99, Memphis Grizzlies 98 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–34, 23–24, 25–27, 35–13 |||
| Pts: Nick Young 19 Rebs: Reggie Evans 13 Asts: Chris Paul 11 | Pts: Rudy Gay 19 Rebs: Marreese Speights 9 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 8 |
| LA Clippers lead series, 1–0 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Greg Willard, Eric Lewis, Tom Washington,
* TNT
* May 2 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 98, Memphis Grizzlies 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–23, 21–28, 22–24, 29–30 |||
| Pts: Chris Paul 29 Rebs: Blake Griffin 9 Asts: Chris Paul 6 | Pts: Rudy Gay 21 Rebs: Zach Randolph 8 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Ken Mauer, Ron Garretson, Sean Wright,
* ESPN
* May 5 4:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 86, Los Angeles Clippers 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–23, 24–27, 25–14, 15–23 |||
| Pts: Rudy Gay 24 Rebs: Marc Gasol 10 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 8 | Pts: Chris Paul 24 Rebs: Reggie Evans 11 Asts: Chris Paul 11 |
| LA Clippers lead series, 2–1 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 19,060 Referees: Derrick Stafford, John Goble, Rodney Mott,
* TNT
* May 7 10:30 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 97, Los Angeles Clippers 101 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–32, 19–19, 19–18, 23–18, Overtime: 10–14 |||
| Pts: Mike Conley Jr. 25 Rebs: Zach Randolph 9 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 8 | Pts: Blake Griffin 30 Rebs: Chris Paul 9 Asts: Griffin, Paul 7 each |
| LA Clippers lead series, 3–1 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 19,167 Referees: Mike Callahan, James Capers, Scott Wall,
* TNT
* May 9 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 80, Memphis Grizzlies 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–36, 20–21, 23–20, 15–15 |||
| Pts: Mo Williams 20 Rebs: Blake Griffin 11 Asts: Chris Paul 4 | Pts: Marc Gasol 23 Rebs: Zach Randolph 10 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 6 |
| LA Clippers lead series, 3–2 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Scott Foster, Bill Spooner, Gary Zielinski,
* ESPN
* May 11 9:00 pm
* Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 90, Los Angeles Clippers 88 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–16, 17–22, 24–28, 24–22 |||
| Pts: Marc Gasol 23 Rebs: Zach Randolph 15 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 9 | Pts: Blake Griffin 15 Rebs: Reggie Evans 10 Asts: Chris Paul 7 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 19,060 Referees: Dan Crawford, Marc Davis, Jason Phillips,
* ABC
* May 13 1:00 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 82, Memphis Grizzlies 72 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–13, 23–25, 16–18, 27–16 |||
| Pts: Chris Paul 19 Rebs: Kenyon Martin 10 Asts: Chris Paul 4 | Pts: Gasol, Gay 19 each Rebs: Zach Randolph 12 Asts: Mike Conley Jr. 5 |
| LA Clippers win series, 4–3 |||
* FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 18,119 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bill Kennedy, Monty McCutchen,
The Clippers rallied to win Game 1 in one of the largest comebacks in playoff history. Trailing by as many as 27, and down 95–71 with 9:13 left, the Clippers held the Grizzlies to just one field goal the rest of the game and pulled off an improbable 99–98 victory before a stunned, sold-out crowd of 18,119 at FedExForum. In Game 2, the Grizzlies avenged their embarrassing Game 1 loss by winning a close Game 2 to even the series going to Los Angeles. In Game 3, the Clippers survived a late Grizzlies rally in the final minute as Rudy Gay's 3 missed at the buzzer to give the Clippers an 87–86 victory and a 2–1 series lead. Game 4 was close, with the game going to overtime. With Chris Paul's heroics, the Clippers managed to win Game 4 and take a commanding 3–1 series lead. Back at home for Game 5, the Grizzlies tried to stave off elimination, at one point taking a 24-point lead in the third before the Clippers cut the lead again. However, the Grizzlies made sure there would be no collapse, using a 7–1 run in the final 1:44 to win Game 5 92–80. Facing elimination on the road, the Grizzlies gathered themselves, storming back from an eight-point fourth-quarter deficit to win Game 6 90–88, to force a decisive Game 7. In Game 7, the Clipper bench outscored their Grizzlies counterparts, 41–11, and it was enough as the Clippers won on the road, becoming the 6th NBA road team to do so after leading series 3–1, to advance to the semifinals against the Spurs.

##### Regular-season series

L.A. Clippers won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
January 26, 2012
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 91, Los Angeles Clippers 98
Staples Center, Los Angeles
March 24, 2012
Recap
Memphis Grizzlies 85, Los Angeles Clippers 101
Staples Center, Los Angeles
April 9, 2012
Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 85, Memphis Grizzlies 94
FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Clippers and the Grizzlies.

## Conference semifinals
### Eastern Conference semifinals
#### (2) Miami Heat vs. (3) Indiana Pacers

* ABC
* May 13 3:30 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 86, Miami Heat 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–20, 25–22, 22–28, 16–25 |||
| Pts: Hibbert, West 17 each Rebs: David West 12 Asts: Darren Collison 6 | Pts: LeBron James 32 Rebs: LeBron James 15 Asts: LeBron James 5 |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,600 Referees: Scott Foster, Tom Washington, Sean Wright
* TNT
* May 15 7:00 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 78, Miami Heat 75 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–21, 16–17, 28–14, 17–23 |||
| Pts: David West 16 Rebs: George, Hibbert 11 each Asts: Danny Granger 3 | Pts: LeBron James 28 Rebs: LeBron James 9 Asts: LeBron James 5 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,828 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bennie Adams, Ed Malloy,
* ESPN
* May 17 7:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 75, Indiana Pacers 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–17, 17–26, 12–26, 20–25 |||
| Pts: Mario Chalmers 25 Rebs: Ronny Turiaf 8 Asts: Mario Chalmers 5 | Pts: George Hill 20 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 18 Asts: George Hill 5 |
| Indiana leads series, 2–1 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Dan Crawford, Tony Brothers, John Goble
* ABC
* May 20 3:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 101, Indiana Pacers 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–25, 28–29, 30–16, 25–23 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 40 Rebs: LeBron James 18 Asts: LeBron James 9 | Pts: Danny Granger 20 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 9 Asts: Paul George 5 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Mike Callahan, Bill Kennedy
* TNT
* May 22 8:00 pm
* Recap
Indiana Pacers 83, Miami Heat 115 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–26, 20–23, 17–27, 26–39 |||
| Pts: Paul George 11 Rebs: Roy Hibbert 12 Asts: Paul George 3 | Pts: LeBron James 30 Rebs: Mario Chalmers 11 Asts: LeBron James 8 |
| Miami leads series, 3–2 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,097 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Jason Phillips, Greg Willard,
* ESPN
* May 24 8:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 105, Indiana Pacers 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–28, 30–25, 28–16, 26–24 |||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 41 Rebs: Dwyane Wade 10 Asts: LeBron James 7 | Pts: David West 24 Rebs: Paul George 10 Asts: George Hill 5 |
| Miami wins series, 4–2 |||
* Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Attendance: 18,165 Referees: Scott Foster, Marc Davis, Ken Mauer,
Even though the Heat won the regular season series, 3–1, this playoff series was expected to be a close one. In Game 1, the Heat took a major blow when Chris Bosh got injured in the first half. He was expected to be out for the rest of the series. However, James and Wade took over in the second half to give the Heat the win, 95–86. In Game 2, the Heat started strong, at one point taking a 9-point lead. The Pacers answered that by outscoring the Heat 28–14 in the third quarter to take an 11-point lead going to the fourth quarter. The Heat would come back, taking a 72–71 lead with 4:11 to go. However, with James and Wade missing key chances, the Pacers tied the series with a 78–75 win. Game 3 marked one of the worst playoff games for Wade, as he scored just 5 points on 2-of-13 shooting. Without Wade's contribution, the Heat found themselves down in the series 2–1 as the Pacers blew out the Heat, 94–75. Before Game 4, the Heat regrouped and refocused on the series. The result was a 101–93 victory over the Pacers in Game 4 to tie the series at 2–2. James scored 40 in the game, to go along with 18 rebounds and 9 assists. Wade recovered from his Game 3 performance by scoring 30. In Game 5, it was the Pacers who took the major blow when Danny Granger got injured in the second quarter by stepping on James's foot. He tried to come back in the third quarter but he aggravated his injury after fouling James. Then, after the third period, West left the game with a knee injury. Without Granger and West, the Pacers were unable to stop the Heat, as the Heat won 115–83 to take a 3–2 series lead, putting them a win away from the Eastern Conference Finals. In Game 6, West and Granger started for the Pacers despite their injuries. The Pacers started strong, even taking a 19–8 lead in the first quarter. However, the third quarter was decisive, with the Heat outscoring the Pacers 28–16 to take a 79–69 lead going to the fourth quarter. Led by Wade's 41 and James's 28, the Heat won three straight, 105–93, to take the series, 4–2.

##### Regular-season series

Miami won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
January 4, 2012
Recap
Indiana Pacers 83, Miami Heat 118
American Airlines Arena, Miami
February 14, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 105, Indiana Pacers 90
Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
March 10, 2012
Recap
Indiana Pacers 91, Miami Heat 93
American Airlines Arena, Miami
March 26, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 90, Indiana Pacers 105
Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis :
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Pacers winning the first meeting.
Indiana leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
2004
Indiana Pacers 4, Miami Heat 2
2004 Eastern Conference Semifinals :

#### (4) Boston Celtics vs. (8) Philadelphia 76ers

* TNT
* May 12 8:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 91, Boston Celtics 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–18, 19–24, 24–25, 20–25 |||
| Pts: Andre Iguodala 19 Rebs: Evan Turner 10 Asts: Andre Iguodala 6 | Pts: Kevin Garnett 29 Rebs: Rajon Rondo 12 Asts: Rajon Rondo 17 |
| Boston leads series, 1–0 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Greg Willard, James Capers, David Jones,
* TNT
* May 14 7:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 82, Boston Celtics 81 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–25, 15–13, 21–11, 25–32 |||
| Pts: Jrue Holiday 18 Rebs: Spencer Hawes 10 Asts: Andre Iguodala 7 | Pts: Ray Allen 17 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 12 Asts: Rajon Rondo 13 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Dan Crawford, Jason Phillips, Michael Smith,
* TNT
* May 16 7:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 107, Philadelphia 76ers 91 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–33, 32–16, 29–17, 18–25 |||
| Pts: Kevin Garnett 27 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 13 Asts: Rajon Rondo 14 | Pts: Thaddeus Young 22 Rebs: Evan Turner 8 Asts: Jrue Holiday 9 |
| Boston leads series, 2–1 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,351 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Mike Callahan, Eric Lewis,
* ESPN
* May 18 8:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 83, Philadelphia 76ers 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–12, 22–19, 17–28, 20–33 |||
| Pts: Paul Pierce 24 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 11 Asts: Rajon Rondo 15 | Pts: Iguodala, Turner 16 each Rebs: Lavoy Allen 10 Asts: Louis Williams 8 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,411 Referees: Scott Foster, Bill Kennedy, Bill Spooner,
* TNT
* May 21 7:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 85, Boston Celtics 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–23, 23–24, 16–28, 19–26 |||
| Pts: Elton Brand 19 Rebs: Evan Turner 10 Asts: Jrue Holiday 7 | Pts: Brandon Bass 27 Rebs: Bass, Garnett 6 each Asts: Rajon Rondo 14 |
| Boston leads series, 3–2 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Ken Mauer, Ed Malloy, Rodney Mott,
* ESPN
* May 23 8:00 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 75, Philadelphia 76ers 82 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19–22, 17–11, 20–27, 19–22 |||
| Pts: Paul Pierce 24 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 11 Asts: Rajon Rondo 6 | Pts: Jrue Holiday 20 Rebs: Elton Brand 10 Asts: Holiday, Williams 6 each |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia Attendance: 20,403 Referees: Joe Crawford, James Capers, Ron Garretson,
* ABC
* May 26 8:00 pm
* Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 75, Boston Celtics 85 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–20, 13–21, 19–14, 23–30 |||
| Pts: Andre Iguodala 18 Rebs: Thaddeus Young 10 Asts: Jrue Holiday 9 | Pts: Garnett, Rondo 18 each Rebs: Kevin Garnett 13 Asts: Rajon Rondo 10 |
| Boston wins series, 4–3 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Tony Brothers, Mike Callahan,
The Sixers came off fresh of an upset over the injury-laden Bulls. Both the Celtics and the Sixers clinched their first round series on the same day. In Game 1, Rondo had another triple-double, but the Sixers held a 10-point lead with 10:53 left in the fourth quarter. However, the Celtics eventually came back, winning Game 1 by a point to take a 1–0 series lead. On the final possession, the Sixers were unable to foul a speedy Rondo, who dribbled out the clock. Game 2 saw the visitors lead for most of the game. With the Sixers leading 78–75 with 12 seconds to go, the Celtics squandered a chance to tie the game, as Garnett was called for an offensive foul. The Sixers then hit their final four free-throws to tie the series at 1 going back to Philadelphia. In Game 3, the Sixers held their last lead with 9:09 left in the second quarter as the Celtics took over the rest of the game to lead them to a 2–1 series advantage. In Game 4, the Celtics led by as much as 18 in the third quarter. Facing the prospect of trailing 1–3 in the series, the Sixers came back to take the game from the Celtics and tie the series going back to Boston. Game 5 saw Brandon Bass score 27 points, including 18 in the third quarter as the Celtics blew out the Sixers, 101–85, to push them a win away from the Eastern Conference Finals. Before the start of Game 6, Allen Iverson presented the game ball, prompting huge cheers from the crowd. It was enough to motivate the Sixers to defeat the Celtics 82–75 to force a Game 7. Jrue Holiday scored 20 points, including two free-throws with 31 seconds to go to put the game away. Game 7 was a tight contest, with the two teams going back-and-forth. Paul Pierce fouled out late in the fourth quarter, but Rondo had his second triple-double of the series, including a fourth quarter that helped the Celtics advance to the Conference Finals to face the Miami Heat.
This series is an important plot point in the 2019 film Uncut Gems, in which Garnett co-stars.

##### Regular-season series

Philadelphia won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
March 7, 2012
Recap
Boston Celtics 71, Philadelphia 76ers 103
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
March 23, 2012
Recap
Boston Celtics 86, Philadelphia 76ers 99
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
April 8, 2012
Recap
Philadelphia 76ers 79, Boston Celtics 103
TD Garden, Boston :
This was the 20th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning 11 of the first 19 meetings.
Boston leads 11–8 in all-time playoff series :
1953
Boston Celtics 2, Syracuse Nationals 0
1953 Eastern Division Semifinals
1954
Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1954 Eastern Division Round Robin Semifinals
1954
Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1954 Eastern Division Finals
1955
Boston Celtics 1, Syracuse Nationals 3
1955 Eastern Division Finals
1956
Boston Celtics 1, Syracuse Nationals 2
1956 Eastern Division Semifinals
1957
Boston Celtics 3, Syracuse Nationals 0
1957 Eastern Division Finals
1959
Boston Celtics 4, Syracuse Nationals 3
1959 Eastern Division Finals
1961
Boston Celtics 4, Syracuse Nationals 1
1961 Eastern Division Finals
1965
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 3
1965 Eastern Division Finals
1966
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1
1966 Eastern Division Finals
1967
Boston Celtics 1, Philadelphia 76ers 4
1967 Eastern Division Finals
1968
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 3
1968 Eastern Division Finals
1969
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1
1969 Eastern Division Semifinals
1977
Boston Celtics 3, Philadelphia 76ers 4
1977 Eastern Conference Semifinals
1980
Boston Celtics 1, Philadelphia 76ers 4
1980 Eastern Conference Finals
1981
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 3
1981 Eastern Conference Finals
1982
Boston Celtics 3, Philadelphia 76ers 4
1982 Eastern Conference Finals
1985
Boston Celtics 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1
1985 Eastern Conference Finals
2002
Boston Celtics 3, Philadelphia 76ers 2
2002 Eastern Conference First Round :

### Western Conference semifinals

This is the first playoffs that the city of Los Angeles has both teams participating in the Conference Semifinals. The last time the Lakers and Clippers were in the Conference Semifinals was 1974, when the Clippers franchise was the Buffalo Braves. Also, another team based out of Staples Center, the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings, participated in the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs. As a result of these 3 teams sharing one arena, Games 3 and 4 of the Thunder–Lakers and Spurs–Clippers series were played back-to-back on May 18–19 and 19–20 respectively, to avoid scheduling conflicts.

#### (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (5) Los Angeles Clippers

* TNT
* May 15 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 92, San Antonio Spurs 108 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–29, 20–28, 23–30, 20–21 |||
| Pts: Eric Bledsoe 23 Rebs: Griffin, Jordan 9 each Asts: Chris Paul 10 | Pts: Tim Duncan 26 Rebs: Boris Diaw 12 Asts: Tony Parker 11 |
| San Antonio leads series, 1–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Scott Foster, Derrick Collins, Ron Garretson,
* ESPN
* May 17 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 88, San Antonio Spurs 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–29, 21–17, 25–32, 21–27 |||
| Pts: Blake Griffin 20 Rebs: DeAndre Jordan 7 Asts: Chris Paul 5 | Pts: Tony Parker 22 Rebs: Parker, Duncan 5 each Asts: Parker, Ginóbili 5 each |
| San Antonio leads series, 2–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Ken Mauer, Ed Malloy, Leon Wood,
* ABC
* May 19 3:30 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 96, Los Angeles Clippers 86 :
| Scoring by quarter: 11–33, 32–20, 26–8, 27–25 |||
| Pts: Tony Parker 23 Rebs: Tim Duncan 13 Asts: Tony Parker 10 | Pts: Blake Griffin 28 Rebs: Blake Griffin 16 Asts: Chris Paul 11 |
| San Antonio leads series, 3–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 19,060 Referees: Derrick Stafford, Tony Brothers, Tom Washington,
* TNT
* May 20 10:30 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 102, Los Angeles Clippers 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–21, 25–26, 23–28, 28–24 |||
| Pts: Tim Duncan 21 Rebs: Tim Duncan 9 Asts: Tony Parker 5 | Pts: Chris Paul 23 Rebs: DeAndre Jordan 8 Asts: Chris Paul 11 |
| San Antonio wins series, 4–0 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 19,060 Referees: Joe Crawford, James Capers, Bill Spooner,
The Spurs won their last 14 games coming into this series. They were also well prepared because they were able to sweep their previous opponent, the Utah Jazz. Meanwhile, the Clippers were coming off a tough seven-game series against the Memphis Grizzlies and had to play Game 1 just 2 days after the Game 7 ended. Game 1 was close as the teams were tied coming into the 2nd quarter. However, the Spurs quickly took control in the 2nd and 3rd quarters as they defeated the Clippers, 108–92, and took a 1–0 series lead. Game 2 then saw a Spurs team taking control in the second half to defeat the Clippers and take a 2–0 lead. Going to Los Angeles for a back-to-back Games 3 and 4, the Clippers looked confident to defeat the Spurs, as they quickly took a 40–16 lead with 9:17 to go in the 2nd. However, the Spurs quickly cut the lead to 7 with 36.4 seconds before the half, with the half ending with a 10-point Clipper lead. Then, with the Clippers holding on to a 12-point lead with 9:39 to go in the 3rd, the Spurs unleashed a ferocious 24–0 run to take a 69–57 lead with 2 minutes to go in the 3rd. The Clippers never got closer than seven down the stretch as they watched the Spurs take a commanding 3–0 lead in the series. Game 4 was a close one, with the Clippers leading for much of the fourth quarter before the Spurs took the lead on a Duncan hook shot. Then, in the final moments of the game, Paul made several mistakes, a bad pass and an off-balanced jump shot that missed, that ultimately led to Clippers' demise. Following Parker's free-throw that extended the Spurs' lead to 3, the Clippers had one last chance. However, out of timeouts, the Clippers were forced to take a long inbound pass. Mo Williams managed to catch the ball but was unable to get a shot off as the Spurs completed the sweep of the Clippers. The Spurs became just the fourth team to go 8–0 through the first two rounds of the playoffs.

##### Regular-season series

San Antonio won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
December 28, 2011
Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 90, San Antonio Spurs 115
AT&T Center, San Antonio
February 18, 2012
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 103, Los Angeles Clippers 100
Staples Center, Los Angeles
March 9, 2012
Recap
Los Angeles Clippers 120, San Antonio Spurs 108
AT&T Center, San Antonio :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Clippers and the Spurs.

#### (2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers

* TNT
* May 14 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 90, Oklahoma City Thunder 119 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–30, 21–29, 24–39, 22–21 |||
| Pts: Bryant, Bynum 20 each Rebs: Andrew Bynum 14 Asts: Steve Blake 4 | Pts: Russell Westbrook 27 Rebs: Kevin Durant 8 Asts: Russell Westbrook 9 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 1–0 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Greg Willard, Tony Brothers, David Guthrie,
* TNT
* May 16 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 75, Oklahoma City Thunder 77 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–21, 23–27, 18–12, 12–17 |||
| Pts: Bryant, Bynum 20 each Rebs: Pau Gasol 11 Asts: Kobe Bryant 4 | Pts: Kevin Durant 22 Rebs: Kevin Durant 7 Asts: Kevin Durant 5 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 2–0 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Rodney Mott, Jason Phillips,
* ESPN
* May 18 10:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 96, Los Angeles Lakers 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 15–23, 32–27, 23–19, 26–30 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 31 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 11 Asts: Thabo Sefolosha 4 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 36 Rebs: Bynum, Gasol 11 each Asts: Bryant, Gasol 6 each |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 2–1 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Joe Crawford, Marc Davis, Zach Zarba,
* TNT
* May 19 10:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 103, Los Angeles Lakers 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–29, 22–27, 25–24, 32–20 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 37 Rebs: Kevin Durant 13 Asts: Russell Westbrook 5 | Pts: Kobe Bryant 38 Rebs: Andrew Bynum 9 Asts: Bryant, Sessions 5 each |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–1 |||
* Staples Center, Los Angeles Attendance: 18,997 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ron Garretson, Ken Mauer,
* TNT
* May 21 9:30 pm
* Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 90, Oklahoma City Thunder 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–26, 30–28, 26–29, 13–23 |||
| Pts: Kobe Bryant 42 Rebs: Pau Gasol 16 Asts: Metta World Peace 5 | Pts: Russell Westbrook 28 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 11 Asts: Durant, Harden, Westbrook 4 each |
| Oklahoma City wins series, 4–1 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Scott Foster, John Goble, Tom Washington,
Much like the Spurs-Clippers series, the series featured a team that swept their first round opponents and another team that were coming off a tough seven-game series. As such, the Thunder had the advantage in Game 1. The result was a convincing 29-point blowout by the Thunder to the Lakers. The Thunder quickly took control through the first three quarters and stretched their lead to as high as 35. Game 2 was much closer, with the Lakers shocking the Thunder by leading by 7 with 2 minutes to go that would seemingly tie the series at 1. However, the Lakers would fail to keep the lead, with the Thunder eventually going on a 9–0 run to take a 2–0 series lead. In Game 3, the Lakers collaborated on both ends to prevent the Thunder from taking a 3–0 lead putting them back into the series. Game 4 saw the Lakers start strong, taking a 10-point lead at halftime. They were able to have a 13-point lead in the fourth. However, Thunder outscored the Lakers 25–9 the rest of the way to take a 3–1 series lead, putting the Lakers into the brink of elimination. With the score tied at 98, Russell Westbrook committed a crucial turnover when he slipped and lost the ball. However, Pau Gasol's pass was taken by Durant, setting up Durant's 3-pointer that gave the Thunder the lead for good. The Lakers still had one last chance to tie but Kobe Bryant's three missed, with Harden hitting two free-throws to effectively seal the deal. In Game 5, Lakers were able to keep the game close throughout the first three quarters before the Thunder closed the series on a flurry, starting with two threes by Durant with Westbrook converting an and-one layup to shift the momentum in favor of Oklahoma City. The Lakers were not able to respond as they watched the Thunder take the series, 4–1, to send the Lakers back home for the second straight season in the Conference Semifinals.

##### Regular-season series

Oklahoma City won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
February 23, 2012
Recap
Los Angeles Lakers 85, Oklahoma City Thunder 100
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
March 29, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 102, Los Angeles Lakers 93
Staples Center, Los Angeles
April 22, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 106, Los Angeles Lakers 114
Staples Center, Los Angeles :
This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning six of the first eight meetings.
Los Angeles leads 6–2 in all-time playoff series :
1978
Los Angeles Lakers 1, Seattle SuperSonics 2
1978 Western Conference First Round
1979
Los Angeles Lakers 1, Seattle SuperSonics 4
1979 Western Conference Semifinals
1980
Los Angeles Lakers 4, Seattle SuperSonics 1
1980 Western Conference Finals
1987
Los Angeles Lakers 4, Seattle SuperSonics 0
1987 Western Conference Finals
1989
Los Angeles Lakers 4, Seattle SuperSonics 0
1989 Western Conference Semifinals
1995
Los Angeles Lakers 3, Seattle SuperSonics 1
1995 Western Conference First Round
1998
Los Angeles Lakers 4, Seattle SuperSonics 1
1998 Western Conference Semifinals
2010
Los Angeles Lakers 4, Oklahoma City Thunder 2
2010 Western Conference First Round :

## Conference finals
### Eastern Conference finals
#### (2) Miami Heat vs. (4) Boston Celtics

* ESPN
* May 28 8:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 79, Miami Heat 93 :
| Scoring by quarter: 11–21, 35–25, 15–26, 18–21 |||
| Pts: Kevin Garnett 23 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 7 | Pts: LeBron James 32 Rebs: LeBron James 13 Asts: Dwyane Wade 7 |
| Miami leads series, 1–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,912 Referees: Dan Crawford, Ed Malloy, Jason Phillips,
* ESPN
* May 30 8:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 111, Miami Heat 115 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–18, 29–28, 22–35, 24–18, Overtime: 12–16 |||
| Pts: Rajon Rondo 44 Rebs: Brandon Bass 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 10 | Pts: LeBron James 34 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 11 Asts: LeBron James 7 |
| Miami leads series, 2–0 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 19,973 Referees: Ken Mauer, James Capers, Tom Washington,
* ESPN
* June 1 8:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 91, Boston Celtics 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–30, 14–25, 21–30, 28–16 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 34 Rebs: LeBron James 8 Asts: Mario Chalmers 6 | Pts: Kevin Garnett 24 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 11 Asts: Rajon Rondo 10 |
| Miami leads series, 2–1 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Scott Foster, Mike Callahan, Rodney Mott
* ESPN
* June 3 8:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 91, Boston Celtics 93 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–34, 24–27, 21–12, 21–16, Overtime: 2–4 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 29 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 17 Asts: Dwyane Wade 6 | Pts: Paul Pierce 23 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 14 Asts: Rajon Rondo 15 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bill Kennedy, Greg Willard,
* ESPN
* June 5 8:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 94, Miami Heat 90 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–24, 24–18, 25–18, 29–30 |||
| Pts: Kevin Garnett 26 Rebs: Kevin Garnett 11 Asts: Rajon Rondo 13 | Pts: LeBron James 30 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 14 Asts: Chalmers, Wade 3 each |
| Boston leads series, 3–2 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,021 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Ron Garretson, Derrick Stafford,
* ESPN
* June 7 8:30 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 98, Boston Celtics 79 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–16, 29–26, 19–19, 24–18 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 45 Rebs: LeBron James 15 Asts: LeBron James 5 | Pts: Rajon Rondo 21 Rebs: Brandon Bass 7 Asts: Rajon Rondo 10 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* TD Garden, Boston Attendance: 18,624 Referees: Dan Crawford, Tony Brothers, Tom Washington
* ESPN
* June 9 8:30 pm
* Recap
Boston Celtics 88, Miami Heat 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–23, 26–23, 20–27, 15–28 |||
| Pts: Rajon Rondo 22 Rebs: Rajon Rondo 10 Asts: Rajon Rondo 14 | Pts: LeBron James 31 Rebs: LeBron James 12 Asts: Mario Chalmers 7 |
| Miami wins series 4–3 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,114 Referees: Joe Crawford, Mike Callahan, Scott Foster
This series marked the third straight year that the Heat and Celtics faced each other in the playoffs. They faced each other in the Eastern Conference First Round in 2010 (won by the Celtics, 4–1) and in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2011 (won by the Heat, 4–1). In addition, LeBron faced the Celtics for the third straight year in the playoffs. The LeBron-led Cavs also faced the Celtics in 2010 only to be defeated 4–2, which led to James' arrival on the Heat.
In Game 1, the Celtics started poorly, scoring only 11 points in the first quarter. The Heat had a 10-point lead after 1. The Celtics were hot in the second, scoring 35 points en route to tying the game at halftime. Behind a big second half, the Heat eventually defeated the Celtics 93–79 to take a 1–0 series lead. Game 2 was very different, with the Celtics starting very strong. Midway through the second quarter, a Rondo jumper extended their lead to 15. However, the Heat cut it to 7 at halftime. Miami had another big 3rd quarter. With the Celtics up 71–66 with 4:24 left in the third, a block by Wade on Allen ignited a 15–4 run by the Heat to end the quarter, as they took a 6-point lead heading into the fourth. The fourth quarter was close. With Miami leading 99–96 with 34 seconds left, Allen made a 3 to tie it. It eventually sent the game to OT, with James missing two chances to win the game. Miami eventually won 115–111 to take a 2–0 series lead. Rondo led the Celtics with a career-high 44 points, along with 8 rebounds and 10 assists. There was controversy in regards to the officiating as the Heat shot 18 more free throws, the Celtics committed 33 fouls to the Heat's 18, as well as a play in overtime in a tie game where Rondo was hit in the head by Wade and no foul was called, leading to a fast break dunk for Udonis Haslem. In Game 3, the Celtics got strong performances from Rondo, Garnett, and Pierce. LeBron was also hot in the first quarter, scoring 16 points and making 7 of his first 9 shots. However, despite this performance, the second and third quarters were decisive, with the Celtics outscoring the Heat a combined 55–35 in the two quarters as they had an 85–63 lead heading into the fourth. Miami made a comeback, hitting 3's and dunks to cut the lead to 8. However, Boston held on for a 101–91 victory to make it 2–1. Game 4 was the same story, with the Celtics hitting several 3's and putting on a lead as big as 18. Miami tried another comeback in the third and fourth quarters. Unlike Game 3, they took the lead. Boston answered back, holding a 3-point lead in the final minute before James hit a 3 to tie it with 36 seconds left. This led to the second overtime game of the series. It was a low-scoring affair in OT, with both teams only making one field goal. With 4:22 left, Pierce fouled out, giving Miami a big chance. However, James fouled out with 1:51 left. The Celtics still held a 2-point lead in the dying seconds, but Wade missed a potential game-winning 3 at the buzzer, giving the Celtics a 93–91 win to tie the series going back to Miami. Celtics proceeded to lead the series, 3–2, with a 94–90 win in Game 5. In the game, Bosh returned for the first time since he got injured in Game 1 of the Heat-Pacers series but was not much of a help on the offensive end. He came off the bench in the game and scored 9 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in 14 minutes played. With the Celtics leading by 1 with less than a minute to go, Pierce knocked down a crucial three-pointer that gave the Celtics the lead for good. The Heat prevented a celebration from happening in Game 6 with a 98–79 blowout win at Boston to send the series back to Miami for a seventh and deciding game. James had one of his best playoff games, scoring 45 points and getting 15 rebounds, 30 of his 45 came in the first half alone. In Game 7, the Celtics started strong. In the second quarter, Garnett picked up his third foul, giving the Heat a chance to try and take a lead. However, Bass led a run that pushed the Celtics' lead to 11. The Celtics would still have a 7-point lead at halftime. The third quarter was decisive once again, letting the Heat tie the game going to the fourth quarter, which was even more decisive. With the Celtics leading by 1 with 8 minutes left, James had a dunk that gave the Heat the lead. It was soon followed by Bosh's third three-pointer of the night (a career-high three 3 pointers) that gave the Heat the lead for good. The Celtics never recovered as the Heat booked a return trip to the Finals with a 101–88 Game 7 win in Miami.

##### Regular-season series

Boston won 3–1 in the regular-season series :
December 27, 2011
Recap
Boston Celtics 107, Miami Heat 115
American Airlines Arena, Miami
April 1, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 72, Boston Celtics 91
TD Garden, Boston
April 10, 2012
Recap
Boston Celtics 115, Miami Heat 107
American Airlines Arena, Miami
April 24, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 66, Boston Celtics 78
TD Garden, Boston :
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series apiece.
Tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series :
2010
Boston Celtics 4, Miami Heat 1
2010 Eastern Conference First Round
2011
Boston Celtics 1, Miami Heat 4
2011 Eastern Conference Semifinals :

### Western Conference finals
#### (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (2) Oklahoma City Thunder

* TNT
* May 27 8:30 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 98, San Antonio Spurs 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–24, 29–22, 24–16, 27–39 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 27 Rebs: Kevin Durant 10 Asts: Russell Westbrook 5 | Pts: Manu Ginóbili 26 Rebs: Tim Duncan 11 Asts: Tony Parker 6 |
| San Antonio leads series, 1–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Joe Crawford, Marc Davis, Greg Willard,
* TNT
* May 29 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 111, San Antonio Spurs 120 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 22–27, 32–37, 35–28 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 31 Rebs: Serge Ibaka 10 Asts: Russell Westbrook 8 | Pts: Tony Parker 34 Rebs: Tim Duncan 12 Asts: Tony Parker 8 |
| San Antonio leads series, 2–0 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Tony Brothers, Ron Garretson,
* TNT
* May 31 9:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 82, Oklahoma City Thunder 102 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–22, 17–32, 19–24, 22–24 |||
| Pts: Parker, Jackson 16 each Rebs: Ginóbili, Leonard, Blair 6 each Asts: Gary Neal 5 | Pts: Kevin Durant 22 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 8 Asts: Russell Westbrook 9 |
| San Antonio leads series, 2–1 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Dan Crawford, Derrick Stafford, Bill Spooner
* TNT
* June 2 8:30 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 103, Oklahoma City Thunder 109 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–26, 17–29, 28–20, 32–34 |||
| Pts: Tim Duncan 21 Rebs: Kawhi Leonard 9 Asts: Parker, Ginóbili 4 each | Pts: Kevin Durant 36 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 9 Asts: Kevin Durant 8 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Ken Mauer, James Capers, Ed Malloy,
* TNT
* June 4 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 108, San Antonio Spurs 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–21, 26–23, 29–28, 27–31 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 27 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 10 Asts: Russell Westbrook 12 | Pts: Manu Ginóbili 34 Rebs: Tim Duncan 12 Asts: Manu Ginóbili 7 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 3–2 |||
* AT&T Center, San Antonio Attendance: 18,581 Referees: Scott Foster, Mike Callahan, Tom Washington,
* TNT
* June 6 9:00 pm
* Recap
San Antonio Spurs 99, Oklahoma City Thunder 107 :
| Scoring by quarter: 34–20, 29–28, 18–32, 18–27 |||
| Pts: Tony Parker 29 Rebs: Tim Duncan 14 Asts: Tony Parker 12 | Pts: Kevin Durant 34 Rebs: Kevin Durant 14 Asts: Durant, Westbrook 5 each |
| Oklahoma City wins series, 4–2 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Joe Crawford, Bill Kennedy, Rodney Mott,
This series would mark only the second time in the last seven years that the top two seeds from the Western Conference faced each other in the Conference Finals. Game 1 would be close, with the Thunder taking a 9-point lead going to the fourth, looking poised to give the Spurs their first loss of the postseason. However, the Spurs took control on both ends in the fourth quarter to stay perfect in the playoffs. In Game 2, the Spurs started strong, at one point in the third quarter taking a 22-point lead. The Thunder would try to climb back in the fourth quarter, eventually cutting the lead to 6 in the fourth quarter. However, the Spurs would answer every run, en route to a 120–111 win over the Thunder and a 2–0 series lead. Manu Ginobili sealed the deal by hitting a three-pointer that extended the Spurs' lead to 10 with about a minute and a half to go. With the win, the Spurs extended their 2012 playoff record to 10–0. This win also marked the Spurs' 20th consecutive win, tied for the 3rd longest winning streak in NBA history. It is also the longest winning streak that was carried from the regular season and into the playoffs. In Game 3, the Spurs were no match for the Thunder. Behind their thunder blue home crowd, the Thunder blew out the Spurs, 102–82, to give them their first 2012 postseason loss. Game 4 was much closer. In the fourth quarter, Kevin Durant scored half of his 36 points as the Thunder tied the series with a 109–103 win over the Spurs. In Game 5, the Thunder started strong, at one point in the second quarter taking a 13-point lead. The Spurs would still come back in the second half. Fueled by two threes from Ginobili, the Spurs took the lead back. However, the Thunder eventually outscored the Spurs 25–12 for the rest of the quarter to take a 9-point lead heading to the fourth quarter. After a Harden 4-point play that gave the Thunder another 13-point lead, things began to unravel as the Spurs staged an 11–0 run through the next 4 minutes to bring them back into the game. Then, with the Thunder holding on for a 103–101 lead with 28 seconds left, Harden came up big by hitting a crucial three-pointer to give the Thunder a 5-point lead. The Spurs would not give up. Following a Ginobili layup shot that cut the lead to 3, a fullcourt press by the Spurs forced a Thunder turnover, giving them a chance to tie the game. However, Ginobili missed a three-pointer that sealed a 3–2 lead for the Thunder. In Game 6, the Spurs dominated early, outscoring the Thunder by 14 in the first quarter and holding a 15-point lead at halftime. Their largest lead of the game was 18. However the Thunder rallied in the 3rd quarter, outscoring the Spurs 32–18. With a few clutch shots by Derek Fisher and James Harden, the Thunder booked a trip to the Finals with a 107–99 comeback win over the Spurs. With the win, the Thunder advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time since moving from Seattle in 2008 and the franchise's first appearance in the NBA Finals since 1996, when the franchise was known as the Seattle SuperSonics.

##### Regular-season series

San Antonio won 2–1 in the regular-season series :
January 8, 2012
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 96, Oklahoma City Thunder 108
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
February 4, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 96, San Antonio Spurs 107
AT&T Center, San Antonio
March 16, 2012
Recap
San Antonio Spurs 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 105
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma :
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Spurs winning the first three meetings. All previous meetings took place while the Thunder franchise were still known as the Seattle SuperSonics.
San Antonio leads 3–0 in all-time playoff series :
1982
San Antonio Spurs 4, Seattle SuperSonics 1
1982 Western Conference Semifinals
2002
San Antonio Spurs 3, Seattle SuperSonics 2
2002 Western Conference First Round
2005
San Antonio Spurs 4, Seattle SuperSonics 2
2005 Western Conference Semifinals :

## NBA Finals: (W2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (E2) Miami Heat

* ABC
* June 12 9:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 94, Oklahoma City Thunder 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–22, 25–25, 19–27, 21–31 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 30 Rebs: Udonis Haslem 11 Asts: Dwyane Wade 8 | Pts: Kevin Durant 36 Rebs: Nick Collison 10 Asts: Russell Westbrook 11 |
| Oklahoma City leads series, 1–0 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Derrick Stafford, Ed Malloy
* ABC
* June 14 9:00 pm
* Recap
Miami Heat 100, Oklahoma City Thunder 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–15, 28–28, 23–24, 22–29 |||
| Pts: LeBron James 32 Rebs: Chris Bosh 15 Asts: Wade, James 5 each | Pts: Kevin Durant 32 Rebs: Perkins, Westbrook 8 each Asts: Russell Westbrook 7 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Attendance: 18,203 Referees: Dan Crawford, Tony Brothers, Tom Washington
* ABC
* June 17 8:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 85, Miami Heat 91 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–26, 26–21, 21–22, 18–22 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 25 Rebs: Kendrick Perkins 12 Asts: James Harden 6 | Pts: LeBron James 29 Rebs: LeBron James 14 Asts: Dwyane Wade 7 |
| Miami leads series, 2–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Joe Crawford, James Capers, Ken Mauer
* ABC
* June 19 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 98, Miami Heat 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 33–19, 16–27, 26–33, 23–25 |||
| Pts: Russell Westbrook 43 Rebs: James Harden 10 Asts: Russell Westbrook 5 | Pts: LeBron James 26 Rebs: James, Bosh 9 each Asts: LeBron James 12 |
| Miami leads series, 3–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Scott Foster, Mike Callahan, Bill Kennedy
* ABC
* June 21 9:00 pm
* Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 106, Miami Heat 121 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–31, 23–28, 22–36, 35–26 |||
| Pts: Kevin Durant 32 Rebs: Kevin Durant 11 Asts: Russell Westbrook 6 | Pts: LeBron James 26 Rebs: LeBron James 11 Asts: LeBron James 13 |
| Miami wins series, 4–1 |||
* American Airlines Arena, Miami Attendance: 20,003 Referees: Dan Crawford, Monty McCutchen, Derrick Stafford

### Regular-season series

Tied 1–1 in the regular-season series :
March 25, 2012
Recap
Miami Heat 87, Oklahoma City Thunder 103
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
April 4, 2012
Recap
Oklahoma City Thunder 93, Miami Heat 98
American Airlines Arena, Miami :
This was the first playoff meeting between the Heat and the Thunder.

## Statistic leaders

| Category | High | High | High | Average | Average | Average | Average |
| Category | Player | Team | Total | Player | Team | Avg. | Games played |
| Points | LeBron James | Miami Heat | 45 | LeBron James | Miami Heat | 30.3 | 23 |
| Rebounds | Paul Millsap | Utah Jazz | 19 | Josh Smith | Atlanta Hawks | 13.6 | 5 |
| Assists | Rajon Rondo | Boston Celtics | 17 | Rajon Rondo | Boston Celtics | 11.9 | 19 |
| Steals | Jason Kidd | Dallas Mavericks | 7 | Jason Kidd | Dallas Mavericks | 3.0 | 4 |
| Blocks | Andrew Bynum | Los Angeles Lakers | 10* | JaVale McGee | Denver Nuggets | 3.1 | 7 |
* Tied NBA Playoffs Record