A Monday night tripleheader of NBA playoff games on NBC and Peacock wraps up with the Denver Nuggets trying to stave off elimination by the injury-depleted Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of their first-round series.
The odds are stacked against Denver: Teams that lead 3-1 in a best-of-seven series have 95.6% of advancing to the next round (285-13). But the last two rallies from a 3-1 deficit were managed by the Nuggets in the 2020 playoffs — over Utah in the first round and the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference Semifinals.
The Timberwolves have won Game 5 in the previous three playoff series that they took a 3-1 lead. But Minnesota will be without the starting backcourt of Donte DiVincenzo and Anthony Edwards after both guards were injured during the 112-96 victory in Game 4.
The end of the game also featured a bench-clearing altercation between Denver center Nikola Jokic and Minnesota forward Jaden McDaniels. The NBA fined Jokic and Julius Randle for their actions.
See below for additional information on the Timberwolves-Nuggets game and how to watch the 2026 NBA Playoffs on NBC and Peacock.
Announcing team: Noah Eagle (play by play), Grant Hill (analyst), Ashley ShahAhmadi (courtside reporter)
Detroit Pistons vs. Orlando Magic, 8 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Phoenix Suns, 9:30 p.m. ET, Peacock, NBCSN
Dosunmu scores 43 points as Timberwolves overcome injuries to beat Nuggets 112-96 for 3-1 lead
Ayo Dosunmu scored a career-high 43 points, stepping up after leg injuries to Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo.
In the absence of DiVincenzo (ruptured right Achilles suffered less than 2 minutes into the first quarter) and Edwards (bone bruise and hyperxtended left knee), guard Ayo Dosunmu came off the bench to score a career-high 43 points in Game 4.
"With the magnitude of the playoffs, this ranks No. 1," Dosunmu said. "I’m living in the moment, and this sounds clichéd, but I won’t take this for granted."
Minnesota likely will need more solid performances from Dosunmu to close out Denver and to go deep in the playoffs. DiVincenzo (who had been one of four players to start all 82 regular-season games) underwent season-ending surgery Sunday, and Edwards will be out for multiple weeks.
"Losing those two guys was really tough," Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said. "Tough emotionally for the guys. We regrouped well. I thought the key was just hanging in there until we get to halftime and kind of reset things. We really had a team effort, everybody chipped in."
The Nuggets will need improvement from Jokic, who is having the least efficient series of his playoff career (which covers 98 games). The three-time MVP who is a finalist again this season, is shooting 39.1% from the field and 18.5% on 3-pointers. He made only 7 of 26 field goals in Game 3, his career-low (26.9%) for a playoff game (he'd never made fewer than 47% from the field or 22% on 3-pointers).
Jokic has struggled with 3-point shooting since returning from a 16-game absence in January for a left knee injury.
“It’s a little bit of everything," Jokic said after Game 4. "I’m not shooting the ball really well, especially from the 3. (Minnesota center) Rudy (Goebert) is doing a good job with being physical, testing the officials, contesting shots. He’s a really good defender. And not just him, they play very good … they’re big, long, tall, handsy, trippy, they’re bumping you.”
Denver’s offense has plummeted over three consecutive losses, averaging 102 points per game (27 below the average in winning the 13 previous games in a row).
“It’s honest conversations," Denver head coach David Adleman said about the team's response to the slump. "Because that’s all you got. There’s a million narratives out there, people write stories, there’s social media, there’s all the crap. But it’s about us in the room, bottom line.’’
NBC Sports will present up to 23 games in the First Round and 11 games in the Conference Semifinals across either NBC and Peacock, or Peacock and NBCSN. Playoff programming concludes with exclusive coverage of the Western Conference Finals on NBC and Peacock.