San Antonio Spurs forward/center Victor Wembanyama helps guard Dylan Harper after a play during the first half in Game 4 of a first-round NBA basketball playoffs series against the Portland Trail Blazers, in Portland, Ore., Sunday, April 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

DENVER — The Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets have developed an intense rivalry, meeting in the NBA playoffs three times in the last four years.

The Nuggets bounced the Wolves 4-1 in 2023 on their way to the franchise’s first NBA championship but Minnesota won the rematch a year later, capped by a 20-point second-half comeback in Game 7 in Denver.

This year the Nuggets rolled into the playoffs on a 12-game winning streak and handled the Timberwolves in the opener of their Western Conference playoff series only to blow a 19-point lead in Game 2 before getting throttled twice in Minneapolis.

Even with their starting backcourt of Donte DiVincenzo (Achilles) and Anthony Edwards (knee) getting hurt Saturday night, the Wolves raced past the Nuggets 112-96 behind Ayo Dosunmu’s career-best 43 points, the most by a reserve in a playoff game in half a century.

Game 5 is in Denver and another flop could send the Nuggets into a stunning early exit and an offseason of change after an injury-marred first full season under coach David Adelman, who has had no answers for the Nuggets’ sudden struggles.

The Minnesota-Denver game is the nightcap of a three-game slate tonight, one that also could see the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder get their third consecutive first-round sweep. The Thunder lead Phoenix 3-0, with Game 4 on the Suns’ home floor.

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning MVP, was a maestro in Game 3, scoring 42 points on 15-for-18 shooting.

“He doesn’t need a ton of direction from me,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said of Gilgeous-Alexander. “But I thought he was obviously outstanding. The efficiency was ridiculous. For him to score like that, on 15 of 18, is a really impressive game.”

And leading off the night is Game 4 in Orlando, where the eighth-seeded Magic will aim to take a 3-1 lead over the top-seeded Detroit Pistons in their Eastern Conference quarterfinal matchup.

“Being up 2-1 at home is a good thing, but again, you got to come out and do it again,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said after Saturday’s Game 3 win. “And that’s why I’ll keep saying it’s the one game. … We’ve got to learn from this game and what we could do better.”

Sunday’s games:

– Joel Embiid’s surprise return after an appendectomy didn’t help the 76ers against Boston. Embiid scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in 34 minutes, but the Celtics won 128-96 on Sunday night, taking a 3-1 lead.

– After San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama returned from a concussion to play in Game 4 of the team’s first round series against the Portland Trail Blazers, he said he was disappointed with how the process was handled. He went on to score 27 points with 11 rebounds and seven blocks in a 114-93 San Antonio win.

n Scottie Barnes hit the go-ahead free throws in the final minute and finished with 23 points, Brandon Ingram also scored 23 and the Toronto Raptors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 93-89, tying the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at two games apiece.