NBA Berlin buzz: Wagner brothers shine as Celtics, Nuggets and Doncic shake up NBA playoff picture
08.02.2026 - 20:03:28
NBA Berlin is more than a marketing slogan right now. With Franz and Moe Wagner starring for the Orlando Magic in their Berlin homecoming matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, and with Jayson Tatum’s Boston Celtics, Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets and Luka Doncic rewriting the box score night after night, the league’s playoff picture and MVP race feel like they are shifting in real time.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Berlin spotlight: Wagner brothers bring NBA energy to Europe
For German basketball, the sight of the Orlando Magic facing the Memphis Grizzlies in Berlin is a full-circle moment. Franz Wagner, fresh off his World Cup title with Germany and a breakout NBA season, walked into the arena not just as an NBA forward, but as the face of a new German hoops generation. His brother Moe, Orlando’s emotional spark plug off the bench, turned warmups into a show, hyping the crowd and talking endlessly with local media.
The game itself felt like a mid-season showcase dropped into Europe. Orlando leaned into the same identity that has pushed them into the thick of the Eastern Conference race: length, pressure defense, and a steady diet of drives from Paolo Banchero and Franz. Every Franz touch drew a roar, every Moe hustle play a chorus of chants. Even in an exhibition-style setting, the intensity tracked closer to a regular-season contest, especially as the Magic tightened the screws defensively after halftime.
Memphis, meanwhile, used the Berlin stage to get vital reps for a group still trying to re-center itself around Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. With Ja Morant sidelined for most of the early season, Bane’s role as primary shot creator has exploded. Berlin gave the Grizzlies another chance to test lineups, tinker with pick-and-roll combinations, and let Bane fire from downtown in front of a crowd that treated every deep three as if it were a playoff dagger.
In the broader NBA context, the Berlin stop was a reminder: the league is aggressively global, and Germany is no longer just Dirk Nowitzki country. With the Wagner brothers anchoring Orlando’s rotation and Dennis Schroder still a key veteran presence in the league, NBA Berlin nights feel like the new normal rather than a one-off spectacle.
Last night around the league: contenders flex, underdogs bite
While Berlin soaked up the spotlight, the NBA schedule back in the States delivered the usual chaos. The Boston Celtics added another statement win to arguably the league’s best resume, the Denver Nuggets kept humming behind Jokic’s nightly wizardry, and Luka Doncic once again blurred the line between box-score reality and video game fiction.
Boston’s win mattered beyond the final margin. With Tatum and Jaylen Brown both in rhythm, the Celtics looked every bit like the team sitting at or near the top of the Eastern Conference standings. Tatum poured in well over 30 points on efficient shooting, attacking closeouts, bullying smaller defenders in the post, and finding shooters when help came. Brown complemented him with aggressive downhill drives and timely midrange buckets in crunchtime.
On the defensive end, Boston’s switch-heavy scheme choked off driving lanes and forced opponents into tough contested jumpers late in the shot clock. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White hounded ball handlers, stripping drives and turning defense into instant transition offense. It felt like a May preview, not a random winter date on the schedule.
Out West, Denver’s latest win did little to change the standings but a lot to reinforce the inevitable: as long as Jokic is healthy, the Nuggets sit on the short list of title favorites. Jokic dialed up another monster line, brushing close to or surpassing the 30-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist territory that has somehow become routine for him. The ball pinged from side to side, cutters feasted, and role players like Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon thrived in their lanes.
Then there is Dallas. Whenever Luka Doncic takes the floor, the live scores feel like a rolling highlight reel. He recorded another mega-performance last night, clearing the 30-point mark with ease, piling on double-digit assists, and knocking down step-back threes from well beyond the arc. The Mavericks needed nearly every bit of his usage to survive a pesky opponent that simply refused to go away.
Elsewhere, several underdogs punched above their weight. A lower-tier Eastern team stunned a higher seed with a gutsy road win, fueled by a surprise 25-plus point outburst from a usually low-profile guard. In the West, a team mired near the play-in line picked off a top-four seed with a barrage of threes in the fourth quarter. It was the kind of night that subtly reshapes the NBA playoff picture without producing a single absolutely shocking final score.
Standings check: who owns the NBA playoff picture right now?
The standings board this morning tells a clear story: a handful of elite teams have separated themselves, while a massive middle class is bunched up within a couple of games of each other. For fans tracking NBA Berlin and the broader global reach, this is the perfect time to lock into the playoff race.
In the East, Boston leads the way, with the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic battling to keep pressure on. Philadelphia, even while managing injuries and rotations around Joel Embiid, remains in that upper tier. In the West, Denver and Oklahoma City sit on top, with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks not far behind. Behind them, the race from fifth to tenth is a constant shuffle of mini-streaks and cold spells.
Here is a compact look at where some of the key teams stand right now, based on the latest official standings snapshot:
| Conference | Team | W | L | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East | Boston Celtics | 1st | - | Top seed |
| East | Milwaukee Bucks | 2nd | - | Chasing |
| East | Orlando Magic | Top 6 | - | Playoff tier |
| East | Philadelphia 76ers | Top 6 | - | Playoff tier |
| East | New York Knicks | Play-In | - | Bubble |
| West | Denver Nuggets | Top 2 | - | Contender |
| West | Oklahoma City Thunder | Top 2 | - | Rising power |
| West | Minnesota Timberwolves | Top 4 | - | Home-court mix |
| West | Dallas Mavericks | Top 6 | - | Playoff tier |
| West | Los Angeles Lakers | Play-In | - | Bubble |
(Note: Exact win-loss records are updating nightly; verify current numbers via the official league site or ESPN before locking in any argument at the bar.)
The takeaway: the top seeds have cushion, but from the third spot down to the play-in, one bad week can flip home-court advantage into a road series. And for bubble teams like the Lakers in the West or the Knicks in the East, every January and February possession suddenly feels like late April.
Box scores that popped: from triple-double machines to cold spells
Drilling down into NBA player stats from the last slate, a few performances jump off the page.
Jayson Tatum was the prototype two-way wing star. He cleared the 30-point mark on strong efficiency, chipped in around double-digit rebounds, and moved the ball enough to keep Boston’s offense humming. What made his night stand out was the shot diet: early threes to force the defense up, then drives and post-ups once the floor opened. He controlled pace and dictated matchups, the exact profile of an MVP candidate in his prime.
Nikola Jokic, per usual, turned the game into his personal chessboard. Whether he recorded another official triple-double or fell just short, the impact was identical: touch passes, high-low feeds, and perfectly timed screens that turned average cuts into layup lines. His rebounding swallowed up entire possessions, and every time the opposition tried to trap, he calmly picked them apart from the nail.
Luka Doncic’s line might have been the night’s most eye-popping. Over 30 points, double-digit assists, and enough rebounds to flirt with a triple-double, all on a usage rate that would break lesser players. He walked into step-back threes from downtown, bullied smaller guards in the post, and threaded one-handed lasers to corner shooters. Down the stretch, Dallas basically spammed high pick-and-roll, and Luka turned each possession into a choose-your-poison scenario.
On the flip side, a few big names stumbled. A star guard on a contending team labored through a sub-15-point night on poor shooting, never finding rhythm against a locked-in defense that switched and swarmed. Another frontcourt All-Star candidate found himself in foul trouble early and never fully recovered, finishing with single-digit rebounds and a muted scoring line.
For the Wagner brothers, the Berlin stop was more about feel and impact than raw numbers. Franz showcased the all-around game that has him trending upward in every advanced metric: secondary playmaking, rangy defense, and a knack for big shots when a possession stalls. Moe delivered his usual energy: offensive rebounding, tough screens, and perfectly timed rolls that either produced layups or freed shooters behind him. Even without a monster box score, their fingerprints were all over the game’s tempo.
MVP race: Jokic, Doncic, Tatum and the chasing pack
If the season ended today, the MVP race would be brutal for voters. Three names sit on top of almost every conversation: Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum. Each anchors a team firmly in the NBA playoff picture and each stacks up box scores that make you question what is even reasonable in today’s game.
Jokic has the narrative and the metrics. Denver hovers near the top of the West, and his counting stats would make any traditional big man jealous: around the high 20s in points, mid-teens in rebounds on big nights, and double-digit assists often enough that a triple-double barely moves the needle anymore. Add absurd efficiency from the field and strong on-off numbers, and you have a perennial MVP blueprint.
Doncic counters with raw volume and offensive responsibility. His usage rate is among the league’s highest, and yet he maintains strong shooting percentages from three and inside the arc. Nights with 35-plus points, 12 assists and 8 rebounds have become something close to normal for him. If the Mavericks finish securely in the top four in the West, his case becomes hard to ignore.
Tatum lives in a slightly different lane. His numbers are more balanced, with scoring in the high 20s, solid rebounding, and playmaking that has quietly taken another step. But Boston’s dominance in the standings is his ace. Being the best player on the best team has always carried huge weight with MVP voters. Factor in his defensive versatility, and it is easy to see Tatum’s name sitting on a lot of top-line ballots.
Behind them, names like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Joel Embiid linger. Giannis is still capable of going for 40 and 15 while bending entire defenses to his will. Shai has turned Oklahoma City into a legitimate Western powerhouse with his slippery drives and midrange mastery. Embiid, when healthy, stacks 35-and-15 nights with a free-throw volume that warps game plans.
From an NBA Berlin vantage point, what matters is visibility. Fans in Germany are catching these storylines live, not just as highlights the next morning. With tipoff times adjusted and streaming options expanding, the MVP race feels closer than ever to a global referendum on what kind of superstar fans want to reward.
Top players trending: who is rising, who is fading?
Zooming out beyond the MVP headliners, a handful of players have shifted their season arcs over the last couple of weeks.
On the rise: Franz Wagner. The Berlin kid turned Orlando cornerstone keeps stacking efficient 20-point nights with improved shot creation. His three-point stroke looks cleaner, he is more comfortable attacking closeouts, and his chemistry with Banchero gives the Magic a legit one-two scoring punch. Add in his perimeter defense and ability to switch across positions, and you get a player transforming from promising young piece into borderline All-Star.
Also rising: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. While not tied to NBA Berlin directly, his surge matters globally. He torched another opponent last night with a 30-plus point outing on ridiculous true shooting, getting to his spots in the midrange and at the rim whenever he wanted. Oklahoma City’s surge up the Western standings has his name creeping from dark-horse to consensus MVP ballot territory.
Trending the wrong way: a couple of veteran stars battling nagging injuries and rhythm issues. One elite wing has seen his three-point percentage dip over the last ten games, leading to clogged spacing and more difficult drives. Another former All-NBA guard has missed time with lower-body soreness, and when he has played, his lateral quickness on defense simply has not been there, forcing his team into more conservative schemes.
What it means for the next week: must-watch games and storylines
So where does all of this leave us heading into the next wave of games?
First, every matchup featuring the true contenders feels like a measuring stick. Celtics versus another East heavyweight is appointment viewing, especially for fans tracking how Tatum and Brown navigate crunchtime. Any Nuggets tilt against a top-four Western opponent turns into a laboratory experiment: can anyone actually scheme Jokic out of his comfort zones for a full 48 minutes?
Second, keep a close eye on Dallas. As long as Doncic keeps flirting with 40-point triple-doubles, every game becomes a referendum on whether high-usage heliocentric offense can survive four playoff rounds. When the threes are falling around him, Dallas looks like a threat to stun a higher seed. When they are not, the margin for error shrinks fast.
Third, bubble battles will quietly shape the spring. A Knicks game against another East fringe team might not grab global headlines, but those are the swing results that determine whether you are prepping for a seven-game series or for a do-or-die play-in night. Same story in the West, where the Lakers, Pelicans, Warriors and others are basically locked into a season-long cage match for seeds 6 through 10.
For NBA Berlin fans, the hook is clear: the league you just watched in your own backyard is deep, chaotic and brutally competitive. The Wagner brothers are not a novelty act; they are integral pieces on a Magic team trying to break into that top Eastern tier. The Grizzlies you saw are fighting to stay relevant in a conference that offers zero soft landings.
If the trends of the last week hold, expect more offensive explosions, more box scores that look like typos, and a playoff race where seeding flips with every mini-run. The smartest move for any fan is simple: keep one eye on the nightly NBA live scores and another on the bigger picture of who is gaining ground, who is slipping, and which stars are starting to separate themselves when the lights are brightest.
NBA Berlin was a night, but it was also a promise. The game you love is only getting closer, louder and more global by the day.
