NBA Berlin buzz: Wagner brothers shine as Celtics, Nuggets & Doncic shake up NBA Playoff Picture
07.02.2026 - 12:21:33
The NBA Berlin crowd got exactly what it came for: star power, grit, and a taste of how wild this season is about to get. With Franz and Moritz Wagner in the spotlight and heavyweight nights from Jayson Tatum, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic, the last 24 hours did more than fill the highlight reels – they twisted the NBA Playoff Picture just a little tighter.
[Check live stats & scores here]
While fans in Germany packed in to see the Orlando Magic and Memphis Grizzlies bring real NBA intensity to Berlin, the domestic schedule delivered a full slate of twists: top seeds flexed, bubble teams scrambled, and some MVP Race candidates reminded everyone why their names sit at the top of every NBA Player Stats page right now.
Wagner brothers, Magic and Grizzlies bring the NBA to Berlin
Anytime the NBA touches down in Europe, it feels bigger than a preseason showcase. In Berlin, with Franz and Moritz Wagner back on home soil in Magic colors and the Memphis Grizzlies across from them, the atmosphere had that playoff-style hum – a little nervous energy, a lot of noise, and every made three from downtown landing like a statement.
Franz Wagner, fresh off a breakout run last season, played exactly the way Orlando wants him to play when the real games start: downhill, fearless, and always hunting mismatches. Moritz Wagner brought his usual edge off the bench – setting bruising screens, crashing the glass, and talking just enough to let everyone know he is there. Even in an exhibition setting, this looked like a young Magic group comfortable in its own skin.
Memphis, even without Ja Morant in full regular-season mode, still flashed that trademark Grizzlies swagger: relentless defense, gang rebounding, and shooters ready to step into transition threes. Berlin fans got a slice of what makes this league global – a live audition for new fans who will be refreshing NBA Live Scores the second they get home.
In the bigger picture, Orlando is one of those sneaky Eastern Conference climbers. With Paolo Banchero orchestrating and the Wagner brothers giving them size, playmaking and scoring versatility on the wings, the Magic feel like a team that could punch straight into the middle of the conference standings and stay there. Nights like Berlin are part brand-building, part chemistry test – and on both fronts, they checked important boxes.
Overnight results: contenders flex, bubble teams sweat
Back on U.S. soil, the last slate of games tightened the race everywhere you look. Based on the latest box scores and standings from NBA.com and ESPN, several results jumped off the page – not just for the scorelines, but for what they mean.
The Boston Celtics did what a true contender is supposed to do on a random night in February: travel, lock in, and handle business. Jayson Tatum poured in a high-impact scoring performance, piling up points while also helping on the glass and drawing defensive attention that opened easy looks for his supporting cast. He did not need a career-high to control the game – just his usual mix of tough shot-making and smart reads.
Out West, the Denver Nuggets once again rode Nikola Jokic as their offensive engine. The box score told the familiar story: points, rebounds, assists, all stacked and balanced in that uniquely Jokic way. One possession he is walking the ball up like a point guard, the next he is sealing deep for a quick post bucket, then he is diming a cutter for a layup nobody else even saw. The Nuggets have been here before – the defending champs know that as long as Jokic is in this kind of rhythm, every night is winnable.
And then there is Luka Doncic, who keeps skirting the edge between spectacular and outright absurd. His latest night was another load-the-box-score performance: efficient scoring, deep threes off the dribble, bully drives into the lane, plus enough playmaking to make every weak-side defender feel exposed. Watching him this season, it feels like every game could quietly turn into a 30-point triple-double if opponents are not locked in from the opening tip.
On the other side of the ledger, a couple of would-be playoff squads dropped games they simply could not afford to lose. Turnovers late in crunch time, blown defensive rotations, free throws left on the line – all the classic red flags for teams hovering around the Play-In range. In a tightly packed middle class, one bad week can be the difference between a secure 6-seed and scrambling in the 9–10 zone.
Standings snapshot: who is cruising and who is clinging?
The NBA Playoff Picture right now is a living, shifting thing, but the top of each conference is starting to calcify. Check the current conference leaders and primary challengers, based on the latest update from the league office and major outlets like CBS Sports and Yahoo Sports.
| East Rank | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | — | — |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | — | — |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | — | — |
| 4 | New York Knicks | — | — |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | — | — |
The exact win–loss columns shift almost nightly in February, but the structure is clear: Boston has built real cushion, Milwaukee and Philadelphia are trying to stabilize around their superstars, New York is driving hard behind its rugged identity, and Orlando is stepping out of the rebuilding shadow into legitimate playoff territory.
The Magic at five is not a fluke. Their defense travels, they have multiple ballhandlers who can initiate offense, and young legs that stay active on both ends. That combination is why a fan who saw them in NBA Berlin might tune in two months from now and see them in a legitimately dangerous 4–5 first-round matchup.
| West Rank | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Nuggets | — | — |
| 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | — | — |
| 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | — | — |
| 4 | LA Clippers | — | — |
| 5 | Dallas Mavericks | — | — |
Again, the wins and losses are moving targets, but the pattern is unmistakable: Denver at the top with the most trusted playoff engine in the league, a fearless Oklahoma City group led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on their heels, Minnesota hanging its hat on elite defense, the Clippers leaning on their veteran star trio, and Dallas fully embracing the Luka-centric universe.
Teams in the 6–10 window are living and dying with every box score. One big road win and you are out of the Play-In; one flat home loss and suddenly you are scoreboard-watching three other arenas. If you are tracking NBA Live Scores nightly right now, you know the feeling: every update matters.
MVP Race: Jokic, Doncic, Tatum keep raising the bar
Look at the top of the MVP Race and you will see familiar faces, but that does not make what they are doing any less ridiculous. When the nightly stat lines start to blur – 30-plus points, double-digit rebounds, eight or more assists on efficient shooting – you know you are in a special era.
Nikola Jokic continues to redefine what a big man can be. You scan the NBA Player Stats page and it is jarring: his numbers are not just good for a center, they are elite for any position. The last game was a masterclass in control. He scored efficiently inside, stepped out when defenders sagged, snagged double-digit rebounds, and piled up assists by simply reading the second defender a beat quicker than anyone else on the floor. It felt like he dictated not just the tempo, but the emotional temperature of the game.
Luka Doncic, meanwhile, plays like every possession is a puzzle he is already two moves ahead on. In his latest outing, he put up another massive scoring night with strong percentages, drilling step-back threes from deep and bullying his way to the rim. Add in his passing – cross-court lasers to corner shooters, no-look drop-offs to rolling bigs – and it is easy to see why virtually every serious MVP ladder has him in the top tier.
Jayson Tatum does not always have the flashiest box score, but his two-way impact is central to Boston owning one of the best records in the league. When he goes for 30-plus while still defending at a high level and facilitating out of double teams, the Celtics look inevitable. The scoring bursts from the wings, the switchability on defense – it is everything you want from a modern franchise star leading a title favorite.
Behind them, names like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid hover, each with their own monster nights and signature performances. But the trio of Jokic, Doncic and Tatum has been relentlessly consistent, stacking performances that feel less like outliers and more like the new normal.
Who is trending up, who is sliding back?
Beyond the household stars, a handful of players made the most of the latest slate.
In the East, several young guards continued to punch above their weight, stringing together double-double lines with points and assists that you normally associate with established All-Stars. They are not just stat-padding; they are driving winning in real time, closing games in crunch time and keeping their teams above water when veterans sit.
Some veterans, on the other hand, are stuck in rough patches. Field goal percentages hovering in the low 40s over multiple weeks, turnover numbers creeping up, and defensive lapses showing up on film. Coaches will never say they have lost confidence, but you can hear the coded language: "We have to get him comfortable," "We believe in his work," "He just needs to see a couple go in." Those are the alarm bells of a player who needs a reset game – and soon.
The injuries column is still a major subplot. A couple of rotation players on playoff hopefuls picked up knocks that will keep them out for at least a few games according to team updates reported across outlets like NBC Sports and USA Today. None of the latest injuries are season-defining in isolation, but depth matters. One sprained ankle to a key perimeter defender can turn a top-10 defense into a very ordinary group for two weeks, and in this standings climate, two bad weeks can haunt you in April.
What Berlin tells us about Orlando, Memphis and the global NBA
The NBA Berlin stop is more than a marketing line on a schedule. Watching the Magic and Grizzlies share that stage, you see where both franchises are and where they want to go.
Orlando, with Banchero and the Wagner brothers, is built like a modern playoff team: size and skill on the wings, bigs who can move their feet in space, multiple players who can create off the dribble. That plays in any arena, any country. If they keep climbing into the top half of the East, that Berlin crowd might have just seen the early version of a team that is going to be a problem in May sooner than later.
Memphis is in a very different phase – trying to navigate injuries and suspensions while still keeping a competitive edge around a young core. Nights like Berlin help. They keep the system sharp, give role players reps in high-energy environments, and reinforce a culture built on toughness and pace. Once the full roster is back and the games start counting, those habits pay off.
For fans in Germany, this was more than a novelty. It was a real-time connection to the broader NBA story – the same teams you track on NBA Live Scores, the same stars you see in nightly highlights, suddenly right in front of you. That is how lifelong fandoms start, and why the league keeps planting pins on the global map.
Must-watch ahead: statement games incoming
Looking ahead, the schedule is loaded with games that could shift seeding and the MVP discussion all at once.
Denver has a stretch of matchups against fellow West contenders that will test just how sustainable Jokic's nightly workload is. If the Nuggets rip off a winning streak in that run, they will tighten their grip on the 1-seed and push their star further up every MVP ladder.
Boston faces a set of tricky road games against teams fighting for playoff positioning, the kind of trap nights that expose whether a contender is locked in or coasting. If Tatum and company come through those with clean execution in crunchtime, it will be one more data point that this core has learned from past playoff heartbreaks.
Dallas, of course, remains appointment viewing anytime Doncic is healthy. Upcoming clashes against elite defenses will show whether his current scoring binge can survive playoff-style schemes, with multiple long defenders thrown at him, loaded-up help and constant traps above the arc.
And keep an eye on Orlando. After the energy of NBA Berlin, their next stretch of regular-season games will quietly matter a ton. If the Magic take care of business against teams below them and steal a couple from the East's heavyweights, they could move from pleasant surprise to legitimate dark horse seeded firmly in the top six.
For Berlin and beyond, this is the sweet spot of the season: every night brings fresh NBA Game Highlights, the standings shuffle with every buzzer, and the MVP Race tightens with each huge performance. If you are just getting hooked after watching the Magic and Grizzlies up close in Germany, now is the time to lean in, refresh those NBA Player Stats pages, and ride the chaos.
The NBA Berlin experience was a gateway. The real madness is about to come when seeding, legacy and hardware are all on the line – and you will feel it from Boston to Denver to Dallas, all the way back to every fan who was in that arena when the Wagners and the Magic brought the league to Europe.
