The Cleveland Cavaliers delivered a blow to the top-seeded Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night, rallying from a 15-point first-half deficit to win 117–113 in overtime and seize a 3–2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. James Harden scored 30 points, Donovan Mitchell added 21 with seven in the extra period, and Evan Mobley sparked a 9–0 run late in regulation with seven consecutive points. The victory marked Cleveland’s first road win in the playoffs this spring after five consecutive losses away from home, a statistic that analysts in Tokyo noted as a turning point for a team that had seemed brittle on foreign floors.

Viewers in the Israeli press, meanwhile, focused on the Pistons’ deepening frailties. A team that won 60 games in the regular season and had already needed a Game 7 to escape Orlando now finds itself on the verge of elimination. The criticism sharpened after Jalen Duren’s two-rebound performance in Game 4 prompted Charles Barkley’s withering assessment on American television: “That’s two more than a dead person.” Detroit led by nine with three minutes to go in the fifth game but could not close out, a collapse that commentators in Tel Aviv described as emblematic of a squad that lacks the mental fortitude required in high-stakes basketball.

Across the playoff landscape, the New York Knicks are watching the series with keen interest. Their own injury concerns have eased: forward OG Anunoby, sidelined with a tweaked right hamstring since Game 2 against Philadelphia, participated in parts of practice on Wednesday, and the team expects him to be available for Game 1 of the conference finals, according to sources in the American sports press. The Knicks have already secured their place in the next round and will face the winner of the Cavaliers-Pistons series. From a broader strategic perspective, analysts in Doha noted that the prolonged, physical nature of this semifinal could leave the surviving team at a disadvantage against a well-rested New York side.

Elsewhere in North American sport, the Minnesota Wild suffered a spectacular implosion in Denver. After racing to a 3–0 lead in the first period, the Wild conceded four unanswered goals, losing 4–3 in overtime to the Colorado Avalanche, who advanced in five games. The French-language Canadian broadcaster covering the match highlighted the Wild’s inability to sustain their initial intensity, a failure that echoed the very fragility being exposed in Detroit. As the Cavaliers prepare to close out their series at home on Friday, and the Avalanche await their next opponent, the recurring theme across these playoffs is clear: leads are no longer safe, and mental toughness has become the rarest commodity.