Who are the standout players from the second round of the NBA Playoffs?

The Minnesota Timberwolves and the Indiana Pacers booked their places in the Conference Finals after beating the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks in some enthralling game-seven encounters. 

The Minnesota Timberwolves will face the Dallas Mavericks, and the Pacers will face the Boston Celtics. But who got them there? Here are the standout players from the second round of the NBA Playoffs! 

The Dallas forward deserves his flowers for his second-round performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder, having taken much of the load off Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving by performing unbelievably and hitting the series-winning free throws with 2.5 seconds left.

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Washington scored 29 and 27 points in the second and third games and played more than 37 minutes in four of the five games. He registered three double-doubles and had a 40% or better three-point percentage in four of the five games, according to the NBA website.

Indiana's Pascal Siakam came through clutch in games six and seven for the Pacers against the New York Knicks, scoring 20 points on 8/15 shooting in game seven and 25 points, seven rebounds, and five assists in game six.

Siakam hit his opening five shots in the game seven encounter, helping the Pacers establish an early 20-point lead that would eventually help them win. Siakam's 26 points and seven rebounds in game three were the highlight of his series.

For all the talk about Anthony Edwards for the Timberwolves, people may have slept on the ability of Karl Anthony Towns, but in game seven against Denver, Towns showed why he is one of the best big men in the league. 

According to the NBA website, Towns made eight of his 14 shots (57.1%), scoring 23 points, and was the primary defender on NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, giving him tough shots all night. Towns scored more than 20 points in four games during the series. 

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Boston looks to be cruising their way to the NBA Finals, and their superstar Jayson Tatum looks to have found his groove heading into the Conference Finals, scoring 25 or more points in his last four games, the NBA website reports.

Tatum has been a playoff superstar since coming into the league in 2017, reaching the Conference Finals multiple times and the NBA Finals once. Is this the year Tatum takes the Celtics to their first title since 2008? 

Three consecutive triple-doubles to close out the series against the number one seed Oklahoma City Thunder, Luka Doncic is playing on another level right now and the Timberwolves have got a real test in finding ways to shut him down.

Doncic is the fifth player in NBA history to record three consecutive triple-doubles in the postseason and led the Mavericks in points, rebounds, assists, and steals in the series. In the close-out game, he recorded 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, the NBA website reports.

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