NBA Playoff Picture 2024: Standings, Predictions for Lakers, Warriors and More | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors: BR
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The regular season is now down to its final day.
All 30 teams will be in action on Sunday, with seven games tipping off at 1 p.m. ET and the remaining eight beginning at 3:30 p.m.
There’s still plenty left to decide. Here’s a look at the latest standings as of 11 p.m. ET Friday, what to watch for Sunday and picks for the final playoff and play-in seedings.
Playoff and Play-in Seeding Predictions: 1. Boston, 2. New York, 3. Cleveland, 4. Milwaukee, 5. Orlando, 6. Indiana, 7. Philadelphia, 8. Miami, 9. Chicago, 10. Atlanta
4. Los Angeles Clippers (51-29)
8. Los Angeles Lakers (46-35)
Playoff and Play-in Seeding Predictions: 1. Oklahoma City, 2. Minnesota, 3. Denver, 4. L.A. Clippers, 5. Dallas, 6. New Orleans, 7. Phoenix, 8. Sacramento, 9. Golden State, 10. Los Angeles Lakers
In the East, the biggest intrigue involves who finishes in the top six. At the moment, the Orlando Magic win a three-team tiebreaker over the Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers by virtue of winning their division. And then the Pacers have the head-to-head tiebreaker edge on the 76ers, giving them the sixth seed.
The guess here is that all three teams win on Sunday. The Magic have the toughest game in hosting the second-place Milwaukee Bucks, who just crushed Orlando 117-99 the other day. But this game will be in Orlando, where the Magic have gone 28-12 (versus 18-23 on the road). The Bucks will also be without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf strain) again.
The host Pacers are playing an Atlanta Hawks team locked into the 10th seed, so they won’t be going at full bore. And then the host 76ers have the 32-49 Brooklyn Nets, who have nothing to play for.
Ultimately, look for the Magic to benefit from the tiebreaker here and get the No. 5 seed, with Indiana finishing sixth.
In the West, the biggest question involves who’s lucky enough to avoid the 9-10 play-in game, which would necessitate a team needing to take two straight win-or-go-home games.
The team in trouble here is the Los Angeles Lakers. For starters, they lose head-to-head tiebreakers to both the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors.
In addition, they have a tougher matchup on paper at the New Orleans Pelicans, while the Kings and Warriors play two struggling Western Conference teams with nothing to play for in the Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz, respectively. L.A. has also been a below average road team this year, going 18-21 on the season.
The Dubs also have some issues, because they lose a tiebreaker against the Sacramento Kings by virtue of the divisional record (Golden State and Sacramento tied the season series at two games apiece).
The guess here is that the Lakers and Warriors ended up playing each other in the 9-10 play-in game, a bewildering sight considering that it’s now a very real possibility that both superstars LeBron James and Stephen Curry will both miss the playoffs in the same year. That hasn’t happened since both were in the league beginning in 2009, when Curry debuted.
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