NBA Playoff Scenarios – 2 Days Until Season End
Only two (2) days left until the NBA playoffs. What will the seeds be? Here are the possibilities (ranked in order of likelihood):
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Boston Celtics
- Orlando Magic
- Atlanta Hawks
- Miami Heat
- Chicago Bulls OR Philadelphia 76ers
OR Detroit Pistons - Philadelphia 76ers OR Chicago Bulls
OR Detroit Pistons - Detroit Pistons
OR Philadelphia 76ers OR Chicago Bulls
East
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Denver Nuggets OR Houston Rockets
OR Portland Trailblazers OR San Antonio Spurs - Houston Rockets OR Denver Nuggets OR Portland Trailblazers OR San Antonio Spurs
- Portland Trailblazers OR San Antonio Spurs OR Houston Rockets
OR Denver Nuggets - San Antonio Spurs OR Portland Trailblazers OR Houston Rockets
OR Denver Nuggets - New Orleans Hornets OR Dallas Mavericks OR Utah Jazz
- Dallas Mavericks OR New Orleans Hornets OR Utah Jazz
- Utah Jazz OR New Orleans Hornets OR Dallas Mavericks
West
- Utah Jazz @ Los Angeles Lakers
- Boston Celtics @ Philadelphia 76ers
NBA Games Tonight with Playoff Implications:
What happened yesterday?
In the East, the Detroit Pistons lost to the Chicago Bulls and will face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round. Only the Chicago Bulls and the Philadelphia 76ers remain to be seeded. In the West, there is *still* only have one spot determined, although we were able to get a somewhat clearer view on where teams may end up. The Denver Nuggets need either a win or a Houston Rockets loss to wrap up the 2 seed, and can finish no lower than 3. I certainly did not expect to be writing that at the beginning of the season. The Houston Rockets still can finish anywhere in the 2 through 5 range. The San Antonio Spurs and the Portland Trailblazers are fighting for position within the 3 through 5 range. The 2 through 5 range will all be determined tomorrow, as the only Western Conference game tonight with playoff impact is with the Utah Jazz.
Further reading:
Basically, if Portland beats Denver tomorrow, they have home-court in the first round. If they lose, they need Houston to lose in order to retain the 4th seed. And if the Blazers can beat the Nuggets and both SA and Houston lose (not likely), the Blazers actually get 3rd and end up playing New Orleans (because it’s NO vs Houston on Wednesday, I believe, which would elevate NO out of the tie for 6th)
This is the closest playoff seeding I’ve EVER seen. I said that last year, too, but it’s even closer this year!