Heading into the final weekend of the NBA’s regular season, here’s what we now about the playoff and play-in races: All 20 teams are set, as are the first 12 playoff teams and the eight play-in teams. Now it’s just a matter of seeding.
Everything you need to know regarding current seeds, matchups and tiebreaker scenarios can be found here. Here are the teams to have clinched their seeds:
Beyond that, everything is still up for grabs … including the scoring title! Below are five big questions that will be answered in the coming days.
1. How does Bucks-Celtics-Sixers logjam shake out?
The Bucks jumped the Celtics for the No. 2 seed with their win over Boston on Thursday night, and now lead the No. 3 Celtics and No. 4 Sixers by one game in the loss column. If the Bucks win their final two games (at Detroit and at Cleveland), they’ll be the No. 2 seed. If they split, and the Celtics win their final game against the Grizzlies, a complicated tiebreaker scenario between Boston and Milwaukee would activate. Here are the order of the tiebreakers and how they would play out.
First tiebreaker: Head-to-head (season series tied 2-2)Second tiebreaker: Division winner (both would be division winners)Third tiebreaker: Conference record (If Milwaukee splits and Boston beats Memphis, both teams would finish with an identical 33-19 conference recordFourth tiebreaker: Record vs. Eastern Conference playoffs teams (Boston has already clinched with a mark of 20-13 over Milwaukee’s 17-15 record, which can only improve to 18-15 pending its final game against Cleveland).
So, in summation, Boston is in line for the No. 2 seed by way of the fourth tiebreaker if it beats Memphis and Milwaukee splits its final two. Again, all of this is moot if the Bucks just win their final two.
As for the Sixers … the only shot they have at the No. 2 seed is to win their final two (vs. Indiana and vs. Detroit) and…
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