NBA Playoff Picture 2023: Reviewing Latest Bracket Scenarios for East, West
For the third consecutive season, the Memphis Grizzlies are heading to the NBA playoffs. They became the fifth team in the league to clinch a spot in this year's field when they defeated the Houston Rockets on Friday night.
The Grizzlies joined the Denver Nuggets as the only Western Conference teams to have already secured a postseason berth. In the Eastern Conference, the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers have all clinched.
That leaves plenty of spots still up for grabs as the regular season winds down. The play-in tournament takes place April 11-14, then the playoffs get underway April 15.
Here's a look at the NBA standings, followed by the playoff picture for both conferences.
NBA Standings
1 of 3
Eastern Conference
1. Milwaukee Bucks (53-20, clinched playoff berth)
2. Boston Celtics (51-23, clinched playoff berth)
3. Philadelphia 76ers (49-24, clinched playoff berth)
4. Cleveland Cavaliers (47-28)
5. New York Knicks (42-33)
6. Miami Heat (40-34)
7. Brooklyn Nets (39-34)
8. Atlanta Hawks (36-37)
9. Toronto Raptors (36-38)
10. Chicago Bulls (35-38)
11. Indiana Pacers (33-41)
12. Washington Wizards (33-41)
13. Orlando Magic (31-43)
14. Charlotte Hornets (24-51, eliminated from playoff contention)
15. Detroit Pistons (16-58, eliminated from playoff contention)
Western Conference
1. Denver Nuggets (49-24, clinched division)
2. Memphis Grizzlies (46-27, clinched division)
3. Sacramento Kings (44-29)
4. Los Angeles Clippers (39-35)
5. Phoenix Suns (38-35)
6. Golden State Warriors (39-36)
7. Minnesota Timberwolves (37-37)
8. Los Angeles Lakers (37-37)
9. New Orleans Pelicans (36-37)
10. Oklahoma City Thunder (36-38)
11. Dallas Mavericks (36-38)
12. Utah Jazz (35-38)
13. Portland Trail Blazers (32-41)
14. San Antonio Spurs (19-55, eliminated from playoff contention)
15. Houston Rockets (18-56, eliminated from playoff contention)
Eastern Conference Bracket Picture
2 of 3
No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks (53-20) vs. No. 8 seed
No. 2 Boston Celtics (51-23) vs. No. 7 seed
No. 3 Philadelphia 76ers (49-24) vs. No. 6 Miami Heat (40-34)
No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers (47-28) vs. No. 5 New York Knicks (42-33)
Play-In Tournament
No. 7 Brooklyn Nets (39-34) vs. No. 8 Atlanta Hawks (36-37)
No. 9 Toronto Raptors (36-38) vs. No. 10 Chicago Bulls (35-38)
The Bucks are firmly atop the Eastern Conference, but they haven't secured the No. 1 seed quite yet. The Celtics are only 2.5 games back. However, Milwaukee won't be easy to catch, as it has won 24 of its past 27 games.
At the moment, the Heat sit in the No. 6 spot, which is important, because that's the final seed that gets into the playoffs without having to go through the play-in tournament. But the Nets are only a half-game behind them.
Brooklyn may no longer have Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving, but it could still get into the playoffs, or at least the play-in tournament. It will need to play better than it has of late, though, as it lost five consecutive games.
The Nets' schedule gets easier down the stretch, as five of their final nine games are against teams currently outside of the playoffs. Their toughest remaining contest may be a road matchup vs. Miami on Saturday night.
It's possible several teams could get knocked from the play-in tournament, including the Bulls, who hold the final berth at No. 10. They're only 1.5 games ahead of both the Pacers and Wizards.
Chicago has been playing well of late, having won six of its past eight games. But five of its next eight contests are on the road, which includes some challenging matchups against the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks and Mavericks.
If the Bulls can get through that stretch well enough, they should be in good shape, as they'll end the regular season with a home matchup against the NBA-worst Pistons.
So quite a bit could still change in the Eastern Conference playoff picture between now and the end of the regular season. But likely not for the Cavaliers, who are one win away from clinching a postseason berth for the first time since the 2017-18 season.
Western Conference Bracket Picture
3 of 3
No. 1 Denver Nuggets (49-24) vs. No. 8 seed
No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies (46-27) vs. No. 7 seed
No. 3 Sacramento Kings (44-29) vs. No. 6 Golden State Warriors (39-36)
No. 4 Los Angeles Clippers (39-35) vs. No. 5 Phoenix Suns (38-35)
Play-In Tournament
No. 7 Minnesota Timberwolves (37-37) vs. No. 8 Los Angeles Lakers (37-37)
No. 9 New Orleans Pelicans (36-37) vs. No. 10 Oklahoma City Thunder (36-38)
It's a three-team battle for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, with the Nuggets, Grizzlies and Kings separated by only five games. Denver has won two straight games, but it had lost five of six prior to that, allowing the others to make up some ground.
Things are tight in the standings after that. The Clippers, who are in the No. 4 spot, and the Jazz, who are the second team out of the play-in tournament at No. 12, are separated by only 3.5 games. So there could be a ton of movement over the next couple of weeks.
The Lakers have been surging after a slow start to the season. They've won seven of their past 10 games, and they're only 1.5 games back of the Warriors for the important No. 6 seed.
Although the Thunder currently hold the final spot in the play-in tournament at No. 10, they and the Mavericks have identical 36-38 records. And the Jazz are only a half-game back of the two squads at 35-38.
None of those three teams have been on the rise recently. Oklahoma City and Utah has each lost two straight and three of five. Dallas has dropped three in a row and six of eight.
But the Mavs could be the most talented team of that bunch, considering they have Luka Dončić and Irving. They have the potential to turn things around, although their next five games are on the road before they close out the regular season with three at home.
Dallas' next two games are against Charlotte and Indiana, which should give it a good opportunity to get back on track. However, the Mavericks lost to the Hornets 117-109 on Friday night, so they'll need to play better when the teams meet again Sunday.
It should be entertaining to watch how the Western Conference shakes out because the standings are highly competitive at this late juncture of the regular season.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
