NBA Standings 2015: Updated Playoff Picture, Bracket Heading into Final Games

It feels like just weeks ago that the New York Knicks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in LeBron James' homecoming game. My, how things have changed since then.

The 2014-15 regular season wraps up in a week-and-a-half, with the final games played on April 15. That doesn't leave the teams with playoff aspirations much time to move up in the standings. And for those teams on the outside looking in, each and every remaining game carries an increased significance.

Here's a look at how things stand heading into this last stretch.

Standings

East
West
Seed	Team	W	L	Win %	GB
1	Atlanta Hawks	57	19	0.750	---
2	Cleveland Cavaliers	50	27	0.649	7.5
3	Chicago Bulls	46	31	0.597	11.5
4	Toronto Raptors	45	32	0.584	12.5
5	Washington Wizards	44	33	0.571	13.5
6	Milwaukee Bucks	38	39	0.494	19.5
7	Brooklyn Nets	35	41	0.461	22.0
8	Boston Celtics	35	42	0.455	22.5
Seed	Team	W	L	Win %	GB
1	Golden State Warriors	63	14	0.818	---
2	Houston Rockets	53	24	0.688	10.0
3	Memphis Grizzlies	52	25	0.675	11.0
4	Portland Trail Blazers	50	26	0.658	12.5
5	Los Angeles Clippers	52	26	0.667	11.5
6	San Antonio Spurs	51	26	0.662	12.0
7	Dallas Mavericks	46	31	0.597	17.0
8	Oklahoma City Thunder	42	35	0.545	21.0

Analysis

Although seeding is important in the playoffs, whether a team finishes second, third or fourth doesn't really provide a ton of intrigue. The Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors have already clinched the top seeds in their respective conferences, which also helped to eliminate some of the fun.

Far more interesting is the battle for the eighth spot, especially in the Western Conference.

It seems safe to assume that there's only one place up for grabs in the West, since the Dallas Mavericks own a four-game lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder. In addition, you can probably write off the Phoenix Suns, who are three games behind the Thunder.

OKC's loss on Sunday to the Houston Rockets helped get the New Orleans Pelicans to within a half-game for the eighth seed.

"We're making mental mistakes that we have to do a better job of understanding the situation," said Thunder head coach Scott Brooks after the game, via Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. "It's a problem the last few games, and we have to do a better job with that. But we will keep teaching and keep figuring out ways to get better. But we have to be able to execute those situations."

Of course, New Orleans owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Oklahoma City after Anthony Davis' game-winning three back in February.

In the event the two teams finish with the same record, the Pelicans will get into the playoffs.

The problem is, New Orleans has a brutal stretch to wrap up the season.

Pelicans			Thunder
Date	Opponent		Date	Opponent
April 7	vs. Golden State Warriors		April 7	vs. San Antonio Spurs
April 8	at Memphis Grizzlies		April 10	vs. Sacramento Kings
April 10	vs. Phoenix Suns		April 12	at Indiana Pacers
April 12	at Houston Rockets		April 13	vs. Portland Trail Blazers
April 13	at Minnesota Timberwolves		April 15	at Minnesota Timberwolves
April 15	vs. San Antonio Spurs		-----	-----

Oklahoma City doesn't have many gimmes, either, but based on the teams' respective schedules, you'd have to back the Thunder to finish in eighth.

With that said, you wonder whether OKC's reliance on Russell Westbrook will finally become a problem.

ESPN.com's Royce Young wondered whether Westbrook is beginning to run out of gas as the regular season nears its conclusion. The injury to Kevin Durant has demanded that Westbrook leave even more on the court:

"

Westbrook has always been the kind of player who empties his tank nightly, playing with the kind of ferocity that few other players can tap into. That type of relentless energy has always been managed, mostly because Westbrook could channel it in other areas as Durant shouldered the offensive load for long stretches. Now, without Durant, Westbrook's solo act, while stunningly remarkable, means the 34 minutes he's playing aren't the same 34 minutes he used to play.

"

It wouldn't be all that surprising if Westbrook's numbers started tailing off, costing the Thunder a critical game or two in the playoff race.

To a certain extent, though, the fight for the eighth seed is essentially a battle to see who loses to the Golden State Warriors in the first round. Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News is one of those who feel the Warriors wouldn't have much trouble with either Oklahoma City or New Orleans:

That's what makes the playoff battle in the Eastern Conference somewhat anticlimactic: Unless something drastic changes, the Atlanta Hawks or Cleveland Cavaliers will almost assuredly win the conference.

The Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets are all within 1.5 games of the Boston Celtics for the eighth seed, but none of those teams can realistically beat the Hawks over a seven-game series.

With that said, it would be pretty cool to see the Celtics and/or Pacers make the playoffs. Watching Boston improve over the course of the season has been a lot of fun, while the return of Paul George to the Indiana lineup made for Sunday's best story:

Expecting George to be anything close to 100 percent this soon is extremely unrealistic, but this late-season charge and potential postseason push could prove invaluable leading into next year, when the Pacers should be poised to truly compete in the East.