NBA Playoffs 2015: Latest Standings and Postseason Matchups

With six days remaining in the NBA regular season, several teams are still jockeying for position.

In the Western Conference, the New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder are deadlocked for the final postseason spot with identical 42-36 records. The Thunder have lost four games in a row, and that skid has allowed the Pelicans to draw even with them.

Having taken two out of three contests from the Thunder during the regular season, the Pelicans also own the tie-breaker.

However, Oklahoma City does have an edge as it pertains to the remaining schedule. The Thunder play only one playoff team in their final four contests while the Pels face two. This race could come down to the final day. If it does, expect to see huge performances by the Pelicans' Anthony Davis and the Thunder's Russell Westbrook.

Both men are dark horses for the NBA's MVP Award. Each could put an exclamation point on their season if they can carry their team to a playoff berth.

Here's a look at the standings as of April 10:

Pos.	Eastern Conference	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV
Pos.	Western Conference	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV
1	Atlanta	59	19	0.756	0.0	37-11	11-3
2	Cleveland	51	27	0.654	8.0	33-15	10-5
3	Chicago	47	32	0.595	12.5	30-19	8-8
4	Toronto	46	32	0.590	13.0	30-18	11-4
5	Washington	45	33	0.577	14.0	29-19	9-6
6	Milwaukee	38	40	0.487	21.0	27-21	7-9
7	Boston	36	42	0.462	23.0	24-24	11-4
8	Brooklyn	36	42	0.462	23.0	22-26	10-6
	Indiana	35	43	0.449	24.0	26-24	7-8
	Miami	35	44	0.443	24.5	23-26	5-10
	Charlotte	33	45	0.423	26.0	25-24	8-7
Eliminated	Detroit	30	48	0.385	29.0	21-27	6-8
Eliminated	Orlando	25	53	0.321	34.0	15-33	4-11
Eliminated	Philadelphia	18	61	0.228	41.5	12-37	2-14
Eliminated	New York	15	63	0.192	44.0	9-39	5-11
1	Golden State	64	15	0.810	0.0	39-10	13-3
2	Memphis	53	25	0.679	10.5	34-15	9-7
3	Houston	53	25	0.679	10.5	31-18	7-7
4	Portland	51	28	0.646	13.0	31-18	11-3
5	L.A. Clippers	53	26	0.671	11.0	34-15	11-4
6	San Antonio	53	26	0.671	11.0	30-19	7-7
7	Dallas	47	31	0.603	16.5	26-22	7-9
8	New Orleans	42	36	0.538	21.5	26-22	7-7
	Oklahoma City	42	36	0.538	21.5	22-27	8-6
Eliminated	Phoenix	39	40	0.494	25.0	21-28	6-9
Eliminated	Utaho	36	42	0.462	27.5	21-27	8-7
Eliminated	Denver	29	49	0.372	34.5	18-30	6-10
Eliminated	Sacramento	27	51	0.346	36.5	16-32	5-9
Eliminated	L.A. Lakers	20	58	0.256	43.5	8-40	2-12
Eliminated	Minnesota	16	62	0.205	47.5	7-41	4-11

In the Eastern Conference, the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets are battling for the final three playoff spots. Though currently on the outside looking in, the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets are all still mathematically eligible for the postseason.

Inspired by the return of Paul George, the Pacers have won three games in a row. Per the Pacers' Twitter account, George is starting to feel comfortable again:

The Pacers are just a game behind the Nets and Celtics for the seventh and eighth playoff spots. It would be a major story to see the Pacers qualify for the postseason after playing almost the entire season without their star.

Current Playoff Matchups

East	West
Matchup	Matchup
No. 1 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 8 Brooklyn Nets	No. 1 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans
No. 4 Toronto Raptors vs. No. 5 Washington Wizards	No. 4 Portland Trail Blazers vs. No. 5 Los Angeles Clippers
No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 7 Boston Celtics	No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies vs. No. 7 Dallas Mavericks
No. 3 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks	No. 3 Houston Rockets vs. No. 6 San Antonio Spurs

If the playoffs began on Friday, we'd have a nice array of first-round series to follow. Each of them would feature interesting head-to-head battles.

Portland vs. L.A. Clippers

Don Ryan/Associated Press

Two of the NBA's best point guards, the Los Angeles Clippers' Chris Paul and the Portland Trail Blazers' Damian Lillard, would give us a great backcourt battle.

Paul and the Clippers got the better of the series during the regular season, winning three of four games. Most recently, Paul went for 41 points and 17 assists in his team's 126-122 win on April 1.

In this hypothetical series, Lillard would have to step his game up on both ends of the floor.

Washington vs. Toronto

Manuel Balce Ceneta/Associated Press

The Clippers and Blazers series would feature a great matchup of elite point guards. For their part, the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors have two of the best backcourt units in the NBA.

Washington's John Wall and Toronto's Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are all ranked in the top 25 scorers in the NBA.

Wall's running mate, Bradley Beal, battled injuries this year, but he's been rounding into form of late. Beal is averaging 19.7 points per game in his last four contests. Washington is going to need his scoring should it meet the Raptors in the first round.

Toronto is the highest-scoring team in the East. The Wiz would have to find a way to slow the Raps down, as they don't have the shooters to win high-scoring games.

Controlling tempo and containing Lowry and DeRozan would be key for the Wizards to advance.