NBA Playoff Standings 2025, Play-in Picture and Predicting Final Bracket Seedings
The San Antonio Spurs provided a surprise twist into the Western Conference playoff picture with an upset win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.
Golden State tumbled down to seventh place with the unexpected defeat on its home floor.
San Antonio's win was a welcome sight to all of the other teams stuck in the mess between fourth and eighth in the West.
The Denver Nuggets left Wednesday with the edge in fourth place after their triumph over the Sacramento Kings.
However, the order will likely change a few more times between now and the end of the regular season on Sunday.
The Eastern Conference presents more clarity as the top six are almost settled and the play-in order is close to set after the Chicago Bulls' win over the Miami Heat.
Eastern Conference
1 of 2
- Cleveland (63-16)
- Boston (59-21)
- New York (50-29)
- Indiana (48-31)
- Milwaukee (45-34)
- Detroit (43-36)
- Orlando (40-40)
- Atlanta (37-42)
- Chicago (37-43)
- Miami (36-44)
The Bulls earned the most meaningful win in the Eastern Conference on Wednesday.
Chicago’s 119-111 win over Miami moved it into a one-game lead for ninth place in the East.
Both the Bulls and Heat finish with two games against already-eliminated teams, so the expectation is that the Bulls will host the Heat in the No. 9-versus-No. 10 game in the play-in round.
Chicago is still alive for the No. 8 seed, but Atlanta closes with Brooklyn and Philadelphia. Sunday’s game between the Hawks and Orlando likely won’t matter to the Magic.
Orlando is now 2.5 games ahead of the Hawks for the No. 7 seed and home-court advantage in the play-in round.
The top six positions in the East are almost set. Milwaukee should stay at least two games in front of Detroit for the No. 5 seed with a home win over New Orleans on Thursday.
The Pistons have the tougher Thursday matchup against the Knicks. A Detroit loss combined with a Milwaukee win would clinch the No. 5 seed for the Bucks.
Detroit and Milwaukee play each other on Friday and Sunday. Detroit would have to win both games to catch the No. 5 seed, if Milwaukee is two games or less ahead of the Pistons.
Bracket Prediction
Play-In: No. 10 Miami vs. No. 9 Chicago
Play-In: No. 8 Atlanta vs. No. 7 Orlando
No. 8 Atlanta vs. No. 1 Cleveland
No. 7 Orlando vs. No. 2 Boston
No. 6 Detroit vs. No. 3 New York
No. 5 Milwaukee vs. No. 4 Indiana
Western Conference
2 of 2
- Oklahoma City (66-14)
- Houston (52-27)
- Los Angeles Lakers (49-31)
- Denver (48-32)
- LA Clippers (48-32)
- Memphis (47-32)
- Golden State (47-33)
- Minnesota (46-33)
- Sacramento (39-41)
- Dallas (38-42)
Golden State went from being in great shape to land the No. 4 seed to potentially participating in the play-in round with Wednesday's loss to San Antonio.
The Warriors must beat the Portland Trailblazers on Friday to set up a Sunday showdown with the LA Clippers in which a top-six spot will be on the line.
The Clippers visit the Kings and Warriors to close out the regular season.
Before Sunday's clash in California, the Memphis Grizzlies will take hold of the spotlight on Thursday and Friday.
Memphis takes on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday and then Denver in the second leg of the back-to-back on Friday.
Denver can win out against Memphis and the Houston Rockets to solidify the No. 4 seed. The Nuggets might finish with a one-game advantage ahead of fifth depending on what happens with the Clippers and Warriors.
The Los Angeles Lakers are in the clear for the No. 3 seed. They face a Houston team that already clinched the No. 2 seed and Portland to finish out the regular season.
Sacramento should feel somewhat safe in the race to host the No. 9-versus-No. 10 play-in round game. The Kings own a one-game buffer on the Dallas Mavericks and own the head-to-head tiebreaker in case the advantage turns into a tie.
Bracket Prediction
Play-In: No. 10 Dallas vs. No. 9 Sacramento
Play-In: No. 8 Minnesota vs. No. 7 LA Clippers
No. 8 Minnesota vs. No. 1 Oklahoma City
No. 7 LA Clippers vs. No. 2 Houston
No. 6 Memphis vs. No. 3 Los Angeles Lakers
No. 5 Golden State vs. No .4 Denver
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