NBA Playoff Picture 2017: Standings, Bracket and Key Storylines Down the Stretch

It doesn't get much closer than this year's NBA playoff race. 

Usually the top teams have a way of running away from the rest of the standings, securing seeds and resting up. Instead, the top teams in both conferences are within striking distance of one another, and the race between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics out East is even.

On the tail end of the standings, three teams remain in the hunt in the Eastern Conference, with a hopeful upstart Denver Nuggets team looking to crash the party out West.

With about a week left in the season, here is a look at the playoff bracket and key storylines to watch.

NBA Playoff Standings

Eastern Conference	W	L	PCT
Western Conference
x-1. Cleveland Cavaliers	50	27	.649
y-2. Boston Celtics	50	27	.649
x-3. Toronto Raptors	47	31	.603
y-4. Washington Wizards	47	31	.603
5. Milwaukee Bucks	40	38	.513
6. Atlanta Hawks	39	38	.506
7. Chicago Bulls	38	40	.487
8. Indiana Pacers	38	40	.487
Miami Heat	37	40	.481
Charlotte Hornets	36	42	.462
Detroit Pistons	35	42	.455
y-1. Golden State Warriors	64	14	.821
y-2. San Antonio Spurs	60	17	.779
x-3. Houston Rockets	52	25	.675
x-4. Utah Jazz	48	30	.615
x-5. LA Clippers	47	31	.603
x-6. Oklahoma City Thunder	44	33	.571
x-7. Memphis Grizzlies	42	36	.538
8. Portland Trail Blazers	38	40	.487
Denver Nuggets	37	40	.481

Printable bracket available at NBAPlayoffsBracket.com.

The Charging Hornets 

The Charlotte Hornets are the team on the outside looking in that most should watch. 

Of the three teams on the bubble in the Eastern Conference, Charlotte looks the hottest at 7-3 over its last 10 outings. No wonder, with Kemba Walker averaging 23.2 points per game and Nicolas Batum and Frank Kaminsky both shooting better than 33 percent from deep.

The Hornets do have a major weakness, though, which ESPN.com's Zach Lowe recently explained in detail:

"

In that context, it's not surprising the Hornets collapse when Nicolas Batum and Kemba Walker are on the bench together. Opponents have outscored Charlotte by 116 points in 691 such minutes, equivalent to a minus-8 margin over a full game, per the tracking site NBAwowy. That's bad enough that Steve Clifford should consider keeping one of them on the floor at all times. (He does this in some games.)

"

The Hornets have their work cut out for them if they want to grab the eighth seed—and a 118-111 loss to Washington on Tuesday despite 37 points from Walker doesn't help.

Charlotte closes the season against Miami, Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. Not an impossible task, and a lengthy series against either Boston or Cleveland could prove quite entertaining. Charlotte is winless against those teams this year, and depth problems make the team's chances look bad, yet the minutes shackles come off in the playoffs.

At the least, Charlotte sneaking into the playoffs and getting one of the league's better up-and-coming rosters some playoff experience would be a boon for the franchise and fans.

Heading for a Harden-Westbrook Showdown 

James Harden and Russell Westbrook must covet a postseason dance. 

Harden has scored north of 30 points in six of his last 10 outings, going for 40 or more twice. His Houston Rockets aren't catching the San Antonio Spurs or Golden State Warriors. Westbrook has done it four times, hitting 40 or more twice and going as high as 57. His Oklahoma City Thunder would need a major misstep to lose grip on the sixth seed.

Josh Eberley of HOOP compared two:

Both men have a strong argument for the MVP award this year. Harden underwent a position change of sorts and averages 29.2 points, 11.2 assists and 8.1 rebounds. Westbrook lost Kevin Durant and pads the stat sheet video game style, averaging 31.6, 10.4 and 10.7 in the same areas.

The four meets between these teams provided some of the best action of the year. Westbrook took the first 105-103, but Harden claimed the next three 102-99, 118-116 and 137-125.

A seven-game series between the two? Yes please. And both teams could ride the momentum quite far. Houston has a win over Golden State this year, Westbrook would love more shots at Durant and both teams have wins over San Antonio.

So yes, it's worth keeping an eye on both down the stretch to see what sort of momentum they carry into the playoffs—hopefully against one another.

All Things Cavaliers

Thank LeBron James and the Cavaliers for making this run to the playoffs so interesting. 

The Cavaliers hardly clutch the top spot in the Eastern Conference thanks to stumbling to a 5-5 mark over their last 10 games.

Not all is perfect in paradise, either, not after an odd spat between James and Tristan Thompson on the sidelines while needing double overtime to take down the Indiana Pacers.

After, James admitted he needs to do a "better job of not showing up my teammates out on the floor," according to the Fox Sports Ohio broadcast, via ESPN.com’s Brian Windhorst.

Jason Miller/Getty Images

It's an odd admission, though the reasons for frustration aren't hard to see. The Cavaliers have struggled against top opponents as of late, losing to Denver, Washington, San Antonio and even Chicago while blowing past iffy squads like Philadelphia, Indiana and Orlando. 

Cleveland is the most interesting team to watch down the stretch, starting with Wednesday's clash against Boston before a pair of encounters with Atlanta and even notably closing the season against Toronto.

James? He's not concerned.

"We know that. Taking nothing from them, they've been playing some great ball, but I'm not one to get caught up in the regular season. I'm sorry. I've been to six straight Finals, man. I'm the last person to ask about a regular-season game, dude. Sorry," James said, per Windhorst's colleague, Dave McMenamin.

To his credit, James is probably right—the Cavaliers might struggle now, but the idea it matters in the postseason is iffy at best. But that doesn't mean it isn't worth watching, especially with the top seed at stake. 

All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.