While the race for playoff positioning in the Western Conference will likely come down to the final days of the NBA regular season, things are already being decided in the East. The Boston Celtics will be locking down the #1 seed in the coming days, and 7.5 games currently separate the Play-In teams.
NBA: Bulls & Hawks On An Island In 9th And 10th Place
The East:
– Celtics win their 9th in a row
– Knicks move to the 4th seedFor more, download the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/oRfhdB8ZfO pic.twitter.com/TqZdK6hzPN— NBA (@NBA) March 24, 2024
Another foregone conclusion is the list of teams that will be participating in that Play-In Tournament, as it appears that the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks are destined to finish in the 9th and 10th spots in the conference.
Both teams are under .500, and have been for much of the NBA season. But due to the poor records of the teams at the bottom and in the 11th through 15th seeds, both Atlanta and Chicago have been in playoff range throughout the year. As it currently stands, the Bulls are 9th place with a mark of 34-37, while the Hawks are a game-and-a-half back at 31-37.
They have plenty of room to spare when they look in the rearview mirror. The Brooklyn Nets are the next-best team in the East, and they will enter the coming week 5.5 games behind Atlanta. With roughly 12 games to play for each team, there is of course a chance that the Hawks are caught from behind. But given how Brooklyn has played so far this season, it would be impressive to see them win 6 more games at all.
Unlikely That Either Will Catch The Heat Or 76ers
“I think if you’re Boston, this is the message you send to the Heat, you try to sweep ’em.” 🍿@SamMitchellNBA and @MisterCBooz on a potential Boston-Miami first-round playoff matchup pic.twitter.com/MBoADQmulG
— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 20, 2024
On the other end, the Philadelphia 76ers are in the 8th seed and are a full five games ahead of Chicago. This means that the Bulls and Hawks are practically destined to play each other in the 9-10 matchup of the Play-In Tournament, with the loser heading home for the year.
The 76ers have dropped into the 8th spot after their gradual descent down the standings following Joel Embiid’s injury, and the Heat have leapfrogged them despite having the exact same record. Miami is 2-1 so far in the head-to-head matchups this NBA season, which is the first tie-breaker.
There was a similar situation out West, as it appeared that the Warriors and Lakers wouldn’t have any competition from the teams outside of the playoff picture. But the Houston Rockets have won an impressive 8 contests in a row to cut Golden State’s lead to 1.5 games, and the Lakers are a 1.5 games up on the Warriors.
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