Playoff basketball is almost here. But first, there's plenty to be determined over the final two days of the 2024-25 NBA season.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the entire postseason picture is now officially set from the No. 1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers all the way down to the Miami Heat, the final play-in tournament team in 10th place. As for the Western Conference? Not so much.
Entering Friday's slate of games, the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers were tied for the No. 4 seed with identical 48-32 records, and the Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves were all tied for the No. 6 spot with 47-33 records.
All of those aforementioned teams in the West won Friday night aside from the Grizzlies, who lost117-109 to Denver at Ball Arena. Memphis is now locked into the play-in tournament—meaning they can only claim the No. 7 seed at best—after losing on back-to-back nights to the Timberwolves and Nuggets.
The Lakers clinched their first Pacific Division title since 2019-20 on Friday with a win over the Houston Rockets and hold a one-game cushion as the No. 3 seed. Right behind Los Angeles are the Nuggets and Clippers, who are tied for the No. 4 seed with 49-32 records. Both teams will wrap up the regular season Sunday, as Denver visits the Rockets and the Clippers battle the Warriors.
The Nuggets can clinch the No. 4 seed with a win over Houston on Sunday. But for now, the No. 4 through No. 8 seeds are up for grabs with the Nuggets, Clippers, Warriors, Timberwolves and Grizzlies all looking to land their official seeding.
The Timberwolves will play the Utah Jazz—albeit without a suspended Anthony Edwards—while the Grizzlies will host the Dallas Mavericks.
Let's dive in to the current playoff picture (updated after the games Friday night) and projected playoff matchups:
NBA playoff picture: Western Conference (through games Friday, April 11)
NBA playoff picture: Eastern Conference (through games Friday, April 11)
Projected NBA playoff matchups (through games Friday, April 11)
Western Conference
- Play-in tournament: No. 7 Timberwolves, No. 8 Grizzlies, No. 9 Kings, No. 10 Mavericks
- No. 1 Thunder vs. No. 8 TBD
- No. 2 Rockets vs. No. 7 TBD
- No. 3 Lakers vs. No. 6 Warriors
- No. 4 Nuggets vs. No. 5 Clippers
Eastern Conference (officially set)
- Play-in tournament: No. 7 Magic, No. 8 Hawks, No. 9 Bulls, No. 10 Heat
- No. 1 Cavaliers vs. No. 8 TBD
- No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 TBD
- No. 3 Knicks vs. No. 6 Pistons
- No. 4 Pacers vs. No. 5 Bucks
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as How NBA Playoff Picture Looks After Busy Friday Slate of Games.
