By way of the Indiana Pacers’ loss to Orlando and the Milwaukee Bucks’ win over the Pistons on Friday night, all 10 Eastern Conference playoff/play-in seeds, and the corresponding matchups are now set. It will go like this:
East Play-In games
- No. 7 Orlando vs. No. 8 Atlanta
- No. 9 Chicago vs. No. 10 Miami
East first-round matchups
- No. 1 Cavaliers vs. No. 8 Orlando/Atlanta/Miami/Chicago
- No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 Orlando/Atlanta winner
- No. 3 Knicks vs. No. 6 Pistons
- No. 4 Pacers vs. No. 5 Bucks
There is still much to be determined in the Western Conference, where only the Thunder (No. 1) and Houston (No. 2) have clinched their spot. The Lakers can lock up the No. 3 seed with a win over Houston Friday night.
Assuming the Lakers land at No. 3, the three other guaranteed spots remain undecided and there are five teams (the Nuggets, Clippers, Warriors, Timberwolves and Grizzlies) separated by one game. The Western Conference playoff picture will come down to the wire with the bracket being set Sunday night.
The Lakers guaranteed their top-six spot with a win over the Mavs in Luka Dončić’s emotional return to Dallas on Wednesday night. The Warriors, meanwhile, are now in control of their destiny for a playoff spot again. The Dubs surprisingly lost to the Spurs on Wednesday night, but were helped by the Timberwolves’ win over the Grizzlies on Thursday. Golden State plays the Blazers on Friday and the Clippers on Sunday. The Warriors, Grizzlies and Wolves all enter the season’s final weekend with identical 47-33 records. The Nuggets and Clippers are both 48-32.
Entering play on Friday, April 10, here is the 2024-25 NBA playoff picture.
Who’s clinched?
- All East seeds are locked.
- The Thunder have clinched the No. 1 seed, and the Rockets have clinched the No. 2 seed in the West.
- The Lakers have clinched a playoff spot in the West.
- The Kings and Mavericks are locked into the West’s Play-In Tournament.
NBA playoff picture, current bracket
East first-round matchups
1. Cavaliers vs. 8. Magic/Hawks/Bulls/Heat
2. Celtics vs. 7. Magic/Hawks
3. Knicks vs. 6. Pistons
4. Pacers vs. 5. Bucks
West first-round matchups
*If the season ended today…
1. Thunder vs. 8. Grizzlies/Wolves/Kings/Mavericks
2. Rockets vs. 7. Grizzlies/Wolves
3. Lakers vs. 6. Warriors
4. Nuggets vs. 5. Clippers
NBA standings
Playoff chances are based on SportsLine simulations.
Eastern Conference standings
Western Conference standings
| Rank | Team | W | L | GB | Playoff chances |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma City – x | 66 | 14 | — | 100% |
| 2 | Houston – x | 52 | 28 | 13.0 | 100% |
| 3 | L.A. Lakers – x | 49 | 31 | 17.0 | 100% |
| 4 | Denver | 48 | 32 | 18.0 | 96.6% |
| 5 | L.A. Clippers | 48 | 32 | 18.0 | 92.9% |
| 6 | Golden St. | 47 | 33 | 19.0 | 91.7% |
| — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7 | Memphis | 47 | 33 | 19.0 | 88.1% |
| 8 | Minnesota | 47 | 33 | 19.0 | 86.7% |
| 9 | Sacramento | 39 | 41 | 27.0 | 26.4% |
| 10 | Dallas | 38 | 42 | 28.0 | 17.9% |
x = clinched playoff spot
As a reminder: the top six teams in each conference automatically get spots in the 16-team playoff field. The final four playoff spots will be determined by the Play-In Tournament, which will feature Nos. 7-10 in each conference. The seventh-place team hosts the eight-place team to earn the No. 7 seed. The loser of that game will face the winner of a game between the ninth- and 10th-place teams for the No. 8 seed.
Tiebreakers
Here’s how NBA playoff tiebreakers work:
In the event of a two-way tie, the team that won the season series gets the higher seed. If they split the season series and one of the teams won its division, the division winner gets the higher seed. If that doesn’t resolve the tie, then the tiebreakers are, in order: division record (if the teams are in the same division), conference record, record against top-10 in-conference teams, record against top-10 teams in both conferences, point differential.
In the event that more than two teams are tied, the tiebreakers are, in order: division winner, record against tied teams, division record (if all tied teams are in the same division), conference record, record against top-10 in-conference teams, record against top-10 teams in both conferences, point differential.
And here’s a breakdown of who currently holds some of the key tiebreakers:
- The Lakers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against Nuggets, Clippers, Warriors, Timberwolves and Grizzlies.
- The Nuggets hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Warriors.
- The Clippers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Warriors and Grizzlies.
- The Grizzlies hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Timberwolves.
- The Warriors hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Timberwolves and Grizzlies.
- The Timberwolves hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Nuggets and Clippers.
- The Knicks hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Pacers.
