NBA playoff forecast: Tricky business in Western Conference

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Eastern Conference Standings

There is less than a week left in the 2013-14 NBA season and a number of teams have already clinched spots in the playoffs. However, the battle for the remaining seeds is immensely intriguing and well worth examining.

Eastern Conference Standings

Western Conference Standings

Western Conference Standings

As you can see, most of the playoff spots have been clinched. However, there is a three-team battle for the last two spots in the Western Conference and a bit of intrigue for the final spot in the Eastern Conference. Now let’s take a closer look at each conference and see where each team may end up.

Eastern Conference

The Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers’ last-second win over the Milwaukee Bucks coupled with the Miami Heat’s loss to the Memphis Grizzlies has allowed the Pacers to climb back to the top spot in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers have three games left in the season including two crucial games against the Heat and the Oklahoma City Thunder, while the Heat have four games and an easier schedule than the Pacers. The Pacers vs Heat game plays a critical role in the fight for home-court advantage. The winner of this game should end up topping the conference barring any unexpected upsets.

The Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors

Meanwhile, the Toronto Raptors and the Chicago Bulls are neck-and-neck, with the Bulls just pulling ahead by virtue of their win over the Detroit Pistons. In case they end up on equal points, the Raptors would get third-seed due to their head-to-head advantage. All of the Raptors’ and most of the Bulls’ upcoming opponents are below .500 expect for the one game that the Bulls have against the Bobcats. Taking all of that into account, the Raptors should be able to latch on to the third seed while the Bulls would likely have to settle for fourth.

The Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets’ loss to the Orlando Magic practically solidifies their spot as the fifth seed.

The Charlotte Bobcats

The Charlotte Bobcats

The Charlotte Bobcats and the Washington Wizards are in a similar situation to that of the Raptors and the Bulls. The Bobcats’ overtime victory over the Washington Wizards had helped them briefly climb a spot to sixth, but the Wizards have reclaimed that spot with their victory over Orlando Magic yesterday. Crucial games left for the Bobcats are the ones against the Atlanta Hawks and the Bulls, while the Wizards face mostly below .500 teams except for the Heat. If the Bobcats can win at least one of their crucial match ups the sixth-seed should be theirs.

The Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks’ 2-game advantage along with New York Knicks’ tough schedule to close out the season mean that the Hawks should be able to glide there way into the playoffs.

Expected teams and standings1. Pacers/Heat2. Heat/Pacers3. Raptors4. Bulls5. Nets6. Bobcats/Wizards7. Wizards/Bobcats8. Hawks

Western Conference

The San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs

Thanks to their red-hot form, the San Antonio Spurs have managed the best record in the NBA along with a 3-game advantage for the top seed. With games against the Dallas Mavericks, the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers, the Spurs need any combination of wins by them and losses by the Oklahoma City Thunder that add up to two to secure that top seed. Considering their recent form, it seems like the Spurs can enjoy home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder come in 3 games behind the top seed and they have a 2.5-game advantage for the second seed. With two matches against the New Orleans Saints, one against the Pacers and one against the Detroit Pistons all the Thunder can do is pray for a slip-up by the Spurs. Otherwise, they will remain in second.

The Los Angeles Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers’ loss to the Thunder has squashed any hopes the Clippers had of moving up the standings and with a 2.5 game advantage, the Clippers aren’t going to go down either.

The Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors are all in the same situation, and they will remain in the same spot come playoff time.

The Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks

Now is where the Western Conference gets interesting. In the Eastern Conference there are not many “ifs” in the playoff race. We can comfortably say what eight teams are going to make it. The only “if” is what seed the teams may get. But here, it is completely different. We can probably name the top five teams in the conference, but it is incredibly difficult to name the sixth and seventh seeds. We have three teams fighting for these spots.

The best part is, all three teams will play reach other before the season ends. But wait, it gets even more interesting; the Dallas Mavericks lead the head-to-head against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Memphis Grizzlies lead the head-to-head against the Phoenix Suns, and the season head-to-head between the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns is tied. Dallas has 3 games left, Phoenix and Memphis have 4 games left in the season. If we keep their head-to-head matches aside, they will probably end up with the same record as Dallas has a tough game against the Spurs, Phoenix has a game against the Spurs and the Sacramento Kings, while Memphis has games against the Philadelphia 76ers and the Lakers. So it all comes down to their head-to-head matches.

Expected teams and standings1. Spurs2. Thunder3. Clippers4. Rockets5. Trail Blazers6. Warriors7. Mavericks/Suns/Grizzlies8. Spurs/Grizzlies/Mavericks9. Grizzlies/Mavericks/Suns

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Edited by Staff Editor