5 NBA teams with the toughest remaining regular-season schedule
With the NBA reaching the final few weeks of the regular season and the playoffs just around the corner, the teams have finalised on their squads. Many franchises are sure to make the postseason while certain teams will be hoping for a final push which would see them compete come April and May.
There are teams still in the playoffs fray like the Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference and the likes of Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference. Some teams are looking to tank in hopes of getting high draft picks like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Matches are coming thick and fast and there will be teams who will load manage their players to preserve them for the playoffs as soon as the qualification is secured. That being said, we look at the five teams with the hardest remaining schedule in the regular-season.
#5 Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are currently 12th in the Western Conference with a 19-40 record and are eight games behind the Orlando Magic who hold the final spot for the playoffs. Pistons are virtually out of the playoff race but will also have to overcome the fifth hardest remaining schedule in the NBA with the strength of schedule at .537. They play the likes of Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, etc. with the only reprieve coming against the New York Knicks who they face off against twice.
With Blake Griffin suffering an injury-hit season, the onus was on former MVP Derrick Rose to lead the way for the Pistons. Despite absolutely lighting up the NBA and leading the way in the first couple of months, Detroit struggled to get wins on board.
With Andre Drummond being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the future looks dark for the franchise with a lot of talk on Griffin's future.