NBA Playoffs seed projections for Eastern & Western Conference with only 2 games remaining in regular season
The NBA Playoffs are nearly upon us, and with just two games left in the season, fans have been working to calculate all possible outcomes for both conferences.
This year, like in years past, both the East and the West seem more competitive than ever before. Longtime contenders like the reigning Denver Nuggets are poised to make another playoff run, while new contenders have also emerged.
In the West, the OKC Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves have continued to impress, jockeying for the first seed for large stretches of the season. Meanwhile, out East, the Boston Celtics have continued to show that this season, they're coming for gold.
At the same time, new contenders like the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic have also put the East on notice, raising some eyebrows with impressive play.
With just two games left in the regular season, we're starting to see a clear picture of how things may shake out in both conferences.
NBA Playoffs seed projections for Eastern & Western Conference
Of course, over the final two games of the season, things could shift considerably and shake up the landscape of both the East and the West.
With that in mind, let's take a look at how things could shape up in both conferences.
Western Conference
In the West, the first three seeds are being fought over by the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and OKC Thunder.
Currently, after a recent win over the Timberwolves, the Nuggets sit in first place, with a one-game lead over both the Timberwolves and the OKC Thunder.
Sitting just behind them the LA Clippers and Orlando Mavericks are locked into the four and five seeds. It means that regardless of which team takes which seed, they will play in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The sixth seed, which will be the only remaining seed to avoid the play-in tournament, is being contested by three teams. The New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings all sit within two games of one another, but it's the Pelicans who occupy sixth.
The other two teams will compete in the play-in tournament, with the seven-eight-seeded teams playing against one another. The winning team will earn the seventh seed in the NBA Playoffs, while the loser plays the winner of the nine-ten-seeded teams.
The seventh seed through the 10th seed are all being contested by the Pelicans, Kings, Lakers and Golden State Warriors. Currently, the Lakers sit in ninth, while the Warriors are 10th.
Eastern Conference
In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics have continued to dominate, clinching their spot as the first seed several weeks ago.
Sitting just behind them in the standings the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers are all fighting for the second seed.
The Bucks will be locked into one of the first four seeds, while the Knicks could fall anywhere from second through sixth, and the Cavaliers finishing between second and seventh.
At the same time, the Orlando Magic, who occupy the fifth seed, could finish as high as third or as low as eighth, with the sixth-place Indiana Pacers also falling between the third and eighth seeds for the NBA Playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Miami Heat, who are in eighth place, could finish as high as fifth or as low as eighth, much like the Philadelphia 76ers. Given thay, it's clear that the final standings of the fifth through eighth seeds in the NBA Playoffs will come down to the wire.
Whichever teams finish in the sixth and seventh seeds will, of course, compete in the play-in tournament, with the winner capturing the seventh seed.
The loser will compete against either the Chicago Bulls or Atlanta Hawks, who are both locked into the ninth and 10th seeds but fighting for position.
With the postseason right around the corner, the NBA Playoffs are soon to be in full swing.