With only two regular season games remaining on each team’s schedule, 15 of the 20 seeds entering the 2025 postseason are still up for grabs, the NBA noted today (Twitter link).
All 30 teams will be playing on Friday and again on Sunday. Friday’s slate has several matchups with important postseason implications.
Here’s a quick rundown of the the most important scenarios in play tonight, per the league (Twitter link):
- The Nuggets will clinch a top-six seed and thus a guaranteed playoff spot with a win AND a loss by either the Clippers, Warriors or Timberwolves.
- The Clippers will clinch a playoff spot with a win AND a loss by either Denver, Golden State or Minnesota.
- The Warriors will secure a playoff berth with a win AND losses by both Memphis and Minnesota.
- The Grizzlies will be locked into the play-in tournament with a loss AND a Warriors win.
- The Timberwolves will be locked into the play-in tournament with a loss AND wins by Denver, Golden State and the Clippers.
- The Lakers will clinch the Pacific Division with a win OR a Clippers loss.
TWolves control their destiny to top 6 with 2 easy wins Utah /Brk
GSW controls their destiny to top 6 with 2 wins Por/Clips
Nugs control top 6 with just 1 win outta 2 and Hou likely sitting everyone vs them Sunday as a feather
My guess Twolves and Nugs get 2 outta the 3 slots (4~6)
Winner of Clips Gsw Sunday gets the last spot and the loser plays Mem in the 7/8
Warriors Clippers Sunday = regular season game of the year. Must-watch. Real hoop fan hours…
Everybody is gonna be watching that game. Real hoop fans will be watching the Nike Hoop Summit tmrw
They are kids. To much pressure.
“Real hoop fans dont watch the NBA, they watch a bunch of children play because like 5 of them might make the NBA” – nope.
Agree with every prediction, but enquiring minds want to know: who wins LAC vs GSW on Sunday?!
Is this correct? Warriors win final 2 games but still the 8th seed
If
Nugget lose final two games,
Warriors win final two games,
Grizzlies win Final 2 games
Final standing
6th seed: Grizzlies
7th seed Nuggets
8th seed: Warriors
@aristotle
If GSW win: they are winning the title
If GSW lose: they are not winning the title
Silvan your wrong if warriors win final two games their actually the 6th seed because they own the tiebreaker over Memphis and timberwolves.
Warriors are third in their own division. Nobody wants to be out of top six. That 7-8 matchup is a tough series. West looks weak to me. In a seven gm series. Nobody is beating OKC. They have been only consistent team all year. Still they have to prove it.
While I agree that OKC is the favorite to make the finals (and IMO win the title this season), that fact in no way indicates that the west is weak. Only 3 teams in the east above .500 vs teams with winning records, in the West there are four.
The East has 2 great teams (Cavs 28-10 vs winning teams) and Celtics (24-13 vs winners), a decent one (the Pacers, 19-18), and the rest are lousy). The West has the best team in the league Thunder (31-10 vs winning teams), and the 3 other potential Finals teams are the Rockets (23-18 vs winning teams), Warriors (22-18) and Lakers (21-19)
Sometimes people make to much of the seeds. In 23, Miami was a playin team. Of the last 20 #1s, only four have gone to the Finals. Of course, 3 of those #1s were the Warriors.
Look at who is hot right now. Look at who is playing well right now. The Clippers just might surprise a lot of people. Depending on which Warriors team shows up; they could be trouble.
Imagine if they made the NBA like survivor and right before you went to the conference finals you had to play single elimination against a team that was “voted off the island” aka a team that didn’t make the playoffs or got knocked out early. That’d be exciting but a little cheesy. I doubt silver would go for it though.
Yeah usually if you are playing well coming into playoffs. A team like Warriors with playoff experience. Also means a lot. I just see inconsistency. So to win three series. I just can’t trust it. This is why I don’t bet lol. OKC deep and good. Their youth could work against them. But you have to take them seven for that.
Clips and Hardens 20 foul shots by ramming the ball into defenders will get them to the finals.
Harden won’t be getting to the line as much in the playoffs. I bet the Lakers will get a far more prolific whistle this year.