The 2023-24 NBA regular season is officially in the books.
All 30 teams were in action on Sunday, with postseason permutations changing right up until the 82nd game of the year.
Sixteen out of 20 playoff and play-in seeds were still up for grabs entering the final day of the campaign, including an unprecedented three-way battle for the top spot in the Western Conference.
“We all know what got us to this point,” star point guard and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said postgame.
2 seed as the Thunder hold the tie-breaker based on the head-to-head record between the two teams this season.
The NBA Play-In tournament allows the four teams ranked seventh through 10th at the end of the regular season the opportunity to compete for the final two spots in each conference’s playoff bracket.
5 Magic – both Indiana and Orlando avoided the Play-In on the final day.
The NBA Play-In tournament runs through April 19 with the first round tipping off on April 20 and 21.
The 2023–24 NBA regular season has now concluded.
Sunday’s action featured all 30 teams, with postseason configurations subject to change until the 82nd game of the season. On the final day of the season, sixteen of the twenty playoff and play-in seeds were still up for grabs, including an unprecedented three-way race for the top spot in the Western Conference.
First time in league history, three teams with the same record through 81 games and an opportunity to win the No. 1 pick started the season with identical records: the Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Denver Nuggets. One seed was used in their conference.
In the end, OKC prevailed, defeating the struggling Dallas Mavericks team—which was missing eight rotation players—by a score of 49 points to claim the top rank.
MVP front-runner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander declared after the game, “We all know what got us to this point.”. Just strengthening that, putting our heads down, and having faith in the work. There’s a reason we’ve come this far; just stay on track. “.
Denver will have to make do with the No. 2 seed in the NBA, as the defending champion Nuggets triumphed over the Memphis Grizzlies 126-111 on the road, with eight players ending in double figures. 2 spot since the Thunder own the tiebreaker based on their season head-to-head record against the other team.
Ironically, the Timberwolves’ defeat to the Phoenix Suns 125-106 in their most recent game proved to be a preview of a potential postseason series, making them the only team among the top three seeds in the West to lose. Following their defeat, Minnesota was guaranteed the third seed in the postseason; as a result, the T-Wolves will play the sixth-placed Suns in the opening round.
The series between No. and will garner a lot of interest. Los Angeles Clippers, the fourth seed, and the No. 5 Dallas Mavericks, featuring Paul George, James Harden, and Kawhi Leonard taking on Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić, the team’s best two players.
The opponents for the Thunder and Nuggets in the first round are still pending. The NBA Play-In tournament gives the four teams that finished the regular season ranked seventh through tenth the chance to face off for the final two spots in each conference’s playoff bracket.
The eighth-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, led by LeBron James, will travel to take on the New Orleans Pelicans in order to earn a spot against Denver in the playoffs. The winner of that matchup will take on the No. 9 and the non-o. the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings, with a chance to go to the No. 8 seed and the series against OKC in jeopardy.
Not as crazy in the East.
Up in the East, however, things were a little less complicated. Finished 14 games ahead of their closest rival in the conference, the 64-18 Boston Celtics own the best record in the NBA. They put the No. under seal. March 1 seed and watch the Play-In tournament’s result.
Still, there was a lot of postseason rearranging going on in the East. Above all, the New York Knicks managed to secure a 50-win campaign and the No. 2 seed by defeating the Chicago Bulls 120-119 in overtime. It was a marathon game at Madison sq\. Garden, with Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo playing an incredible 52 minutes, and teammate Jalen Brunson leading the way in scoring with 40 points for the evening.
According to the NBA, New York’s record after the win was its best in eleven years.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau said, “I love these guys because you don’t have to wind them up.”. We won’t always be flawless and will make mistakes, but at least we’ll try, and I think that’s crucial. “.
Entering the final day of the season, both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers had an opportunity to secure the No. Two seeds. However, Cleveland was defeated by the struggling Charlotte Hornets, and Milwaukee lost to the Orlando Magic, dropping them to third and fourth place, respectively.
When the Bucks play the No. The Cavs and the No. 6 Indiana Pacers will square off. 5 Magic: On the last day, neither Orlando nor Indiana advanced to the Play-In.
Following their eighth-place finish in the standings, the Miami Heat, the runner-up team in the Finals the previous year, will travel to Philadelphia to face the 76ers in the opening round of the playoffs. Miami, which is led by all-star center Jimmy Butler, will be looking to repeat its heroics from last season, when it had to come from behind to advance to the Finals as the eighth seed through the Play-In.
The winner of the Bulls vs. Atlanta Hawks game will play the loser of that game for the last East spot and a series against the Celtics.
April 20 and 21 mark the start of the first round of the NBA Play-In tournament, which runs through April 19. June 6 is when the NBA Finals are supposed to start.
