The Playoffs Are Set

04/10/2023 The Playoffs Are Set

By: Jeff Yoder

Play-In Schedule, Postseason Format & More as NBA Regular Season Ends

The NBA’s pre-playoff weekend was full of highlights and postseason movement. And while one G-League call-up popped off for 42 points to set the social media world on fire, all eyes are on the play-in games coming up this week. The Mavericks and Jazz got bounced down the stretch, and we’ve got the Lakers-Timberwolves in the play-in after that mid-season blockbuster trade. Too many weekend games to unpack means we’ll focus on what’s to come. Here’s a look at the playoff picture with play-in games on Tuesday and Wednesday.

 

The Play-In Format: The 7-8 seeds and 9-10 seeds will face off in the play-in round to determine the final bracket of 16 teams. The 9 and 10 seeds will have to win two games to get in while the 7-8 seeds need to win one out of two. The winner of each 7-8 matchup will earn the 7-seed while the loser will play the winner of the 9-10 matchup to determine the 8-seed.

 

NBA Playoffs

 

Eastern Conference

1. Bucks (58-24)

2. Celtics (57-25)

3. 76ers (54-28)

4. Cavaliers (51-31)

5. Knicks (47-35)

6. Nets (45-37)

7. Heat (44-38)

8. Hawks (41-41)

9. Raptors (41-41)

10. Bulls (40-42)

 

East Play-In

#7 Heat vs. #8 Hawks (Tues. 7:30 pm ET)

#9 Raptors vs. #10 Bulls (Wed. 7:00 pm ET)

 

Western Conference

1. Nuggets (53-29)

2. Grizzlies (51-31)

3. Kings (48-34)

4. Suns (45-37)

5. Clippers (44-38)

6. Warriors (44-38)

7. Lakers (43-39)

8. Timberwolves (42-40)

9. Pelicans (42-40)

10. Thunder (40-42)

 

West Play-In

#7 Lakers vs. #8 Timberwolves (Tues. 10:00 pm ET)

#9 Pelicans vs. #10 Thunder (Wed. 9:30 pm ET)

 

Full NBA Playoff Bracket & Schedule

 

Additional Storylines

HoH: Grizzlies’ G-League Call-Up Kenny Lofton Jr. Scores 42 in NBA Debut (Video)

ESPN: LeBron James Says Lakers Must ‘Stay On Edge’ for Play-In Game

USA Today: NBA Playoffs: Which Teams Made the Postseason & How Did They Get In?