The NBA playoff matchups are set as the regular season came to a close Sunday. With the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture locked in ahead of the final regular-season games, it was the Western Conference whose seeding came down to the wire.
Only three of the 10 seeds were decided heading into Sunday. The rest of the field’s seeding was determined on Sunday’s Decision Day, as a few teams got key wins to secure non-play-in spots.
Here’s how things shook out in the West after a busy final day of regular-season play.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder (68-14)
The Thunder fell just short of a 70-win season this year, but a 115-100 win against the New Orlean Pelicans on Sunday gives OKC another boost heading into the postseason. The Thunder’s first-round opponent will be determined by the two play-in games — with the team hopefully capping off one of the best regular seasons in years with a strong postseason run.
2. Houston Rockets (52-30)
It wasn’t the best end to the regular season for the Rockets, who lost 126-111 to the Denver Nuggets. But Houston had locked up the second seed prior to Sunday, so the loss did not matter for the postseason. The Rockets will now face the No. 7 seed, decided by the play-in, in the first round of the playoffs.
3. Los Angeles Lakers (50-32)
After already capturing the third seed, the Lakers put forward a young starting lineup for Sunday’s game against the Portland Trailblazers. That Bronny James-led lineup didn’t have much of a chance against Portland, with the Trailblazers beating the Lakers 109-81 — not that it mattered for the postseason. L.A. will now face the No. 6-seeded Timberwolves.
4. Denver Nuggets (50-32)
Despite the turmoil happening in Denver right now, the Nuggets were able to grab a big win over the Rockets on Sunday to secure the No. 4 seed. Denver will now have home-court advantage against the No. 5-seeded Clippers.
5. Los Angeles Clippers (50-32)
The most consequential matchup of the day was Clippers-Warriors, with the team teams facing off for a chance to avoid the play-in tournament. The game came down to the wire, with the two teams trading leads in the final minutes before heading to overtime.
In the end, the Clippers came out on top with a 124-119 win. L.A. escaped the play-in tournament and will travel to face the Nuggets in the first round.
6. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33)
With the Nos. 4-7 seeds so tight, the Timberwolves needed a win in order to avoid the play-in tournament. On Sunday, they got it, beating the Utah Jazz 116-105 to secure the No. 6 seed and get some momentum going into the postseason. Minnesota will now face the Lakers, the No. 3 seed, in the first round.
7. Golden State Warriors (48-34)
After the overtime loss to the Clippers, the Warriors will have to settle for a play-in matchup against Memphis, the No. 8 seed — but will host that matchup.
8. Memphis Grizzlies (48-34)
A win Sunday put the Grizzlies in solid position heading into the playoffs. Although Memphis fell short of securing home-court advantage, the 132-97 win over the Dallas Mavericks still builds some momentum. The Grizzlies will travel to play the Warriors in the play-in on Tuesday.
9. Sacramento Kings (40-42)
The Kings pulled off the 109-98 win over the Phoenix Suns to capture the No. 9 seed and home-court advantage for its play-in game. Sacramento will host Dallas, the final seed, after beating the Mavs in all three meetings this season.
10. Dallas Mavericks (39-43)
The Mavericks’ regular season came to an end with a 35-point loss to the Grizzlies, and now they face the Kings in the play-in.
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