The playoffs have practically arrived on our doorstep, the postseason picture clearly accentuated as we head into the final stretch of the regular season. There are just about 1-2 games left on each team’s schedule and for the teams that don’t have a shot in forcing a play-in tournament in their respective conference, they are just using their time to get more playing time to their young developmental pieces.
With that being said, that isn’t the case for three of the Western Conference’s squads still battling for that final playoff spot. Portland, San Antonio, and remarkably, Phoenix are all still mathematically alive as we enter the final full week of the regular season. Memphis losing their second-highest scorer Jaren Jackson Jr. was a heavy blow on the momentum and psyche of a young Grizzlies team, and it’s likely they fall through the cracks of playoff qualification criteria.
Portland (now only a full 0.5 games back) is on their heels, and with another 50-piece from Damian Lillard against the Sixers Sunday night, they could look to overtake Memphis on Tuesday if they can knock off seventh-seeded Dallas and if Boston can beat Memphis.
Phoenix, on the other hand, is the remaining undefeated team in the bubble at 6-0 and though they are a full 2.5 games under the Trail Blazers for the ninth seed, the deficit can somehow still be made up. As for the rest of the teams up in the rankings, the time that’d usually be utilized to give starters a breather have matriculated into valuable moments on the court to tune-up any breaches in chemistry or offensive/defensive inefficiency.
Both LA teams, Toronto, Milwaukee, Boston, Denver, and the rest are getting ready to piece together a deep playoff run, meaning the final games of this regular season should be exciting enough for fans to enjoy.
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1. Milwaukee Bucks (55-16, Bubble Record: 2-4, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)
For Milwaukee, health and rest is the answer. No need to bother chasing any more wins; Coach of the Year award recipient Mike Budenholzer has secured the best record in the NBA for the second year in a row for these Bucks. Clinching the No. 1 seed in the East was no minor feat nor was it remiss of difficulty, but the Bucks have been on this year, regardless if they’ve lost four of their five games inside the bubble.
MVP front-runner Giannis Antetokounmpo may have already secured his second-straight award, an accomplishment not seen since Stephen Curry’s marvelous back-to-back MVP seasons in 2015-2016, but further meshing Eric Bledsoe and Pat Connaughton (who recently returned to play after overcoming the Coronavirus) in the rotation to get them back into the swing of things is of utmost urgency.
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2. Toronto Raptors (51-19, Bubble Record: 5-1, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse is a fearless, uninhibited leader of men who has proven he can throw the worst of losses out of the window and out of memory. Bouncing back from a grotesque 22-point can opening of you-know-what handed to them by third-seeded Boston, Toronto put their only loss inside the bubble behind them, surviving a late-game push by Memphis and further proceeding to hand the fourth bubble loss to Eastern superior Milwaukee one night later.
A gameplan that’s full of lineup combinations where guys like Chris Boucher and Matt Thomas are expected to receive a hefty uptick in meaningful minutes, Nurse’s confidence in a Toronto team that’s secured their third-straight 50-win season is probably through the roof now, considering that they’re on pace to have an even better record than last year’s championship team when a significant All-Star by the name of Kawhi Leonard propelled them up to the pantheon of championship contenders.
This year, however, they’ve gotten it done by committee and are hoping this year turns out the same way last year did. If their record — and playoff path, they’ll play the undermanned seventh-seeded Brooklyn Nets first — permits, Toronto’s probability of retaining their place on top of the NBA hill could be increasingly likely.
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3. Los Angeles Clippers (47-23, Bubble Record: 3-3, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)
The Clippers go up one spot in this week’s rankings, not because of their average-at-best .500 record inside the Lake Buena Vista bubble, but because of who they’ll have healthy and returning to the team for what could be the definitive chase for a ring amongst every other team in the playoffs. Montrezl Harrell left the bubble on July 17 to tend to personal family matters as the NBA world collectively expressed their sympathies and support for the Louisville product, but now that he is back, a Clippers team at full capacity is perhaps the last thing anyone wants to see in the playoffs.
The Clippers had a rather eventful week, to put it euphemistically. It started out on Saturday as they kept resilient Portland at bay with Patrick Beverley and Paul George trolling Damian Lillard both at the free-throw line and on social media during Lillard’s game-sealing consecutive misses and bricked pull-up three, and on Sunday they lost a nail-biter to a personnel-deprived Brooklyn team in which Kawhi Leonard dropped 40.
Did those games matter in the grand scheme of things? Yes, and no. This didn’t quite impact their playoff seeding and positioning in the West, but it didn’t help either in their efforts to stop the Nuggets from swiping their spot in the West, now only 2.5 games away from doing so.
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4. Boston Celtics (47-23, Bubble Record: 4-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)
Starting out the week with a close loss to the Miami Heat, a potential team that these Celtics could very well be matched up with during the first round of the playoffs, Boston bounced back to lock themselves into the third seed in the East, one higher mark than their fourth seed last year.
The Celtics will fall short of 50 wins for a second-straight year, but that’s not really a means for concern for Celtics coach Brad Stevens. For just about every team in the East, Boston matches up well against each and every single one of them and to some, now growing into many, Boston has ascended the dark horse moniker, now with increased chances to overthrow Milwaukee and Toronto as the East’s likely candidate to earn a Finals berth.
Their week was headlined by two massive blowouts, both in significant proportion and by margin of victory. Boston avenged their loss to Miami with an explosive 149-115 blowout of No. 7 seed Brooklyn on Wednesday and kept the ball rolling two nights later, stomping a Toronto team they’ve only lost to once this year by a score of 122-100.
They led by as much as 40 at one point, and for a Boston team that a bevy of journalists and media personalities claimed they didn’t have enough firepower on the offensive end to hang with the best of them, the play of their two athletic wings in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Kemba Walker’s inconsistent, unimpressive numbers are certainly a fair cause for skepticism, though.
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5. Los Angeles Lakers (52-18, Bubble Record: 3-4, Last Week’s Ranking: 2)
Umm..could someone please tell the Lakers that the season restarted…
What we’ve seen from them inside the bubble raises eyebrows in all the wrong ways. Los Angeles has not resembled the regular season juggernaut they painted themselves to be during their seven games inside the bubble, and for Lakers fans, certain anxieties are justified after witnessing the slow jump out of the blocks by the tandem of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Offensively, the Lake Show has been anything but. Currently posing as the 27th-ranked team in basketball in effective field goal percentage on shots from outside the paint at 47.4 percent, (AKA the worst in the bubble) a lot of their integral rotational pieces have struggled mightily in the restart.
Dion Waiters, who started his tenure with LAL on the right foot with a fiery preseason, is currently shooting 4-23 from deep inside the bubble. Quinn Cook drained five threes on Saturday against Houston, but as a whole has not been that effective in the bubble, only shooting a combined 31 percent from the field in the five games he’s been active.
Woken up by two strong games by Davis and LBJ, as Davis dropped a game-high 42 points against Utah and James scored 22, as well as James leading the night in scoring with 29 (the first time he dropped more than his season average 25.4 in points per game in the bubble) and Davis scoring 27, it came down to a buzzer-beating fadeaway three by Kyle Kuzma (25 points in the win) called in an ATO side-out, against a Nuggets team that didn’t have any of their starters in.
Call it Frank Vogel resting his stars for the playoffs in a couple of days, but the struggling Lakers offense doesn’t ease the minds of the Laker faithful as they end their regular season.
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6. Houston Rockets (44-25, Bubble Record: 4-1, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)
Four of the Rockets’ five games have been against the league’s No. 1 offense for the season in the Dallas Mavericks, the league’s No. 1 offense in the bubble in the Portland Trail Blazers, and the top seeds in each conference in the Bucks and Lakers. You’d think small ball and getting those tough stops and defensive rebounds would have become a problem for Houston by now, right?
Wrong.
Surprisingly, Houston has posted the sixth-best defensive ranking in Orlando, having allowed just 102.6 points per 100 possessions in the four games since their 153-149 offensive bonanza against Dallas to restart the season. James Harden was voted as a finalist for the MVP award, his third-straight nomination in three seasons, and within the bubble, has taken on the challenge of guarding an opposing team’s best player.
He’s further contributed to the stellar numbers when it comes to Houston’s perimeter defense, as Houston was able to keep their first four opponents to shooting percentages to under 27 percent. Currently 4-1 in the bubble, they’ve had some hiccups in the health department, with both Russell Westbrook and Eric Gordon missing time due to lower-body ailments. That wasn’t an issue for Austin Rivers, who took it back to his Winter Park days with a career-high 41 points in 33 boosted minutes that you’d think was mixtape-worthy if you were to go through his highlights.
Rhythm is the name of the game for Houston, since it’s looking like Oklahoma City may be in their sights for the first round of the playoffs. If both Gordon and Westbrook are able to come back for the season’s conclusion in good health, that likely pits Russell Westbrook against his former team that he won an MVP and competed for in his first 11 years as an NBA pro.
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7. Denver Nuggets (46-25, Bubble Record: 3-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 6)
The Nuggets have a lot to look forward to in their not-too-distant future with Bol Bol and Michael Porter Jr. as the tall tandem was essentially the talk of the bubble for the past two weeks. It’s crazy to think that Bol Bol slipped down so far on draft boards because of injury concerns, and just how productive Porter Jr. has been out of the gate for his career while only participating in only three games at the collegiate level.
The former Gatorade Male Athlete of the Year back in 2017 has been and is ready to contribute now to add another dimension of scoring to an already dominant offense. Porter averaged 29.3 points while shooting 66 percent from the field (and shooting 23-for-24 from the charity stripe) in their four games last week and with his help, Denver kept their spot amidst the game’s best scoring teams, ranking sixth in total offensive rating.
Though they fought hard against a Lakers team that was clawing for a win, Denver lost by way of a Kyle Kuzma buzzer-beater. That doesn’t damage the morale of a Nuggets team that’s already locked in a playoff berth, since not a single starter (other than Mason Plumlee, you could argue) was on the floor during the fourth quarter. Will Barton, Gary Harris, and Jamal Murray are still in the process of getting back into basketball shape and when they do, this Nuggets team will be an arduous out come postseason time.
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8. Miami Heat (44-27, Bubble Record: 3-3, Last Week’s Ranking: 7)
TJ Warren was human after all, so it seems.
At least in the eyes of Heat star Jimmy Butler, perhaps. With both he and Goran Dragic’ returning to the starting five, Miami was at full capacity in Miami’s much-anticipated Monday night heavyweight duel and rematch between the Bubble-leading scorer TJ Warren and trash-talking Jimmy Butler. And promptly, Warren was dealt with, only held to 12 points on 5-14 shooting. And who was guarding him for the entire night? You guessed it…Jimmy Butler. He talked his trash back in January and backed it up, beating Warren’s Pacers in dominating fashion by double-digits.
Without him prior to their 114-92 win over Indiana, this Miami team deserved credit. They beat Boston without Jimmy Butler, losing Goran Dragic to an ankle injury during the win. They lost to the Bucks, but at one point led by 23 over the league’s best defense prior to losing it during a 20-5 run to start the second half (not to mention, a 20-5 run to end the game as well).
With the way Erik Spoelstra has them playing, #HEATCulture must really be a thing, considering the pesky defense, aggressive cutting, gratuitous screen-setting, and off-ball floor spacing for each perimeter scorer that has been done for each other.
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9. Dallas Mavericks (43-30, Bubble Record: 3-3, Last Week’s Ranking: 13)
So, good news: Dallas finally won a game in the clutch. Evident by the “Razmatazz Hop Skiddily Doo” Luka flashed on national airwaves to onlookers across the country and world during their overtime win against Milwaukee, the 21-year-old overcame the adversity onset by media experts talking about his inability to finish in the clutch with a signature Trip-Dub, the 25th in his career and the 12th Triple-Double of his career where he’s scored over 30 points.
The Slovenian superstar received criticism with his struggle to close games this season, (Mavs were 3-10 in total games coming down the final 3 minutes, worst clutch offensive rating in the NBA coming into Saturday’s contest, but he was able to force OT with two clutch free throws. There, he took over the game as a facilitator, dishing out four of his career-high 19 dimes in the extra period.
And speaking of that fourth assist, Doncic capped off the night with a web gem, whipping a nifty through-the-legs feed to the pick-and-rolling big Maxi Kleiber to attain that career-high 19th assist. As a team, Luka then contributed as a teammate and spectator during Dallas’ game against Utah, as Tim Hardaway Jr. caught fire from deep, scoring 27 in the win.
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10. Indiana Pacers (43-28, Bubble Record: 4-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 12)
The TJ Warren scoring expedition finally conceded last night during Indiana’s humbling 22-point loss to the Miami Heat, but what a run it was for a player no one expected to be the bubble’s leading scorer.
And what exactly was Warren’s most phenomenal game during this streak in the bubble, you ask? It’s all personal preference, really. The choices range between his 53 against Philly, his 34 against Washington, 32 against Orlando, or his capping-off 39 points against the Lakers, so take your pick. Though defeated by the Heat in which Warren was held to 12 points, Indiana has a greater chance of going up a seed over Philadelphia thanks to his play, who will be without Ben Simmons for the rest of the season with a knee injury.
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11. Oklahoma City Thunder (43-27, Bubble Record: 3-3, Last Week’s Ranking: 9)
For OKC, they take some momentous strides forward, and drastic steps back inside the bubble. Keep in mind, they’ve missed the presence of a Sixth Man of the Year candidate Dennis Schroeder as he’s left the bubble to be with his pregnant wife. Though they were able to beat the Lakers by 19 last Wednesday, they were trounced by the Grizzlies and Suns, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Danilo Gallinariall sat out during the Suns game.
Co-Coach of the Year Billy Donovan’s number one priority coming into the seeding games was all about keeping that momentum and chemistry built up prior to the season’s suspension on March 11, but that’s easier said than done when you’re missing several key pieces. The upside: more minutes for others like Hamidou Diallo and 2019 first-rounder Darius Bazley, who scored a career-high 23 points against the Wizards on Sunday.
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12. Portland Trail Blazers (33-39, Bubble Record: 4-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 14)
Two missed free throws followed by a missed pull-up three sparked a social media (and national media) firestorm on Saturday. Thanks to a troll job by Patrick Beverley, who served as a shouting distraction during Lillard’s missed chances at the charity stripe, an incensed Damian Lillard came about one night later during a 51-point explosion by Lillard against the 76ers.
It got pretty personal between the Clippers’ duo of Beverley and Paul George (whose S/Os somehow got involved in an Instagram back-and-forth over the small debacle that took place inside the comments section of a Bleacher Report IG post) and Lillard festered that energy into his fifth 50+ point game this season, and the 10th 50+ point game for his career.
Portland is in the best position to claim the eighth and final seed in the Western playoffs from the struggling Memphis Grizzlies, who lost their second-best player Jaren Jackson Jr. for the rest of the season due to a torn meniscus. A favorable end to their schedule with Dallas and Brooklyn to close out their regular season may imply that Dame D.O.L.L.A may have successfully run the table to will the Blazers into playoff contention.
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13. Utah Jazz (43-28, Bubble Record: 2-5, Last Week’s Ranking: 11)
The playoff outlook for the Utah Jazz doesn’t look all that accomodating for a 43-win team that’s struggled to both defend the perimeter and score from it, and with their blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night, it’s likely they’ll have to face the Denver Nuggets as the fourth-seeded team out West since they’ll be unable to improve their position with such a limited amount of games left. In fact, their only game is against a Spurs team that is also tenacious and hungry in their efforts to force a play-in tournament for the eighth seed in the West.
It’s both a blessing and a curse for these Jazz to face up against a “lesser” opponent in the Nuggets in the first round, namely because of the avoidance of playing Houston to kick off their postseason campaign.
Houston has eliminated the Jazz from the playoffs for the last three years, but Denver is no slouch. Not even in the slightest.
The Jazz have failed to beat the Nuggets once this year, and at 0-3 on the season, Rudy Gobert has struggled to stop Nugs big man Nikola Jokic on several occasions. Asking Gobert, a defensive player of the year, to stop the best big man in the NBA in Jokic poses more as a huge question mark for the Jazz than a definitive order. Jokic has averaged 29.3 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists during their three wins over Utah this year.
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14. Phoenix Suns (32-39, Bubble Record: 6-0, Last Week’s Ranking: 19)
So…the nonsensical jibber-jabber muttered from us to our readers about discerning all of this exciting play by this Suns team…we were wrong about this being a time for “development”.
The Phoenix Suns…are legit.
Devin Booker looks and plays like a superstar when he has consistent help around him, and it’s gratifying to see a Suns team with a bright future perform so well against some tough competition during this magical 6-0 run. Some crazy numbers, brought to you by ESPN’s Marc Young: “Before the shutdown, the Suns ranked 16th in offensive rating (110.2) and 19th in defensive rating (111.3). In the bubble, the Suns are seventh offensively (115.0) and suddenly elite defensively, ranking fourth (107.0).”
During the longest winning streak of Devin Booker’s career and the Phoenix Suns’ longest winning streak since 2014, their rotation has been magnificent. The Cameron crew: Cameron Payne and Cameron Johnson have been a sparkplug offensively, and don’t be surprised if you see rookie Cam Johnson earn All-Rookie First (or second) Team selections after this season is over.
They are only 0.5 games out of grabbing the ninth seed and with a win on Tuesday against undermanned Philadelphia, a Portland loss to the Dallas Mavericks and a Grizzlies loss to the Celtics, the Phoenix Suns will be in prime position to overtake the eighth seed, just like that.
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15. San Antonio Spurs (31-38, Bubble Record: 4-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 16)
Hope is still alive for the San Antonio Spurs, who don’t want their 22-year streak of making the postseason vanish. They keep climbing the ranks and toppling teams inching closer to the eighth seed, and what’s more important, they’re winning with some valuable minutes coming from Jakob Poetl and Drew Eubanks off the bench. DeMar DeRozan has unsuspectingly transformed himself back into his 2018 MVP candidate form, evident in their double-digit victory over the Pelicans, who were eliminated from playoff contention this past weekend as a result of the loss.
Just like Portland, Gregg Popovich’s Spurs sit right below the Grizzlies with a deficit of 0.5 games needed to catch up on the Blazers and a full game behind Grizzlies. If they can find a way to beat Houston on Tuesday, a berth in the Western play-in tournament will be their incentive.
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16. Philadelphia 76ers (42-28, Bubble Record: 3-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 10)
Things have gone from bad to really, really bad for Brett Brown and his Philadelphia 76ers. Losing Ben Simmons for what will probably be the year to a knee procedure to remove a loose body was a terrible enough blow to the confidence of an offensively stifled Sixers team that’ll be without their point forward, but losing Joel Embiid for an “insignificant” ankle injury isn’t something Philly can afford right now.
Their final three games on the schedule (6-0 Phoenix, 6-1 Toronto and Houston) all aren’t the type to go easy on them, either.
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17. Brooklyn Nets (34-36, Bubble Record: 4-2, Last Week’s Ranking: 20)
Not a bad week at all for the Brooklyn Nets and more specifically, interim head coach Jacque Vaughn. The Nets have already clinched the seventh seed in the playoffs, and though a majority of their starters are out due to opt-outs or injuries, the Nets were able to be pragmatic toward their pessimistic situation of a difficult schedule meeting a lack of personnel. Going 4-2 on the week is no small feat, especially when you beat the West’s best candidate to represent them in the Finals in the Clippers while also surviving a scoring onslaught by Kawhi Leonard in a 129-120 win.
Additionally, a win against the Bucks in which Joe Harris, Caris LeVert, and Jarrett Allen upped the morale of a Nets team that a lot of speculators didn’t think they would come into the bubble with.
The first round of the playoffs will probably be forgetful one as a date with the Toronto Raptors is imminent. But Vaughn is impressed with what he’s seen from his rotational guys, and can only be more confident to factor guys like Rodions Kurucs, Dzanan Musa, Caris LeVert, Joe Harris and Jarrett Allen with the likes of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving the moment the next season arrives.
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18. Memphis Grizzlies (33-38, Bubble Record: 1-5, Last Week’s Ranking: 18)
The lack of movement in this week’s power rankings by these Grizzlies is understandable: since last week, Taylor Jenkins received word of Jaren Jackson Jr. tearing the meniscus in his left knee during a contest of an opponent’s shot, and the second-year big man out of Michigan State, who was averaging a steady 17.1 points per game, will be sidelined for the rest of the year. That’s unfortunate news for the Grizzlies who are hanging on to the mere strings of a thread trying to keep their postseason hopes alive, though it’s not looking peachy with a 1-5 record inside the Bubble.
Ja Morant is a surefire choice for Rookie of the Year, but the Celtics and Bucks are next on the schedule for the Grizz. And it seems like a play-in tournament featuring either the Suns, Blazers or Spurs will determine who walks into a first-round matchup with the No. 1 seeded Lakers is the most likely event to happen now.
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19. Orlando Magic (32-39, Bubble Record: 2-4, Last Week’s Ranking: 15)
The last of the playoff-qualifying teams is the second-most damaged one. As the Magic lost Jonathan Isaac to a torn ACL, a severely disappointing week followed. Aaron Gordon suffered a hamstring injury as a result of a dirty foul by Toronto’s Kyle Lowry. Michael Carter-Williams went down with a foot injury. And Evan Fournier came down with a sickness (not COVID-19). On top of that, they lost a five-point lead late in the fourth quarter of their overtime loss thanks to the heroics of Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics.
But even without the bodies needed to accumulate wins, Markelle Fultz, Gary Clark, Nikola Vucevic, and Terrence Ross all gave a mightly effort. That’s been the mantra of their season, though: enough guys to play hard and hang on until late, but too little star power to get those wins against higher-tier opponents.
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20. New Orleans Pelicans (30-40, Bubble Record: 2-4, Last Week’s Ranking: 17)
Alvin Gentry could be looking for a new job come the offseason. The Pelicans were eliminated from the postseason following a defeat at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs as a result of a molasses-like start, as well as a Portland win against the Philadelphia 76ers just hours later.
Lonzo Ball came into the bubble as one of the hottest shooters in basketball at the point guard spot, averaging 20.8 points ant a 40 percent shooting percentage from downtown. The jerky shot method went away and Ball’s jumper was finally falling.
But since the restart began, he was never able to find a consistent rhythm, averaging 5.7 points while shooting less than 26 percent with a downtown average of 19 percent. Though not relied on as a third scoring option, New Orleans was seriously affected by his abhorrent shooting performances.
Now, they’re getting ready to pack their bags and head back to the Big Easy.
So much for “the easiest schedule”.
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21. Sacramento Kings (29-41, Bubble Record: 1-5, Last Week’s Ranking: 21)
The Kings were also eliminated from postseason contention for the 14th season in a row, the longest drought of any team in the NBA.
Portland beating Philly was the final nail in the coffin as Dame Time took over in the second half against the Sixers, but that wasn’t the final cause of death for the Kings. Injury to integral parts of their team like Marvin Bagley Jr. (someone they’ll seriously have to evaluate in the coming months to see if he can really be a part of the Kings’ future plans due to his fearsome injury history) have hurt them drastically, but their offensive inconsistency, questionable lineup combinations and poor defense — Sacramento has posted a 119.4 defensive rating, making them the 19th best defensive team in the bubble — is sending them home early.
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22. Washington Wizards (24-46, Bubble Record: 0-6, Last Week’s Ranking: 22)
The Wizards have officially been eliminated from playoff contention, but not like that really shocked anyone. Still, they’re the only winless team inside the bubble and pose a total net rating of -4.5.
Their plans lie in next year’s chase at a playoff spot, as both Bradley Beal and John Wall will return to a new-look Wizards team that’ll be 100 percent healthy.
