West Playoff Seedings & Projections (Page 4 UPDATE)

[Deivork]

As of today, with 3.5 weeks and 12-13 games of regular season to go we stand at:

1.OKC 48-20
2.DEN 48-21
3.MIN 47-22
4.LAC 43-25
5.NOP 42-26
6.SAC 40-28
--
7.DAL 40-29
8.PHO 40-29
9.LAL 37-32
10.GSW 36-32
--
11.HOU 33-35

What do you think the final seedings will be?

What would you like it to be and what match-ups would you like to see happen in the west playoffs?

[Deivork]

Personally I would root for a Clippers-Nuggets WCF, because I think they're the 2 best and imo most deserving teams. For that to be possible OKC should keep the 1st seed and LA should not overtake Minnesota for the 3rd. Or else they both should move up one spot. I see the former as the likelier possibility because the Clippers have slipped off a bit lately and are 3.5 games below the Wolves, who are keeping up despite being one KAT down. We'll see.

[Deivork]

I would somehow hope too that Dallas doesn't draw Denver, because it's the toughest match-up and they could have chances against Clippers, Thunder or Wolves imo. But there's a fair chance that Luka will face Jokic in the first round via 1-8 or 2-7 seeds.

[life_saver]

Personally I would root for a Clippers-Nuggets WCF, because I think they're the 2 best and imo most deserving teams. For that to be possible OKC should keep the 1st seed and LA should not overtake Minnesota for the 3rd. Or else they both should move up one spot. I see the former as the likelier possibility because the Clippers have slipped off a bit lately and are 3.5 games below the Wolves. We'll see.

Why exactly would Clippers especially be more deserving than Wolves, Thunder ? Also I haven't seen much evidence to say Clippers are better team than Wolves at this point. Wolves will beat Clippers if they meet in playoffs

[Deivork]

I think Dallas gets in via play-in, but there's a fair chance that Phoenix misses out altogether: either by sleeping to the 9th seed (tough remaining schedule) or simply losing to both Dallas/Sacramento and Lakers/Warriors. Which of these teams would have the best chance against OKC? Maybe Lakers actually stand the best chance. That'd be quite the story for the Lakers to be in the 2nd round from the 8th/9th/10th seed.

[Deivork]

Personally I would root for a Clippers-Nuggets WCF, because I think they're the 2 best and imo most deserving teams. For that to be possible OKC should keep the 1st seed and LA should not overtake Minnesota for the 3rd. Or else they both should move up one spot. I see the former as the likelier possibility because the Clippers have slipped off a bit lately and are 3.5 games below the Wolves. We'll see.

Why exactly would Clippers especially be more deserving than Wolves, Thunder ? Also I haven't seen much evidence to say Clippers are better team than Wolves at this point. Wolves will beat Clippers if they meet in playoffs

It's mostly subjective, I like them better and I want veterans to have their chance. That's why I stated "in my opinion".

Edit: also, as the standings are and my projections, for the Wolves to meet the Clips it would very likely need to be in the 3rd round. That's very unlikely to happen statistically, so I guess we won't know if Minnesota would indeed beat LA this year.

[NyKnicks1714]

If I'm OKC, I think I'd rather face the Pelicans or Kings than any of the 7-10 teams. As teams they're obviously not as good, but all four have veteran superstars who have won championships before, and Luka is scary too.

[Deivork]

Pelicans could definitely beat the Clippers in the first round though, they just beat them recently and specially if they move up to 4. Clippers would have it easier if they move up to 3 and instead face Sacramento imo.

[cupcakesnake]

If I'm OKC, I think I'd rather face the Pelicans or Kings than any of the 7-10 teams. As teams they're obviously not as good, but all four have veteran superstars who have won championships before, and Luka is scary too.

I'm not feeling the threat of those veteran superstars. It would be one thing if they were coasting through the regular season, or were an injured team getting healthy for the playoffs. Instead... KD, AD, Lebron, and Curry have been busting themselves trying to get these wins and the results are still mid.

I think if you have a strong defense, you're confident against these mid teams with superstars. OKC has a lot to throw at them defensively, and then that drive and kick offense is just going to rip a defense like Phoenix's to absolute shreds. I don't view these older teams as having another gear. KD is playing 37mpg. Lebron and AD have played big minutes all season for the first time in 5 years. I lean more towards thinking these teams are what they are at this point, and superstar magic isn't going to save their seasons.

I don't fear the Kings significantly more, because they don't have the defense. The Pelicans though... very weird team, hard to figure out. A lot of offense and a lot of defense, though not always at the same time. I'm more worried about the Pelicans figuring it out because they're the only ones that have shown signs of being a good team.

[Dick Tate]

It would be hilarious if the Rockets could pass the Warriors for the play-in.

[Deivork]

It would be hilarious if the Rockets could pass the Warriors for the play-in.

It definitely would.

[Marrrcuss]

The play in matchups are damn near set, with the possibility that Sac-town drops into it and Dallas takes the 6.

Denver and Minnesota could 'let' OKC keep the 1 so they can deal with the winner of LA and GSW.

[Clav]

1.OKC 48-20
2.DEN 48-21
3.MIN 47-22
4.LAC 43-25
5.NOP 42-26
6.SAC 40-28
--
7.DAL 40-29
8.PHO 40-29
9.LAL 37-32
10.GSW 36-32
--
11.HOU 33-35


Toughest schedules remaining (tankathon) as of MARCH 21
2 PHX, 4 SAC, 5 OKC, 6 NOLA, 11 LAC, 13 HOU, 17 MIN, 19 GSW, 20 LAL, 25 DAL, 29 DEN

DEN as the 1 seed seems likely to me, with its 29th easiest schedule remaining vs 5th for OKC... Thunder have a lot of matchups vs WC teams left and some clean up on EC yet to be played (MIL x2 IND BOS PHL). BOS and MIL play OKC...but both teams may be resting for POs if seeding is secured, skewing the schedule difficulty a bit for me. DEN has a clear path to win vs lesser teams in the final weeks.

NOLA SAC and LAC have pretty hard schedules too. The best team to predict a scramble up the table is Dallas @ 5th easiest schedule remaining by record and could clean up to overtake Sacramento - DAL and SAC play 2 times more this season, those are huge games.

PHX has a brutal end of the year with games vs OKC MIN MIN DEN LAC LAC NOLA NOLA and CLE still to come. They play Atlanta tonight and need to win this game badly.

Connecting points - IND CLE PHL ORL play WC teams fighting for position. All 4 are fighting for EC position as well.
IND - OKC, LAC, LAL x2, GSW
CLE - DEN, MIN, LAC, PHX, LAL
PHL - OKC, LAC x2, SAC, LAL
ORL - LAC, NOLA x2, SAC, GSW

[Deivork]

Spoiler:

1.OKC 48-20
2.DEN 48-21
3.MIN 47-22
4.LAC 43-25
5.NOP 42-26
6.SAC 40-28
--
7.DAL 40-29
8.PHO 40-29
9.LAL 37-32
10.GSW 36-32
--
11.HOU 33-35


Toughest schedules remaining (tankathon) as of MARCH 21
2 PHX, 4 SAC, 5 OKC, 6 NOLA, 11 LAC, 13 HOU, 17 MIN, 19 GSW, 20 LAL, 25 DAL, 29 DEN

DEN as the 1 seed seems likely to me, with its 29th easiest schedule remaining vs 5th for OKC... Thunder have a lot of matchups vs WC teams left and some clean up on EC yet to be played (MIL x2 IND BOS PHL). BOS and MIL play OKC...but both teams may be resting for POs if seeding is secured, skewing the schedule difficulty a bit for me. DEN has a clear path to win vs lesser teams in the final weeks.

NOLA SAC and LAC have pretty hard schedules too. The best team to predict a scramble up the table is Dallas @ 5th easiest schedule remaining by record and could clean up to overtake Sacramento - DAL and SAC play 2 times more this season, those are huge games.

PHX has a brutal end of the year with games vs OKC MIN MIN DEN LAC LAC NOLA NOLA and CLE still to come. They play Atlanta tonight and need to win this game badly.

Connecting points - IND CLE PHL ORL play WC teams fighting for position. All 4 are fighting for EC position as well.
IND - OKC, LAC, LAL x2, GSW
CLE - DEN, MIN, LAC, PHX, LAL
PHL - OKC, LAC x2, SAC, LAL
ORL - LAC, NOLA x2, SAC, GSW

Great post! Thank you!

[codydaze]

1.OKC 48-20
2.DEN 48-21
3.MIN 47-22
4.LAC 43-25
5.NOP 42-26
6.SAC 40-28
--
7.DAL 40-29
8.PHO 40-29
9.LAL 37-32
10.GSW 36-32
--
11.HOU 33-35


Toughest schedules remaining (tankathon) as of MARCH 21
2 PHX, 4 SAC, 5 OKC, 6 NOLA, 11 LAC, 13 HOU, 17 MIN, 19 GSW, 20 LAL, 25 DAL, 29 DEN

DEN as the 1 seed seems likely to me, with its 29th easiest schedule remaining vs 5th for OKC... Thunder have a lot of matchups vs WC teams left and some clean up on EC yet to be played (MIL x2 IND BOS PHL). BOS and MIL play OKC...but both teams may be resting for POs if seeding is secured, skewing the schedule difficulty a bit for me. DEN has a clear path to win vs lesser teams in the final weeks.

NOLA SAC and LAC have pretty hard schedules too. The best team to predict a scramble up the table is Dallas @ 5th easiest schedule remaining by record and could clean up to overtake Sacramento - DAL and SAC play 2 times more this season, those are huge games.

PHX has a brutal end of the year with games vs OKC MIN MIN DEN LAC LAC NOLA NOLA and CLE still to come. They play Atlanta tonight and need to win this game badly.

Connecting points - IND CLE PHL ORL play WC teams fighting for position. All 4 are fighting for EC position as well.
IND - OKC, LAC, LAL x2, GSW
CLE - DEN, MIN, LAC, PHX, LAL
PHL - OKC, LAC x2, SAC, LAL
ORL - LAC, NOLA x2, SAC, GSW

Yeah, for Sac, we play Dallas twice and Phoenix once who are competing directly with us for the 6 spot. If we go 3-0 in those games we pretty much lock up that 6 spot but after tonight's game in Washington, the remaining schedule consists pretty much entirely of playoff caliber teams.

[Exp0sed]

The play in matchups are damn near set, with the possibility that Sac-town drops into it and Dallas takes the 6.

Denver and Minnesota could 'let' OKC keep the 1 so they can deal with the winner of LA and GSW.

that makes no sense in this case, as they both presumably aspire to win the West, so they might have to beat OKC. giving up HCA in a potential series is too much trade off for getting a different 1st rd matchup..

[mkot]

The play in matchups are damn near set, with the possibility that Sac-town drops into it and Dallas takes the 6.

Denver and Minnesota could 'let' OKC keep the 1 so they can deal with the winner of LA and GSW.

that makes no sense in this case, as they both presumably aspire to win the West, so they might have to beat OKC. giving up HCA in a potential series is too much trade off for getting a different 1st rd matchup..

I always believe in not playing with the basketball god, I also think the Nuggets will 'let' the Thunder have the #1 seed because they want to rest their starters. Jokić been the iron man but he only missed two games so far, they may want him to rest 1-2 game to keep him fresher for the playoffs. MPJ only missed 1 which is surprising consider his injury history but they may also want to rest him 1-2 game before the playoffs start. Murray is injury prone so they definitely want to keep an eye on him and last I heard he is still dealing with shin splints and that's not something that will go away easy.

OKC is going hard every night but they are young and healthy, I think they keep the #1 seed despite the tougher schedule/opponents the rest of the way.

[Exp0sed]

The play in matchups are damn near set, with the possibility that Sac-town drops into it and Dallas takes the 6.

Denver and Minnesota could 'let' OKC keep the 1 so they can deal with the winner of LA and GSW.

that makes no sense in this case, as they both presumably aspire to win the West, so they might have to beat OKC. giving up HCA in a potential series is too much trade off for getting a different 1st rd matchup..

I always believe in not playing with the basketball god, I also think the Nuggets will 'let' the Thunder have the #1 seed because they want to rest their starters. Jokić been the iron man but he only missed two games so far, they may want him to rest 1-2 game to keep him fresher for the playoffs. MPJ only missed 1 which is surprising consider his injury history but they may also want to rest him 1-2 game before the playoffs start. Murray is injury prone so they definitely want to keep an eye on him and last I heard he is still dealing with shin splints and that's not something that will go away easy.

OKC is going hard every night but they are young and healthy, I think they keep the #1 seed despite the tougher schedule/opponents the rest of the way.

they'll find time to rest guys here and there, no doubt but I doubt they'll rest more than that unless they get close to securing the 1st or on the contrary, get too far back and decide to just go for more rest

Jokic is fine, he's in his prime. MPJ issues weren't of the load managment kind and he's also young, doesn't play heavy mins and doesn't seem in need of any rest. Murray is the exception and i'm sure they'll rest him more, on some of the easier matchups of their schedule, knowing that Jokic alone would suffice

I'm sure they'll have a coupe of games playing against some bottom feeder and depleted lineups, perhaps of tanking teams or teams looking to avoid a certain matchup and sitting eveyrone out, so they'll rest Jokic in those..

more importantly tha what you or I believe, I get the sense that Malone and Jokic believe that too, just play every game you can and do ur best, don't worry about the rest

thus I don't expect much rest..we'll see

[Deshaun Taden]

West is pretty open. Denver as slight favorites but realistically you can see any of 8 teams coming out of the West. Obviously some more likely then others. Heck, maybe even 10 teams, teams like GSW and Lakers are proven, although doubtful you just can't quite completely count them out.

As it is I think the seeds go:

1. Denver
2. OKC
3. TWolves
4. LAC
5. Pels

Maybe switch OKC with TWolves but otherwise I think this 5 is fairly possible in this order.

6. Mavs
7. Kings
8. Lakers
9. Suns
10. GSW

These are a bit harder to me, Kings and Mavs could switch around too but I'm not particularly confident period. Suns and Lakers could swap, GSW could move up a little.

But I'll go with this for the moment.

Play-ins:

Kings-Lakers playin----I take LBJ and the Lakers. Not confident again, mind you, but I'll take that.
Suns-GSW playin----I'll take the Suns here.
Kings-Suns---The prophesy is fulfilled, the SunKings in the playoffs, they combine their powers for the final playoff seed! Or not, actually this would be an incredibly exciting game. About as even as can be. Let's say the Kings for now, but keep Suns in mind too for first round matchups.

Divisional Round:

Seeds are as follows:

1. Denver
2. Minnesota
3. Oklahoma City
4. Los Angeles (C)
5. New Orleans
6. Dallas
7. Los Angeles (L)
8. Sacramento

LAC-Pels---You'd think LAC but...man that's a hard one, they struggle against the Pels. Playoff Kawhi though, if healthy, is just too much. LAC in 6.

Mavs-Minny---Is KAT going to be back? I think this is a tougher matchup for Dallas than OKC would be, I'd actually take Dallas over OKC. But I think ANT and the Twolves, even without KAT, are just a bit too much for Dallas. Give me Minnesota in 7, a great series that will be forgotten by next season.

Lakers-OKC----OKC should win but, does LBJ have another in him? Is AD playing? If AD plays, I think Lakers in 7. Yes another 7 game series. And a big upset, if you ignore LBJ's entire career anyway. OKC is still a year or two away from being able to beat playoff LBJ imo.

Kings-Denver----Denver and Jokic are just too much for Sacramento. Denver in 5, a gentleman's sweep. Now if Phoenix gets the draw here however, I could see them being a real threat, maybe even winning a series. Still would favor Denver but it would be 6 or 7. Phoenix is a major wild card, let's say they do get that 8 seed and beat Denver, at that point, they'd have as good a shot as anyone for a chip imo. Obviously at that point they'd be a final 4 out of the West, facing the winner of the 4-5 next, which would be either Pels or LAC. No matter what, either of those teams could get injured and flame out. And the other side of the bracket can also be worn down, the Suns just have a ton of firepower to work with, and of course injuries can affect them too, but with more superstars in a playoff environment, the odds are just better and the wear can be spread out. But let's say Denver for now and ignore the rest of that.

WCSF:

LAC-Denver: This could be an absolutely great series. Jokic is very likely the best player in the game and he's at the peak of his powers. And even them, playoff Kawhi just might be better. Injuries probably pop up but we as fans of course do not want that to happen. I say LAC is healthy enough, maybe a Russ injury happens in there somewhere and they band together, LAC in, I'll say, 6.

Lakers-Twolves: LBJ will defy age again, but this time it's not enough, Wolves take it in 7.

WCF:

LAC-Wolves: A game but worn down ANT keeps coming, but Gobert's offensive liability ultimately turns the series. A healthy KAT would shift it but I assume he's out all playoffs, LAC in 6.

NBA Finals (bonus): Clippers vs. Celtics---familiar towns different LA team. Celtics in 6, your NBA champions. Unless somehow Miami beat them in which case Clippers win their first chip.

[jkvonny]

1-3 Seeds
Interchangeable
Going to be either Minn, Denver, OC. In any order.

4/5 Seeds
Could either flip flop Pels and Clips. Winner gets HCA.

6 Seed
Kings

Play ins
6/7 Seed Suns/Mavs. Winner gets HCA

8 Seed
Lakers HCA against GSW/Houston

9/10 Seeds
Could be GSW or the red hot Rockets

I think that the bottom play in teams beats each other out of the playoffs (Lakers probably wins over GSW/Rockets). Then the loser of the Suns/Mavs (HCA) play in game beats the Lakers in the play in run off game, for the final playoff spot.
Once the dust settles after the play in games.
Suns 7 seed in playoffs. Mavs 8th seed in playoffs.