The NBA regular season came to an end last night. 82 ultra-competitive games for each NBA team leading up to what we can only hope will be an even more exciting postseason. The matchups for the Play-In Tournament, taking place April 12-15, are now officially set.
Matchups
The Eastern conference throws up some exciting fixtures. No. 7 seed, Brooklyn Nets will face the No. 8 seed Cleveland Cavaliers. No. 9 seed Atlanta Hawks will face the No. 10 seed Charlotte Hornets. In the West, the No. 7 seed Minnesota Timberwolves will take on the No. 8 seed Los Angeles Clippers. The No. 9 seed New Orleans Pelicans go up against the No. 10 seed San Antonio Spurs.
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Playoffs Favorites – Brooklyn Nets
It is unusual for a team so stacked with talent to have to compete in the play-in tournament. Brooklyn find themselves in this position due to injuries, Kyrie being unavailable and a lot of roster issues. There’s a theory that several teams tried to avoid a potential first round match up with the Nets last night. Considering the talent available, they will be heavy favorites to defeat the Cavaliers and go into the playoffs as the #7 seed. That should set up a tasty first round match up against the Boston Celtics.
As for the rest of the league, the Miami Heat (53-29) finish as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, while the Boston Celtics (51-31) are the No. 2 seed. The No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks will take on the No. 6 Chicago Bulls, while the No. 4 Philadelphia 76ers will face the No. 5 Toronto Raptors. In the Western Conference, the Phoenix Suns (64-18) hold the No. 1 seed, and the Memphis Grizzlies (56-26) are No. 2. The No. 3 Golden State Warriors (53-29) will play the No. 6 Denver Nuggets (48-33), while the No. 4 Dallas Mavericks (52-30) will take on the No. 5 Utah Jazz (49-33).
