Playoff picture tightens
The NBA postseason race just sharpened — the Denver Nuggets have officially clinched a playoff berth and the Philadelphia 76ers jumped into the East’s top six as teams jockey for seeding ahead of the April 14–17 Play‑In and April 18 playoff start. Boston is pushing for the No. 2 seed after a key win, Atlanta has won 17 of its last 19 and multiple clinching scenarios are live this week. (cbssports.com) (si.com) (youtube.com)
Denver clinched a spot on Mar. 31 after the Phoenix Suns’ 115-111 loss to Orlando sealed Denver’s place in the postseason, a streak-extending eighth straight trip to the playoffs. (denversports.com) The Nuggets sit 49-28 following their win over Utah and have six regular-season games remaining to determine final seeding. (espn.com) Philadelphia moved into the East’s No. 6 spot at 42-34 after its road win and Toronto’s 123-115 loss to Sacramento on Apr. 1 dropped the Raptors into a tie the Sixers currently control via tiebreakers. (cbssports.com) (espn.com) Boston’s push for the East No. 2 seed comes with a 51-25 ledger and seven regular-season games left, and New York owns the head-to-head tiebreaker with one remaining matchup at Madison Square Garden on Apr. 9 that could decide the seeding. (espn.com) (masslive.com) Atlanta’s 130-101 road rout of Orlando pushed the Hawks to 44-33 and marked their 17th win in the last 19 games, raising their ESPN BPI top-six odds into the mid-90s and making a top-six clinch highly likely. (espn.com) (si.com) Multiple clinching permutations remain this week: Cleveland is one win from clinching a berth and can secure it in Thursday’s game against Golden State, while the NBA’s updated postseason tracker lists which teams have already clinched and which can clinch with specific results before the Apr. 12 regular-season finale. (cbssports.com) (nba.com)
