Spurs locked at No. 2
Local reporting said the San Antonio Spurs were locked into the No. 2 seed before the final day of the regular season. (kens5.com) That left Denver’s final game to determine whether the Nuggets would finish third or fourth. (kens5.com)
San Antonio entered the regular-season finale with nothing left to gain in the standings: the Spurs had already clinched the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. (kens5.com) KENS 5 reported on April 12 that San Antonio was locked into second place before tipoff against Denver, even as the Nuggets still had seeding at stake. The Spurs finished the season 62-20, according to the National Basketball Association team page. (kens5.com) (nba.com) That setup made Denver’s final game unusually important for the bracket below San Antonio. KENS 5 reported the Nuggets could finish either No. 3 or No. 4, depending on the result in San Antonio and the Los Angeles Lakers-Utah Jazz game. (kens5.com) Denver beat San Antonio 128-118 on April 12 and held the No. 3 seed, while the Lakers’ 131-107 win over Utah left Los Angeles at No. 4. The National Basketball Association’s final-night recap said Denver’s finish set up a first-round series with Minnesota. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2) For San Antonio, the bigger consequence was rest and matchup clarity. As the No. 2 seed, the Spurs skip the SoFi National Basketball Association Play-In Tournament and wait for the winner of the West 7-versus-8 play-in path. (nba.com) (sportingnews.com) The Spurs had already secured their first playoff berth since 2019 and their first 60-win season since 2016-17. KENS 5 and National Basketball Association coverage both framed the late-season run as a return to contention after several years outside the postseason. (kens5.com) (nba.com) The regular-season finale also drew extra attention because it was moved to a national broadcast window. KENS 5 reported on April 8 that Spurs-Nuggets was added to the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network schedule for 7:30 p.m. Central Time on Sunday. (kens5.com) Now the standings are settled. The play-in tournament runs April 14 through April 17, and the first round of the National Basketball Association playoffs begins April 18 with San Antonio opening at home as the West’s No. 2 seed. (nba.com)
