some East seeding scenarios for tonight's games

Here are the games of importance on Wednesday night:

• Toronto Raptors (59-22) @ Miami Heat (43-38)
• Washington Wizards (43-38) @ Orlando Magic (24-57)
• Milwaukee Bucks (44-37) @ Philadelphia 76ers (51-30)

The Raptors and Magic have nothing to play for. Obviously the Heat, Bucks and Wizards are all still positioning. And the Sixers need a win the clinch the #3 seed in the East (the Cavaliers, 50-31, play the Knicks.)

How the Heat get the 6th seed...(vs Philadelphia)
1. A Heat win and Bucks loss

How the Heat get the 7th seed... (vs Boston)
Any combination of the following:
1. A Heat loss and a Wizards loss
2. A Heat win and a Bucks win

How the Heat get the 8th seed... (vs Toronto)
1. A Heat loss and a Wizards win

[h=3]The Nuggets and Timberwolves are fighting to the death[/h]Well, not actual real-life death, but it’s a sudden death! The Nuggets and Timberwolves have the exact same record. That means the loser of this game is going home, while the winner of this game earns a trip to the playoffs, though not necessarily as the No. 8 seed.
The Timberwolves are 2-1 against the Nuggets this season, and the only game Denver won came while Jimmy Butler was out with a torn meniscus. Butler has since returned, and the Wolves have won two in a row, albeit against the lowly Lakers and Grizzlies.
The Nuggets, on the other hand, have won six in a row and are 13-8 since Paul Millsapreturned from a broken wrist in late February. They’ve beaten six playoff opponents in a row. A win against Minnesota makes it seven.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Nuggets vs. Timberwolves
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
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[h=4]Deep dive on the Denver Nuggets over the last 10 games[/h]
</aside>[h=2]The Pelicans and Spurs have to scrap it out for positioning[/h]Both New Orleans and San Antonio have already clinched their playoff spots, so a loss here isn’t the end of the world. But a loss for the Pelicans, coupled with a Thunder victory over the Grizzlies, immediately drops them to the No. 8 seed, no matter which team between Denver and Minnesota wins their sudden death matchup. That pits New Orleans against Houston in the first round, which is almost as good as missing the playoffs altogether.
A loss for the Spurs (with a Thunder win) moves them down to No. 7 and a first-round date with the Warriors. Golden State is dealing with a slew of injuries, but there’s no telling who’ll be healthy for the playoffs.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Pelicans vs. Spurs
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
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[h=4]The Pelicans have made the playoffs despite one wildly turbulent season[/h][h=4]21 years of Gregg Popovich photos to celebrate 21 straight Spurs’ playoff appearances[/h]
</aside>[h=2]Heat and Wizards playing for seeding[/h]The Wizards beat the Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, and Daniel Theis-less Celitcs on Tuesday, tying them with the Heat for the seventh and eighth seeds in the East.
Washington, though, plays the tanking Orlando Magic, while the Miami has a date with the East’s No. 1 seed Toronto Raptors. A Wizards win and Heat loss gives Washington much better odds at moving into the second round of the playoffs, since they’ll be matched up with the same Celtics team they beat, 113-101, on Tuesday.
However, if Philadelphia also defeats Milwaukee, then the Wizards move all the way up to No. 6. That might not be so great, because that’d mean a date with the red-hot 76ers.
Should the Wizards lose, Miami can move all the way up to No. 6 with a win and a Bucks loss. Again, that might not be the best thing. If the Heat and Bucks both win, Milwaukee finishes sixth and Miami finishes seventh.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Wizards vs. Magic
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
Heat vs. Raptors
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
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[h=4]NBA Playoff Standings: Wizards can finish anywhere from sixth to eighth depending on Wednesday’s action[/h]
</aside>[h=2]Sixers need to watch their back[/h]The 76ers lead the Cavaliers by just one game for the Eastern Conference’s No. 3 seed, but a loss can slide them back to No. 4. The Sixers play the confusing Milwaukee Bucks in their season finale, and leave it to the Bucks and Giannis Antetkounmpo to rain on Philly’s parade. The Cavaliers have a win virtually wrapped up with a season finale against the Knicks. If Philadelphia loses and Cleveland wins, they’ll be tied with 51-31 records.
But the Cavaliers and 76ers have split their season series at two apiece, and in that event, the NBA gives the tie to a division winner. That’s be Cleveland, not Philly.
Thus, a Philly loss and Cleveland win moves the 76ers into the No. 4 seed, which means a second-round matchup against the winner of Toronto vs. whoever finishes 8th instead of the winner of Boston vs. whoever finishes 7th.
In layman’s terms, if Philly wins, they avoid both Toronto and Cleveland until the Eastern Conference Finals. That opens the bracket up, especially if Joel Embiid returns in the first round.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]76ers vs. Bucks
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN
Cavaliers vs. Knicks
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
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[h=4]The 76ers are back in the playoffs, and the East should be very afraid[/h]
</aside>[h=2]Russell Westbrook’s quest, Part 2[/h]Last season, Westbrook became the first player since Oscar Robertson to average a triple-double for an entire season. With the right stat line in the Thunder’s season finale against the Grizzlies, he has an opportunity to repeat history.
Westbrook needs just 16 rebounds to record 800 for the season, which will give him an average of a triple-double for the year. The Grizzlies are the second-worst rebounding team in the league. He should have this one in the bag, but we’ll have to wait and see.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Thunder vs. Grizzlies
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass
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[h=4]Russell Westbrook is so close to averaging a triple double again, and he’s GOING for it[/h]
</aside>[h=2]Trail Blazers vs. Jazz is huge for both teams[/h]This game in and of itself is fairly simple. The winner gets the No. 3 seed. We’ll get to the loser in a second.
Portland has lost four in a row and six of its last 10. The Trail Blazers have a chance at redemption if they can beat the Jazz in the season finale. If not, life gets much more complicated out West.
Should Portland lose, the Jazz leapfrog the Trail Blazers at No. 3 because they have identical records while Utah owns the tiebreaker. Whichever team wins locks up the No. 3 seed in the postseason.
Whichever team loses could take a major hit if the right teams win.
A defeat would give either Portland or Utah 34 losses on the season. As it stands, three other teams have 34 losses: San Antonio, New Orleans and Oklahoma City. All three of those teams play on Wednesday night -- as noted above, the Spurs and Pelicans play each other.
If Portland loses and both San Antonio and OKC win, the Trail Blazers will fall to sixth place, which ironically means a matchup against the Jazz in the first round. The Jazz can only fall as low as No. 5 if they lose to the Trail Blazers and the Thunder beat the Grizzlies, because they already own tiebreakers over New Orleans and San Antonio. The problem: that gives Utah a tough first-round matchup against Oklahoma City.
If the Pelicans beat San Antonio, Portland slides up to No. 4, New Orleans is No. 5, Oklahoma City is No. 6, and San Antonio slides to No. 7 against the Warriors.
Clearly, the scenarios are complex. Bottom line: neither the Jazz or Blazers wants to lose the season finale, which makes for a game with fireworks on the way.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Jazz vs. Trail Blazers
Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN
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[h=4]Why Donovan Mitchell will shine in the playoffs[/h][h=4]Seeding, Home Court To Be Decided In Trail Blazers’ Season Finale[/h]
</aside>[h=2]The Magic should tank[/h]The famed tank-off we expected at the end of the year is a little more resolved than expected. Phoenix and Memphis have already clinched the two worst records.
There is still intrigue beyond that with the Magic. A loss to Washington enters Orlando into a three-way tie with Atlanta and Dallas for the third-worst record in the league.
If the Magic lose to Washington, the NBA will have to randomly select teams No. 3, 4 and 5 with ping pong balls in the draft lottery. The third- and fourth-worst teams get approximately 13.8 percent odds at the No. 1 pick and a 42.6 percent chance at landing in the top three. The team with the fifth-worst record gets an 8.8 percent shot at pick No. 1 and a 29.1 percent shot at a top-three pick.
So there’s a lot of incentive for Orlando to lose.
[h=4]How to watch[/h]Magic vs. Wizards
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Channel: NBA League Pass

i think both the heat and bucks could upset if playing boston and philly, respectively

halekulani said:

i think both the heat and bucks could upset if playing boston and philly, respectively

Click to expand...

Beating Boston not much of an upset though when they're without their 2 best players and their 6th man who is their best perimeter defender.

Them and Miami would be like a 7 game series of college basketball. Neither team with a ton of talent but both just well coached and getting after it.

Washington had a rough year. Chemistry issues, injuries and Raps are hitting on all cylinders but Washington does matchup well. I remember when they swept Toronto 3 years ago in rd 1 and I felt like an idiot for not betting them in that series (granted a lot has changed but the core players for both teams are still the same guys)

I know both the Wiz and Heat will want to avoid Toronto if possible and play Boston. Can't see an easy wager angle for tonight except to take Orlando and Toronto and probably get a split at worst

Philly win puts them on the same side of the bracket as Boston. Bucks loss (with a Miami win) sets them up vs Boston instead of Philly and somehow helps them keep their 1st round pick

ca$hmoney said:

Philly win puts them on the same side of the bracket as Boston. Bucks loss (with a Miami win) sets them up vs Boston instead of Philly and somehow helps them keep their 1st round pick

Click to expand...

If Bucks lose and Miami/Wash win then they go down to 8th though. Also, if they win they keep their draft pick. So it is tough to say how they treat that. If I had to guess I'd say they try to win but not much conviction there.

Washington has the strongest, most clear cut incentive to win. Get out of the Toronto/Cleveland side of the bracket and have a chance to play Boston rd 1 as long as 1 of Mil/Mia win. Although Wall is doubtful but he did just comeback from a knee injury so probably don't want him playing B2B's.

And Orlando has an incentive to lose to get a few more ping pong balls. They've already said they're going to have the starters on limited minutes.

:smoking:

Utah 3-1 against Spurs
2-1 against N.O
1-3 against Ok City
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Port 4-0 against Ok City
2-2 against N.O
1-2 against Spurs
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:smoking: It appears that Portland is a better match up to win against OK City then Utah does.

Afflalo playing his best game in like 4 seasons to screw up this tank for Orlando

Bucks are embarrassing themselves, but at half time the Heat trail by 6 and the Wizards are down by 10, so they're still on track to keep their pick AND stay sixth.

Khem Birch is apparently a Wizard killer. Why on earth the Wizards think they want to play the Raptors over the Celtics is beyond me.

that's crazy. But it's so Wizards. Laid down in the 4th to an Orlando team trying to lose on purpose and playing 5 guys they found in Disneyworld this morning. They want the Raptors and somehow if they upset the #1 seed, they get Lebron. Okay then