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2024 NBA Playoffs: Bracket, standings, playoff picture after regular season finale

jack mckessy, usa today
·5 min read
4

The NBA's regular season is over. The play-in tournament has begun this week. Only the No. 8 playoff seeds remain to be set.

The Boston Celtics clinched the best record in the NBA weeks ago and are the only team to finish the season with more than 60 wins. The New York Knicks snatched the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a win and Milwaukee Bucks loss in each team's season finale on Sunday.

In the West, three teams finished within one game of each other for the top seed and home-court advantage until the NBA Finals. In the end, it was the Oklahoma City Thunder who came out on top, having won the season series against the Denver Nuggets, 3-1, to earn the tiebreaker. The Minnesota Timberwolves' loss on Sunday kept them out of a three-way tie atop the Western Conference standings.

Here are the NBA standings at the end of the regular season and what this year's playoff bracket will look like.

NBA Playoffs: Tiebreaker, seed scenarios headed into final day of regular season

NBA playoff standings

The top 6 teams in each conference automatically make the playoffs. Teams in positions 7-10 qualify for the play-in tournament.

Eastern Conference

Seed

Team

Record

Games back

1.

Boston Celtics - c

64-18

--

2.

New York Knicks - x

50-32

14

3.

Milwaukee Bucks - x

49-33

15

4.

Cleveland Cavaliers - x

48-34

16

5.

Orlando Magic - x

47-35

17

6.

Indiana Pacers - x

47-35

17

7.

Philadelphia 76ers - x

47-35

17

8.

Miami Heat - pi

46-36

18

9.

Chicago Bulls - pi

39-43

25

10.

Atlanta Hawks - o

36-46

28

11.

Brooklyn Nets - o

32-50

32

12.

Toronto Raptors - o

25-57

39

13.

Charlotte Hornets - o

21-61

43

14.

Washington Wizards - o

15-67

49

15.

Detroit Pistons - o

14-68

50

Western Conference

Seed

Team

Record

Games back

1.

Oklahoma City Thunder - c

57-25

--

2.

Denver Nuggets - x

57-25

--

3.

Minnesota Timberwolves - x

56-26

1

4.

Los Angeles Clippers - x

51-31

6

5.

Dallas Mavericks - x

50-32

7

6.

Phoenix Suns - x

49-33

8

7.

New Orleans Pelicans - pi

49-33

8

8.

Los Angeles Lakers - x

47-35

10

9.

Sacramento Kings - pi

46-36

11

10.

Golden State Warriors - o

46-36

11

11.

Houston Rockets - o

41-41

16

12.

Utah Jazz - o

31-51

26

13.

Memphis Grizzlies - o

27-55

30

14.

San Antonio Spurs - o

22-60

35

15.

Portland Trail Blazers - o

21-61

36

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NBA Eastern Conference playoff bracket

Here's how the first round of the playoffs would shake out in the East if the season ended after Sunday.

  • No. 1 seed Boston Celtics vs. No. 8 seed (Winner of the Play-In Tournament)

  • No. 2 seed New York Knicks vs. No. 7 seed Philadelphia 76ers

  • No. 3 seed Milwaukee Bucks vs. No. 6 seed Indiana Pacers

  • No. 4 seed Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 5 seed Orlando Magic

NBA Western Conference playoff bracket

Here's how the matchups look with the current standings in the Western Conference.

  • No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 8 seed (Winner of the Play-In Tournament)

  • No. 2 seed Denver Nuggets vs. No. 7 seed Los Angeles Lakers

  • No. 3 seed Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 6 seed Phoenix Suns

  • No. 4 seed Los Angeles Clippers vs. No. 5 seed Dallas Mavericks

NBA play-in tournament: The matchups feature big stars. See the TV and streaming schedule.

What is the NBA Play-In Tournament?

The NBA Play-In Tournament, with its current system implemented for the 2021 playoffs, allowed each conference to expand its potential playoff field from eight teams to 10. The seventh- through 10th-ranked teams in each conference at the end of the regular season play in a four-day tournament to decide the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds in the first round of the playoffs.

In one set of games, the seventh-place team for each conference hosts the eighth-place finisher. The winners in each conference gets the No. 7 seed in their brackets.

In another set of games, the ninth-ranked team in each conference hosts the 10th-place team. The winners of those games play the losers of the seventh place vs. eighth place matchups to determine the No. 8 seed in their respective conferences.

This year, the play-in tournament begins April 16 and concludes April 19. The first round of the NBA playoffs begin April 20.

NBA Eastern Conference play-in tournament matchup

Here's how things currently look for the play-in in the East:

  • Seventh-place Philadelphia 76ers vs. eighth-place Miami Heat

    • 76ers win, will face Knicks in first round

    • Heat will play Bulls in second round of play-in

  • Ninth-place Chicago Bulls vs. 10th-place Atlanta Hawks

    • Bulls win, will face Heat in second round of play-in

NBA Western Conference play-in tournament matchup

Here's how things currently look for the play-in in the West:

  • Seventh-place New Orleans Pelicans vs. eighth-place Los Angeles Lakers

    • Lakers win, will face Nuggets in first round

    • Pelicans will play Kings in second round of play-in

  • Ninth-place Sacramento Kings vs. 10th-place Golden State Warriors

    • Kings win, will face Pelicans in second round of play-in

When do the 2024 NBA Playoffs start?

The first round of the NBA playoffs begins April 20. Depending on how quickly first-round matchups are decided, the conference semifinals begin either May 4-5 or May 6-7. The conference finals are scheduled to begin May 21-22 but could move to May 19-20 pending conference semifinal results.

The NBA Finals begin June 6.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2024 NBA playoff picture: Bracket, standings and play-in updates