http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/9417/matchups4909.jpg

^ Nice!

I think if Dallas can get away from that #8 seed that they could make some noise.

They've been playing really well lately, but not well enough to beat the Lakers.

The #4 seed in the east wouldn't even be in the playoffs in the west. That's sad.

I'd like to see where the 9th seeds are for both conferences. How close is it to us and/or Dallas not making the playoffs?

We can still get the 5th seed, guys!

My Comments:

We're fucked.

The Hornets have a pretty tough sched the rest of the way, I wouldn't be surprised to see them slide to #7 and swap places with the Jazz.

Whoever gets San Antonio gets lucky.

the fuck...nuggets are 53-27? team is trash i wonder how they got so many wins

Chauncey for 3!

:we: get the #7 seed if we win against Chicago, Indiana, and either New Jersey or Miami.

If Chicago loses to us and loses one other game, we'll get #7 if we beat Indiana or if we beat New Jersey AND Miami.

Winning against Indiana is almost as important as winning against Chicago. So of course, fucking Indiana is the 2nd game of a back-to-back.

7 is mo better now that KG is hurtin a lil bit.

philly has to play boston once more and cleveland twice more. We could possibly move int 6th.

Miami meanwhile plays us as well as boston and atlanta. We could pass them as well and move into 5th.

http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/4476/41009.jpg

Today's updates:

The East stays the same as yesterday.

In the West, the Rockets go from #4 to #3, Portland from #5 to #4 and the Spurs from #3 to #5.

Yes, it's possible for us to end up at #7 or higher through other means. I was mostly focusing on stuff we could control, and pointing out the importance of Indiana in the picture.

We'll probably end at 7th -- just a hunch. I wouldn't mind a hearty dismantling of Boston. And that would get all of our games on national TV, which would be good for those of us without FSN Detroit (outside of Michigan).

Today's updates:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/matchups?season=2009

Portland is looking very dangerous.

Quick questions: What does everyone think of Travis Outlaw?

Good player? Potentially great player? Capable of more? Good value?

He's like a guy NO ONE ever talks about - from what I have seen and read the guy has got serious game.

"we" ve got a really good chance to get the 6th spot and demolish the Tragic in the first round, that would save this miserable season, at least for me...

today @ Philly, Chicago on Monday, @ Mia on Wednesdey

Philly lost 4 straight, @ Tor next, and still got to play Bos and Cle

so i guess if we win today and on Monday, the 6th spot could be ours!

You know, you could make the argument we should've beaten Cleveland 3 times this year.

The 2nd meeting we blew a 10 pt in the 4th, and the last meeting, an insane amount of turnovers led to a Cleveland 10-0 run, which again we blew a 4th quarter lead...

Just saying. Cleveland's not a world-beater.

Portland's blessed with talent. I think that Outlaw's evolution has gotten somewhat lost with Roy, Aldridge, the Oden saga (did they ever resolve his AARP eligibility issue?), etc. Their second unit is pretty fucking scary. I'd take Rudy Fernandez over Outlaw, and that's not meant to be a knock on Outlaw who's been getting stronger and more consistent.

It just seems that Outlaw (and Martell Webster) are forgotten when people talk about Portland.

I don't know if they have developed into much of anything but I do remember before my absence that those 2 guys were being held up as "high potential" players.

I was wondering if they've done anything or if they are just reasonable type players.

And you're right: their roster looks scary. They got depth everywhere, young talent everywhere and a couple of quality guys to build around.

Webster has been injured his whole career. I don't know if going to college would've helped, but he had a shitload of potential

http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/7936/matchups41309.jpg

Atlanta is locked in at #4 and Miami is locked in at #5.

Has Boston clinched #2 yet? If so, then Orlando has #3 clinched, too.

Okay, I just read that the top 5 spots in the east are locked in.

1 - Cavs
2 - Boston
3 - Orlando
4 - Atlanta
5 - Miami

West: Seeds 3, 4 and 5

By Graydon Gordian
TrueHoop Network

As I write this, the Spurs, Rockets, and Blazers all possess a 52-28 record. Currently, the Spurs are in the third seed, followed by the Rockets in fourth and the Blazers in fifth. But if all three teams win their remaining two games, all three will finish in a different position. Let's see if we can make sense of this.

Editor's Note: The Nuggets are currently in second with a record of 53-27 so by no means are they untouchable. But to secure the second seed, all they need to do is win one game. With a matchup against the league-worst Kings in Denver Monday night, we decided to focus on seeds three through five.

Currently Third: The San Antonio Spurs (52-28)
Remaining Schedule: At Golden State, vs. Hornets

Fourth Seed: The Houston Rockets (52-28)
Remaining Schedule: vs. Hornets, at Dallas

Fifth Seed: The Portland Trail Blazers (52-28)
Remaining Schedule: vs. Thunder, vs. Nuggets

If all three teams win out, the Spurs would fall to fifth in the West. They are currently in third because they possess a 9-6 record against the Southwest Division while Houston is only 8-6. But Houston closes the season with two division games. If both teams finish the year 10-6 against division opponents (as well as 36-16 against conference opponents) Houston will win the fifth tiebreaker, having won more games against Western Conference playoff opponents. The Spurs will drop to fifth if their record ends up tied with Portland, as the Blazers won the season series 3-1.

If the Rockets and the Spurs both go 1-1 over their last two, the key is which team the Spurs lose to: If the Spurs lose to New Orleans and both teams finish 53-38, the Rockets will still have the tiebreaker. If the Spurs lose to the Warriors but beat the Hornets, the Spurs will possess the better record against the division. (Remember, any Rockets loss from here on out is a division loss).

If the Blazers finish with a better record than the Spurs and Rockets, they'll secure the 3 seed. But if they tie either, the highest they can finish is fourth. If the Spurs win the Southwest, they'll finish third despite having lost the season series against Portland (division winner is the first tiebreaker; head-to-head is second). If the Rockets lose the division but end up tied with Portland, Houston will still be the fourth seed, having won the season series 2-1.



West: Seeds 6, 7 and 8
By Ryan Schwan
TrueHoop Network

As the regular season enters its final three days, the Western Conference playoff picture is anything but set, with seeds two through eight still in play. Though the race for seeds two through four and home-court advantage in the first round remains compelling, there is a drama developing at the bottom of the pack as three teams fight to stay out of the eighth and final seed and a first-round date with the powerhouse Lakers.

All three teams have exactly two games remaining, but the team at the top, New Orleans, has two tough road games against Houston and San Antonio remaining, while both Dallas and Utah have a somewhat easier pair of games left. Utah also owns tiebreakers against both teams above them, further complicating the picture. The teams in question:

Currently sixth seed: New Orleans Hornets(49-31)
Remaining schedule: At Rockets, at San Antonio
Wins tiebreaker vs. Dallas having won the season series 3-1
Loses tiebreaker vs. Utah having lost the season series 3-0

Currently seventh seed: Dallas Mavericks(48-32)
Remaining schedule: Minnesota, at Houston
Loses tiebreaker vs. Hornets having lost the season series 3-1
Loses tiebreaker vs. Utah by having a worse conference record (currently 32-18 to 27-23 with no way to make up the difference)

Currently eighth seed: Utah Jazz (47-33)
Remaining schedule: Clippers, at Lakers
Wins tiebreaker vs. Dallas by having a better conference record
Wins tiebreaker vs. New Orleans having won the season series 3-0.

Though the three teams only have two games left, the possible outcomes of those games combine to form 27 different final records for the three teams in question. In an effort to handicap the race, here's a fast and dirty breakdown of how each of those 27 scenarios treat each team:

The Hornets have a clear advantage, owning the tiebreaker over the Mavericks and a two-game lead over the Jazz. Out of those 27 possible combinations, only one ends with the Hornets in the eighth seed, and a mere four end with the Hornets holding the seventh seed. Really, all the Hornets have to do to avoid the Lakers is win one game -- or have the Jazz or Mavericks lose one.

The Mavericks, despite their one-game advantage over Utah, have to deal with the fact that they will lose the tiebreaker with either of their opponents. There are only three possible outcomes where they can take the sixth seed, 15 where they take the seventh, and nine where they fall to eighth. In the end, however, they can still control whether they avoid the dreaded date in Hollywood by simply winning as many games as the Jazz do this week.

The Jazz are in the unenviable position of not controlling their own fate. The only way they can gain ground is to have the Mavericks lose at least once, or the Hornets fail spectacularly. As a result, there are only two scenarios where they can take the sixth seed, eight scenarios where they can take the seventh seed, and 17 scenarios in which they remain an eighth seed.

One of the two best scenarios for the Jazz would be if all three teams ended with the exact same record of 49-33. Should that occur, the Hornets would win the tiebreaker over the Mavericks, the Jazz win the tiebreaker over the Hornets, and the seeding would end up with the Jazz in sixth, Hornets in seventh, and Mavericks in eighth. Based on the schedule, this outcome isn't even that far-fetched as the Hornets battle two tough teams fighting for seeding, the Mavericks could easily split games against the Timberwolves and Houston, and the Jazz may be able to take both games as the Clippers prepare to head home and the Lakers already have their seeding locked and may let the visitors steal one.

Are any of the playoff matchups set in stone yet, other than Atlanta vs. Miami?

Are any of the playoff matchups set in stone yet, other than Atlanta vs. Miami?

In looking at the schedule, I see that these two play each other tomorrow in a meaningless game. It's the first half of a back-to-back for the Heat, with the second half being against the Pistons to close out the season on Wednesday.

I wonder if Spoelstra will rest everybody on Wednesday?

Also, it was nice of the Cavs to embarrass the Celtics this weekend, both on the scoreboard and with their schoolyard antics*. That should get the Celtics good and pissed off for whomever they draw in round 1, which could be...guess who?


*Dad guy

The Bulls

Hopefully it gets them good and pissed off for the conference finals and they stomp the crap out of Cleveland. Only situation I can imagine that I'd root for Boston.

Blaha made it sound like a Saturday game for the Pistons was a given. Does anyone know more about the playoff schedule? everywhere I look it says "schedule will be determined after the matchups are finalized".

I don't know shit about any of that

From TrueHoop...

There is one evening of NBA basketball left, and yet only three of the eight playoff matchups are set. Three teams in the West don't even know if they'll get homecourt advantage. It all comes down to five games that really matter tonight, and four of them are happening at exactly the same time.

So, how can you follow all that craziness? Right here on TrueHoop, we'll do our best to cover it all with a team of overcaffeinated channel-hopping contributors liveblogging every darned thing that matters all night long, starting at 8pm ET. Hope you'll join us as we cover these games and more.

Raptors at Bulls 8 pm ET (The Bulls can clinch the East's sixth seed -- and avoid Boston in the first round -- with a win.)
Sixers at Cavaliers 8 pm ET (If the Sixers can beat the Cavaliers' scrubs, and the Bulls lose, Philly gets the dubious prize of facing the Magic.)
Hornets at Spurs 8 pm ET (The Spurs need the Rockets and/or Blazers to lose to get homecourt, and can be the West's third, fourth or fifth seed. The Hornets can sixth or seventh -- depending on this and the Maverick game.)
Rockets at Mavericks 8pm ET (The Rockets are another team with homecourt in play -- if they win, they have it. They can finish second, third, fourth or fifth. The Mavericks will be watching the Hornets and worrying about being sixth or seventh.)
Nuggets at Blazers 10:30 pm ET (The Nuggets can be second or third. The Blazers can be third, fourth or fifth, but guarantee homecourt advantage with a win.)Peter D. Newman, NBA Information and Statistics Research guy at ESPN lays it all out:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1. Cavaliers Locked in as the No. 1 seed
2. Celtics Locked in as the No. 2 seed
3. Magic Locked in as the No. 3 seed
4. Hawks Locked in as the No. 4 seed
5. Heat Locked in as the No. 5 seed
6. Bulls Clinch #6 seed with win OR PHI loss. Clinch #7 seed with loss AND PHI win
7. 76ers Clinch #6 seed with win AND CHI loss. Clinch #7 seed with loss OR CHI win
8. Pistons Locked in as the No. 8 seed

WESTERN CONFERENCE
1. Lakers Locked in as the No. 1 seed
2. Nuggets Clinch #2 seed with win OR HOU loss. Clinch #3 seed with loss AND HOU win
3. Rockets
Clinch #2 seed with win AND DEN loss
Clinch #3 seed with win AND DEN win
Clinch #3 seed with loss AND POR AND SA losses
Clinch #4 seed with loss AND POR win AND SA loss
Clinch #4 seed with loss AND SA win AND POR loss
Clinch #5 seed with loss AND POR AND SA wins
4. Blazers
Clinch #3 seed with win AND HOU AND SA losses
Clinch #4 seed with win AND HOU win
Clinch #4 seed with win AND SA win
Clinch #4 seed with loss AND SA loss
Clinch #5 seed with loss AND SA win
5. Spurs
Clinch #3 seed with win AND HOU loss
Clinch #4 seed with win AND HOU win AND POR loss
Clinch #5 seed with win AND HOU AND POR wins
Clinch #5 seed with loss
6. Hornets
Clinch #6 seed with win OR DAL loss
Clinch #7 seed with loss AND DAL win
7. Mavericks
Clinch #6 seed with win AND NO loss
Clinch #7 seed with loss OR NO win
8. Jazz Locked in as the No. 8 seed

What an awesome lineup of games tonight. It would be a great night to have the league pass thingy, for sure.

I wish that I had the testicular fortitude to stay up late to watch the Nuggs at the Blazers.

I tried setting up a group for the NBA.com bracket contest like we normally do, but they don't have it posted yet (assuming that they'll be doing it again this year).

What an awesome lineup of games tonight. It would be a great night to have the league pass thingy, for sure.

I wish that I had the testicular fortitude to stay up late to watch the Nuggs at the Blazers.

If the Wings game is over, I'm there.

That was yesterday, homie.

LOL @ ME!

As much bitchin and complainin I did about the playoffs and BBall early in the playoffs, they've turned out to be pretty damn good this year. I wish the boys would be there though.