It is less than two weeks from the conclusion of an enthralling NBA regular season, and the intense playoff action awaits. The season will be remembered for the dominance of the Boston Celtics, who has led the league for home-court advantage almost wire to wire. Also, we will remember when Lebron James passed the 40,000-point mark with a scoop layup off the glass in the second quarter in a March home game against the Denver Nuggets. We will look back on this regular season as the year when Victor Wembanyama electrified the association with a spectacular rookie season. Still, with seven or so games left, we have some interesting storylines to watch before the regular ends on April 14. In this article, we will examine three storylines to look out for in the next fortnight.
1. Who will be the number-one seed in the Western Conference?
The Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, and Minnesota Timberwolves are battling for the right to have home-court advantage in the Western Conference playoffs. The Thunder has a ½ game lead on the Nuggets, and the Timberwolves are just one game behind. The Thunder are on a tough east coast road trip after grabbing the first game in New York when Shai Gilgreous-Alexander buried a jumper in the dying seconds of the fourth quarter. The Thunder will face the Sixers and Celtics on a back-to-back and face the Pacers on Friday. They conclude the season with four home games against the Kings, Mavericks, and Bucks. The Nuggets have an easier schedule with only the Los Angeles Clippers and Minnesota Timberwolves with a winning record in the seven games remaining. In addition to facing the Nuggets, the Timberwolves will face the Phoenix Suns twice, the Houston Rockets, and the Los Angeles Lakers. I like Denver’s chances of grabbing the spot based on their schedule, but that head-to-head matchup with the Timberwolves will be key because a Minnesota win would mean they own the tiebreaker. It will be interesting to see whether Jamal Murray or Karl Anthony Towns return to the lineup for these to bolster their chances.
2. Can the Surging Rockets sneak into the play-in tournament?
Houston is renowned for being the home of the NASA rockets, but nobody has been hotter in the league than their basketball franchise named after the space program. Ime Udoka has led this young team up the standings by winning 13 of their last 15 games. The torrid stretch is impressive because the team lost promising big man Alperen Sengun to a season-ending knee injury. Jalen Green has elevated his play since the injury by scoring eight consecutive games of 25 points or more before the loss to the Mavericks on Sunday. The loss kept them two games behind the Warriors and 3.5 games behind the Lakers to make the play-in tournament. I think the deficit is too much to catch the Lakers, but they could still displace Golden State. The key matchup is to beat the Warriors at home, although Golden State would still own the tiebreaker head-to-head. The schedules look evenly difficult with the Warriors playing the Mavericks twice, the Lakers and the Pelicans. The Rockets, however, play the Timberwolves, Heat, Mavericks, Magic, and Clippers to close the regular season. I think Golden State will hang based on the current cushion and their experience. However, the future is bright in H-Town.
3. Will key players in the East return from injury to propel a deep playoff run?
The participants in the Eastern Conference playoffs are all but decided, but teams will be fighting for seeding and home-court advantage between number 2 and 8. Moreover, teams will be looking to the treatment room to make a deep run into the playoffs. For instance, all eyes will be on the return of Joel Embiid as early as tonight when the 76ers play the Thunder at home. The Sixers were 26-8 with the Cameroon-born player, but without Embiid they are a 14-27 record. It will be interesting to see how healthy he will be and whether he will be on any minute restriction. Embiid and the Sixers will draw a difficult matchup because the play-in teams will face the Celtics or the Bucks in round 1. Another team with the potential for a deep run is the New York Knicks. The Knickerbockers would love to see OG Anunoby and Julius Randle return to the lineup after elbow and surgery injuries. The Knicks have stayed in contention despite their absence but would be far more formidable opponents with those players in the squad. Josh Hart has poured cold water on their return in recent comments, but he might be sending a message to the team to back themselves with or without them. It will be interesting to see if those players get healthy and whether Tom Thibadeau can maneuver his team into their first Finals appearance in 25 years.