By Zach Harper | The Athletic, 2026-04-06 14:15:58
本赛季仅剩最后七天，有太多值得关注的动向。东西部联盟的排名依然扑朔迷离。摆烂现象已经失控，联盟中几乎有三分之一的球队在求败。同时，我们看到各种球队在最糟糕的时机打出连胜，或是陷入惨不忍睹的连败泥潭。
今天，我们将为你梳理常规赛剩余赛程中需要留意的一切。我们还准备了“NBA红黑榜”的扩展版，这是《The Bounce》周一的固定栏目。那是我们的一份免费NBA新闻简报，你可以点击订阅，每天在收件箱中查收。
NBA红黑榜（扩展版）
休斯顿火箭 (Houston Rockets，49胜29负)。 火箭队六连胜期间的大部分对手实力较弱。然而，休斯顿确实需要这些胜利，他们现在有机会争夺季后赛首轮的主场优势。此前，火箭在比赛收官阶段的表现一直很混乱，无法通过连胜来跟上洛杉矶湖人队 (Los Angeles Lakers)（受伤病困扰前）和丹佛掘金队 (Denver Nuggets) 的步伐。因此，对于这支可能终于在进入季后赛前建立起势头的球队来说，这段赛程非常及时。
阿尔佩伦·申京 (Alperen Şengün) 近期手感火热。在这段赛程中，他场均出场31.5分钟，得到21.8分，投篮/三分/罚球命中率分别达到了57.6%/50.0%/72.7%。更重要的是，他的组织能力达到了精英级别。他场均贡献6.6次助攻，这看起来可能不算惊人，但他的场均失误仅为1.3次。这意味着在过去六场比赛中，他送出了40次助攻，仅有8次失误。对于一名在持球时经常被对手包夹的组织型大个子来说，这表现相当出色。阿门·汤普森 (Amen Thompson) 在此期间也贡献了33次助攻且仅有6次失误。艾米·乌度卡 (Ime Udoka) 一定很喜欢他的组织者们如此高效地护球。他们在季后赛中也需要保持这种状态。
65场规定。 凯德·坎宁安 (Cade Cunningham)、安东尼·爱德华兹 (Anthony Edwards) 以及现在的卢卡·东契奇 (Luka Dončić) 的伤病，正让NBA评奖的65场门槛承受巨大压力。亚当·萧华 (Adam Silver) 驳回了对该规定的批评，称其在促使球星参加更多比赛、减少负荷管理方面效果显著。在上个月的理事会会议后，这原本只影响到一个案例（坎宁安）。但现在，爱德华兹因为在本赛季第三场比赛中因腘绳肌受伤仅打三分钟就退赛，导致出场时间达标的场次不足而无缘评奖。东契奇的常规赛也因腘绳肌伤势止步于64场。坎宁安则出战了61场。爱德华兹将因为那场只打了三分钟的比赛，以一场之差遗憾落选。
这到底解决了什么问题？这些球员本赛季确实遭遇了真实伤病。爱德华兹一直在与腘绳肌和膝盖伤势作斗争，这让他缺席了不少时间。坎宁安遭遇了肺塌陷。东契奇则一直在处理各种腿部和腘绳肌问题。然而，由于NBA坚持执行这项规定而非对其进行修正，他们将失去评奖资格。说真的，他们应该废除这项规定，就像他们在2006年迅速意识到新的合成球表现糟糕时所做的那样。NBA已经拿到了转播费，不需要这种愚蠢的规定。球员们想上场，应该惩罚的是那些在没有正当伤病理由的情况下让球员轮休的球队。
亚特兰大老鹰 (Atlanta Hawks，45胜33负)。 这群老鹰继续翱翔！他们已经取得了四连胜，且在过去的20场比赛中赢下了18场，正努力锁定东部第五的位置。亚特兰大在本周面临着堪称最艰难的收官赛程（详见下文）。当老鹰正式将特雷·杨 (Trae Young) 交易至华盛顿奇才队 (Washington Wizards) 时，他们的战绩仅为18胜21负，基本上放弃了自2018年以来的建队方向。这对他们的球迷群体来说是一个巨大的风险，因为这笔交易只换回了CJ·麦科勒姆 (CJ McCollum) 和库里·基斯珀特 (Corey Kispert)。但自这种文化改变以来，老鹰一直表现出色，他们变得更加全能，防守也好了很多。
交易完成后，亚特兰大取得了27胜12负的战绩。交易前，他们的进攻排名第18，防守排名第16。诚然，杨本赛季仅为老鹰出战了10场比赛。但他离队后，球队的风格变得更符合奎因·斯奈德 (Quin Snyder) 的偏好。交易以来，老鹰的进攻提升至第12位，防守提升至第7位。这是一个戏剧性的转变，其中还包括将克里斯塔普斯·波尔津吉斯 (Kristaps Porziņģis) 交易至金州勇士队 (Golden State Warriors)，换来了乔纳森·库明加 (Jonathan Kuminga)。现在，老鹰可能是东部前四之外，其他球队最不想碰到的对手。
湖人 (50胜28负)。 湖人队的崩盘在情理之中。在东契奇拉伤腘绳肌的那场比赛中，他们被俄克拉荷马城雷霆队 (Oklahoma City Thunder) 狂胜43分。奥斯汀·里夫斯 (Austin Reaves) 也拉伤了斜腹肌，预计将缺席四到六周。在可预见的未来失去里夫斯和东契奇后，人们的关注点已经从“湖人是否会在季后赛中成为黑马”变成了“41岁的勒布朗·詹姆斯 (LeBron James) 能在多大程度上阻止这支球队一路输到底”。
洛杉矶在周日的比赛中输给了库珀·弗拉格 (Cooper Flagg) 领衔的达拉斯独行侠队 (Dallas Mavericks)。如果不是因为常规赛最后一天要对阵犹他爵士队 (Utah Jazz)，人们甚至会怀疑湖人在十月之前还能否再赢一场。东契奇正前往欧洲寻求关于腘绳肌的第二诊疗意见或治疗方案。这真的能让他及时赶回来吗？距离季后赛开始还有不到两周的时间，而伤病专家杰夫·斯托茨 (Jeff Stotts) 表示，二级腘绳肌拉伤的平均康复时间为35天。
波特兰开拓者 (Portland Trail Blazers，40胜38负)。 开拓者目前已取得四连胜，过去10场赢了8场。他们已经追平了洛杉矶快船队 (LA Clippers)，正在争夺西部第八的位置，以争取在附加赛中获得“双败淘汰”的优势。波特兰经历了一个极其跌宕起伏的赛季：主教练在赛季第二天被联邦起诉，球队甚至被卖给了新老板汤姆·邓顿 (Tom Dundon)。开拓者在本赛季还经历了管理层停职、罚款以及大面积伤病。但随着球员回归健康，临时主教练蒂亚戈·斯普利特 (Tiago Splitter) 帮助他们打出了一波精彩的表现。
防守专家图马尼·卡马拉 (Toumani Camara) 在这段时间变成了一名出色的得分手。他场均得到17.6分，投篮/三分/罚球命中率分别为56.1%/50.0%/85.7%。朱·霍勒迪 (Jrue Holiday) 和斯库特·亨德森 (Scoot Henderson) 在控卫位置上配合默契，两人合计投出了40%的三分命中率。多诺万·克林根 (Donovan Clingan) 则成了两双和盖帽机器。开拓者实际上可能在正确的时机找回健康，准备好迈出关键的一步。
明尼苏达森林狼 (Minnesota Timberwolves，46胜32负)。 森林狼在过去五场比赛中输掉了四场，情况看起来非常不乐观。爱德华兹从膝伤中回归并没能扭转局势。诚然，森林狼的所有失利都是可以理解的。他们两次输给底特律活塞队 (Detroit Pistons) 时，两队都缺少了核心后卫。输给费城76人队 (Philadelphia 76ers) 的比赛中，爱德华兹在面对基本健康的76人时表现相当糟糕。随后，森林狼在周日惨败给夏洛特黄蜂队 (Charlotte Hornets)。爱德华兹因膝盖持续疼痛缺席了那场比赛。这无法让明尼阿波利斯的任何球迷对赛季末的前景感到乐观。
他们不太可能跌入附加赛，所以也许他们只需要让爱德华兹休息，确保他在季后赛首轮恢复健康？森林狼最终可能会对阵正在巅峰状态的掘金。
竞技篮球。 上周五，我们可能见证了NBA常规赛历史上最糟糕的一天。当晚共有八场比赛，尽可能地为周六和周一的NCAA男篮最终四强赛让路。当晚唯一一场分差在个位数的比赛是萨克拉门托国王队 (Sacramento Kings) 以117-113击败新奥尔良鹈鹕队 (New Orleans Pelicans)。分差第二小的是奥兰多魔术队 (Orlando Magic) 以128-117战胜独行侠，弗拉格在那场比赛中砍下51分。但当晚的平均胜分差高达24.4分。这是NBA历史上任何一个至少有八场比赛的比赛日中最大的平均胜分差。看来摆烂问题确实需要妥善解决。
德里克·怀特和凯尔特人能否阻挡尼克斯夺取东部第二？ (David Butler II / Imagn Images)
未来一周：悬念所在
2025-26赛季常规赛还剩一周，一切都在向周日倒计时，届时所有30支球队都将参加最后的“收官大乱斗”以确定最终排名。东部第一已经产生（祝贺活塞！）。附加赛球队也已确定，10支乐透区球队正式出局。
以下是你在最后一周需要了解的其他悬念。
东部2-4名排位
现状： 波士顿凯尔特人领先纽约尼克斯3个胜场，领先克利夫兰骑士4个胜场。
凯尔特人几乎锁定了东部第二。他们只需在最后四场比赛中赢下两场，其中包括一场对阵尼克斯。纽约必须赢下那场比赛来缩小差距，同时夺取赛季系列赛的平分优势（目前对阵波士顿2胜1负，且分区战绩更好）。尼克斯仍在努力甩掉骑士以保住第三，除非他们有什么“脑洞大开”的策略，认为次轮对阵底特律比次轮对阵波士顿更有利。或许那时尼克斯会冒着触怒“篮球之神”的风险掉到第四。
- 凯尔特人 (53-25) 剩余赛程： 对阵黄蜂，客战尼克斯，对阵鹈鹕，对阵魔术
- 尼克斯 (50-28) 剩余赛程： 客战老鹰，对阵凯尔特人，对阵猛龙，对阵黄蜂
- 骑士 (49-29) 剩余赛程： 客战灰熊，对阵老鹰，客战老鹰，对阵奇才
平分优势归属？ 尼克斯目前对波士顿拥有平分优势 (2胜1负)，且还有一场交手，并在分区战绩上占优。尼克斯同样对克利夫兰拥有平分优势 (2胜1负)。
东部5-10名排位
现状： 老鹰领先费城2个胜场排名第五。费城周一与多伦多并列第六，但拥有平分优势（分区战绩）。多伦多领先夏洛特半个胜场排名第七。夏洛特领先奥兰多半个胜场排名第八。奥兰多领先迈阿密热火1个胜场排名第九。
这将是一场决定谁能直接晋级季后赛、谁必须经历附加赛残酷考验的“照片级”冲刺。东部附加赛在历史上一直表现平平，但今年这四支球队都很强且极具看点。老鹰的收官赛程很艰难，而76人凭借轻松的赛程可能会缩小差距。但亚特兰大近两个月的表现非常出色，所以他们大概率能挺住。多伦多必须在对阵迈阿密的比赛中至少拿下一场，但他们应该处于对第六名施压的有利位置。
- 老鹰 (45-33) 剩余赛程： 对阵尼克斯，客战骑士，对阵骑士，客战热火
- 76人 (43-35) 剩余赛程： 客战马刺，客战火箭，客战步行者，对阵雄鹿
- 猛龙 (43-35) 剩余赛程： 对阵热火，对阵热火，客战尼克斯，对阵篮网
- 黄蜂 (43-36) 剩余赛程： 客战凯尔特人，对阵活塞，客战尼克斯
- 魔术 (42-36) 剩余赛程： 对阵活塞，对阵森林狼，客战公牛，客战凯尔特人
- 热火 (41-37) 剩余赛程： 客战猛龙，客战猛龙，客战奇才，对阵老鹰
平分优势归属？ 约翰·霍林格对这六支球队之间复杂的平分可能性做了最好的分析。但让我们尝试填补一些空白。
三队或更多球队战绩持平时： 分区冠军优先 → 彼此间战绩 → 分区战绩（若在同一分区） → 联盟战绩 → 对阵季后赛资格球队的战绩 → 净胜分
- 亚特兰大： 对费城4-0 | 对多伦多0-4 | 对夏洛特1-3 | 对奥兰多4-0 | 对迈阿密1-2（余1场）
- 费城： 对亚特兰大0-4 | 对多伦多2-2 | 对夏洛特2-1 | 对奥兰多2-1 | 对迈阿密1-2
- 多伦多： 对亚特兰大4-0 | 对费城2-2 | 对夏洛特2-2 | 对奥兰多2-1 | 对迈阿密2-0（余2场）
- 夏洛特： 对亚特兰大3-1 | 对费城1-2 | 对多伦多2-2 | 对奥兰多3-1 | 对迈阿密1-3
- 奥兰多： 对亚特兰大0-4 | 对费城1-2 | 对多伦多1-2 | 对夏洛特1-3 | 对迈阿密5-0
- 迈阿密： 对亚特兰大2-1（余1场） | 对费城2-1 | 对多伦多0-2（余2场） | 对夏洛特3-1 | 对奥兰多0-5
西部1-2名排位
现状： 雷霆领先圣安东尼奥马刺3个胜场，排名西部第一。
雷霆本周只需赢下两场比赛，或者马刺输掉一场，即可锁定头号种子。他们应该能在前两场比赛中搞定这一切，然后让主力休息。这一悬念基本已经尘埃落定。
- 雷霆 (62-16) 剩余赛程： 客战湖人，客战快船，客战掘金，对阵太阳
- 马刺 (59-19) 剩余赛程： 对阵76人，对阵开拓者，对阵独行侠，对阵掘金
平分优势归属？ 马刺凭借4胜1负的赛季交手记录对雷霆拥有平分优势。
西部3-6名排位
现状： 湖人和掘金在西部第三的位置上持平，但湖人拥有平分优势。这使得掘金目前暂居第四。火箭落后丹佛1个胜场排名第四。森林狼落后休斯顿3个胜场排名第五。森林狼领先菲尼克斯太阳3个胜场排名第六，但我们将太阳划归附加赛讨论区。森林狼只需赢下两场或太阳输掉一场即可锁定前六。
湖人的伤病完全改变了这四支球队的局势。现在每个人都应该瞄准在首轮对阵湖人。掘金应该能爬上第三。湖人不会跌到第六，因为他们对森林狼拥有平分优势，所以他们最差也是第五。火箭可以升至第三，但对阵掘金没有平分优势。森林狼仅对火箭可能拥有平分优势。
- 湖人 (50-28) 剩余赛程： 对阵雷霆，客战勇士，对阵太阳，对阵爵士
- 掘金 (50-28) 剩余赛程： 对阵开拓者，对阵灰熊，对阵雷霆，客战马刺
- 火箭 (49-29) 剩余赛程： 客战太阳，对阵76人，对阵森林狼，对阵灰熊
- 森林狼 (46-32) 剩余赛程： 客战步行者，客战魔术，客战火箭，对阵鹈鹕
平分优势归属？ 虽然不像东部“中游六强”那么复杂，但让我们拆解一下。
- 湖人： 对丹佛2-1 | 对火箭2-1 | 对明尼苏达3-0
- 掘金： 对湖人1-2 | 对火箭3-1 | 对明尼苏达3-1
- 火箭： 对湖人1-2 | 对丹佛1-3 | 对明尼苏达1-1（余1场）
- 森林狼： 对湖人0-3 | 对丹佛1-3 | 对火箭1-1（余1场）
西部附加赛排位：
现状： 太阳领先开拓者和快船3个胜场排名第七。快船和开拓者并列第八，但快船目前拥有平分优势。勇士落后洛杉矶和波特兰3个胜场排名第九。
太阳在第七的位置上应该是安全的，且不太可能升至第六。勇士不太可能提升排名，基本锁定了西部第十。所以这主要取决于开拓者能否最终排在快船前面。
- 太阳 (43-35) 剩余赛程： 对阵火箭，对阵独行侠，客战湖人，客战雷霆
- 快船 (40-38) 剩余赛程： 对阵独行侠，对阵雷霆，客战开拓者，对阵勇士
- 开拓者 (40-38) 剩余赛程： 客战掘金，客战马刺，对阵快船，对阵国王
- 勇士 (36-42) 剩余赛程： 对阵国王，对阵湖人，客战国王，客战快船
平分优势归属？ 太阳对开拓者 (赛季2-1) 和快船 (赛季2-2，且将通过分区战绩或联盟战绩胜出) 均拥有平分优势。快船在还剩一场交手的情况下对开拓者以2-1领先。如果快船输掉那场比赛，他们将因联盟战绩劣势失去平分优势。
摆烂——以及鹈鹕！
现状： 我们必须反过来看排名。这部分我们把后10名的球队放在一起讨论。
密尔沃基雄鹿队 (Milwaukee Bucks) 将两次对阵布鲁克林篮网队 (Brooklyn Nets)，所以他们需要努力摆烂才有机会追上芝加哥公牛队 (Chicago Bulls)。然而，芝加哥也要两次对阵华盛顿奇才，所以他们之间潜在的战绩持平仍有可能？这一组别中，本周印第安纳步行者队 (Indiana Pacers) 与布鲁克林之间的比赛可能会决定排名的重大变动。
- 雄鹿 (31-47) 剩余赛程： 客战篮网，客战活塞，对阵篮网，客战76人
- 公牛 (29-49) 剩余赛程： 客战奇才，客战奇才，对阵魔术，客战独行侠
- 灰熊 (25-53) 剩余赛程： 对阵骑士，客战掘金，客战爵士，客战火箭
- 独行侠 (25-53) 剩余赛程： 客战快船，客战太阳，客战马刺，对阵公牛
- 鹈鹕 (25-54) 剩余赛程： 对阵爵士，客战凯尔特人，客战森林狼
- 国王 (21-57) 剩余赛程： 客战勇士，对阵勇士，客战开拓者
- 爵士 (21-58) 剩余赛程： 客战鹈鹕，对阵灰熊，客战湖人
- 篮网 (19-59) 剩余赛程： 对阵雄鹿，对阵步行者，客战雄鹿，客战猛龙
- 步行者 (18-60) 剩余赛程： 对阵森林狼，客战篮网，对阵76人，对阵活塞
- 奇才 (17-61) 剩余赛程： 对阵公牛，对阵公牛，客战热火，对阵骑士
平分规则不适用于乐透签位。NBA将通过抛硬币的方式在战绩相同的球队间决定顺位。
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
点击查看原文：NBA’s final week of the season: tanking, standings and everything else at stake
NBA’s final week of the season: tanking, standings and everything else at stake
We’re down to the last seven days of this season, and there is a ton to track. The Western and Eastern conference standings are all over the place. The tanking has been out of control, with almost one-third of the league trying to lose. And we have all kinds of squads going on big runs and horrible stretches at the worst times.
Today, we’ll give you everything to keep an eye on the rest of the regular season. We also have the extended version of the NBA Stock Report, a Monday staple in The Bounce. That’s our free NBA newsletter that you can sign up for and receive every day in your inbox.
NBA Stock Report Extended
Houston Rockets (49-29). Most of the Rockets’ six-game winning streak has come against an easy schedule. However, Houston has needed the wins, and it now has a chance at home-court advantage in the first round. The Rockets had been such a mess in end-of-game situations and couldn’t string together enough wins to keep pace with the Los Angeles Lakers (pre-injuries) and Denver Nuggets. So this is a welcome stretch for a team that might finally build some momentum heading into the postseason.
Alperen Şengün has been on a heater. He’s averaging 21.8 points in 31.5 minutes during this stretch on 57.6/50.0/72.7 shooting splits. More importantly, his playmaking has been elite. He’s averaging 6.6 assists, which may not seem super impressive. However, he’s only turning it over 1.3 times per game. That’s 40 assists and just eight turnovers in those six games. Pretty good for a playmaking big man whom the defense is swarming when he puts it on the ground. Amen Thompson has 33 assists and just six turnovers during this time as well. Ime Udoka has to love his playmakers taking care of the ball like this. They’ll need to do it in the postseason.
The 65-game rule. Injuries to Cade Cunningham, Anthony Edwards and now Luka Dončić are putting a lot of pressure on the NBA’s 65-game threshold for awards. Adam Silver dismissed criticism of the rule, saying it’s having a great effect on stars playing in more games instead of sitting for load management. And it was really just affecting one case (Cunningham’s) after last month’s Board of Governors meeting. Now we have Edwards missing the cut because he came out after three minutes in the third game of the season with a hamstring injury. Dončić’s regular season is over at 64 games because of a hamstring injury. Cunningham has played in 61 games. Edwards will finish one game short because of the three-minute game.
What is this solving? These guys have real injuries this season. Edwards dealt with a hamstring injury and a knee injury that cost him time. Cunningham’s lung collapsed. Dončić has dealt with various leg and hamstring issues. And they won’t be eligible for awards because the NBA is doubling down on this rule instead of fixing it. Really, they should abolish the rule, like when they quickly realized the new composite ball in 2006 was horrible. The NBA got its broadcast money and doesn’t need this dumb rule. Players want to play. Punish the teams when they sit them out sans legitimate injuries.
Atlanta Hawks (45-33). These Hawks keep soaring! They’ve won four in a row and 18 of their last 20 games, as they try to secure the fifth seed in the East. Atlanta enters this week with arguably the toughest closing schedule (more about that below). The Hawks were 18-21 when they officially traded Trae Young to the Washington Wizards, essentially abandoning their direction since 2018. It was a major risk with their fan base because they only got CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert back in the deal. But the Hawks have been thriving since this change in culture, as they’ve become more versatile and a lot better defensively.
Atlanta is 27-12 since the trade. It was 18th in offense and 16th in defense before the trade. Granted, Young only played in 10 games for the Hawks this season. But once he was gone, they went a style more conducive to what Quin Snyder preferred. Since the trade, the Hawks have improved to 12th in offense and seventh in defense. That’s a dramatic turnaround, which also includes trading Kristaps Porziņģis to the Golden State Warriors in a deal that landed them Jonathan Kuminga. Now the Hawks might be the team outside of the top four in the East that teams want to play the least.
Lakers (50-28)****. The Lakers have understandably fallen apart. They got smoked by 43 against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the game Dončić injured his hamstring. Austin Reaves also injured his oblique and is expected to miss four to six weeks. Without Reaves and Dončić for the foreseeable future, the Lakers have gone from people wondering if they’ll be sneaky dangerous in the postseason to wondering how much 41-year-old LeBron James can protect this team from just losing out.
L.A. dropped Sunday’s game to Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks. If it weren’t for their game against the Utah Jazz on the last day of the regular season, it would be fair to wonder if the Lakers will win another game before October. Dončić is headed to Europe for another opinion/treatment option on his hamstring. Is that something that can realistically be done to get him back in time? The Lakers have a little less than two weeks before the playoffs begin, and injury expert Jeff Stotts has the average Grade 2 hamstring strain at 35 days.
Portland Trail Blazers (40-38). The Blazers have now won four straight and eight of their last 10. They have climbed up to battle the LA Clippers for the eighth spot in the West for a chance to make their Play-In experience a double-elimination affair. Portland has had such a ridiculous up-and-down season, with its coach being federally indicted on the second day of the season and even a sale of the franchise to a new owner. The Blazers have had front-office suspensions and fines and so many injuries throughout this campaign. But as they’ve become healthy, interim coach Tiago Splitter has helped them put together a nice run.
Defensive specialist Toumani Camara has turned into a good scorer in this run. He’s averaging 17.6 points on 56.1/50.0/85.7 shooting splits. Jrue Holiday and Scoot Henderson have been a great tandem at point guard, combining to hit 40 percent of their 3-pointers. Donovan Clingan has been a double-double and shot-blocking machine. The Blazers could actually find themselves healthy at the right time and ready to make the important step forward.
Minnesota Timberwolves **(46-32)****.**The Wolves have lost four of their last five, and things could not look less encouraging. Edwards coming back from his knee injury didn’t right the ship. Granted, all of the Wolves’ losses are understandable. Their two losses to the Detroit Pistons came with both teams missing their star guards. Their loss to the Philadelphia 76ers came with Edwards playing pretty terribly against a mostly healthy Sixers squad. Then the Wolves’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday wasn’t that close. Edwards missed that game with some lingering knee pain. That can’t make anybody in Minneapolis feel good about the end of this season.
It’s unlikely they’re going to fall into the Play-In, so maybe they just need to rest Edwards and make sure he’s right for the first round? The Wolves will probably end up playing the Denver Nuggets, who are peaking at the right time.
Competitive basketball. On Friday, we may have seen the worst full slate of NBA games in any regular season. There were eight games that night, clearing the way as much as possible for the men’s Final Four on Saturday and Monday. The only game that ended in a single-digit margin was the Sacramento Kings’ 117-113 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The next closest was the Orlando Magic’s 128-117 victory over the Mavs with Flagg going for 51. But the average margin of victory that night was 24.4 points. It was the biggest margin of victory on any day with at least eight games in NBA history. Better fix that tanking issue properly.
Can Derrick White and the Celtics hold off the Knicks for the East’s No. 2 seed? (David Butler II / Imagn Images)
Week Ahead: What’s at stake
We have one week left in the 2025-26 regular season, and everything is counting down toward Sunday when all 30 teams are going to play in one final Gamemaggedon to settle the final standings. The No. 1 seed in the East is set (congrats to the Pistons!). The Play-In teams are also set, with 10 lottery teams officially eliminated.
This is everything else you’ll need to know to follow this final week.
East 2-4 seeding
Situation: The Boston Celtics are three games ahead of the New York Knicks and four games ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Celtics have all but locked up the No. 2 seed in the East. They just need to win two of their final four games, and one of them includes the Knicks. New York must win that game to close the gap while also taking the tiebreaker for the season series (it’s currently 2-1 against Boston with a better division record). The Knicks are still fighting off the Cavs for the No. 3 seed, unless there’s some galaxy-brain scheming going on in which they believe a second-round series against Detroit is more advantageous than a second-round series against Boston. Maybe then the Knicks mess with “the basketball gods” to drop down to fourth.
- Celtics (53-25) remaining games: versus Hornets, at Knicks, versus Pelicans, versus Magic
- Knicks (50-28) remaining games: at Hawks, versus Celtics, versus Raptors, versus Hornets
- Cavs (49-29) remaining games: at Grizzlies, versus Hawks, at Hawks, versus Wizards
Who holds the tiebreakers? The Knicks currently hold a tiebreaker over Boston (2-1) with one to play and have a better division record for the next tiebreaker. New York also owns the tiebreaker over Cleveland (2-1).
East 5-10 seeding
***Situation:*Atlanta is two games ahead of Philadelphia for fifth. Philadelphia enters Monday tied with Toronto for sixth but owns the tiebreaker (division record). Toronto is a half-game ahead of Charlotte for seventh. Charlotte is a half-game ahead of Orlando for eighth. Orlando is one game ahead of the Miami Heat for ninth.
This is going to be a photo finish to determine who gets into the playoffs and who has to go through the Play-In gauntlet. The East Play-In has historically been mediocre. But this year, all four teams are good and interesting. The Hawks have a tough finishing schedule, and the Sixers could close the gap thanks to an easy end to their season. But Atlanta has been awesome for about two months, so it can probably survive. Toronto has to take care of business at least one game against Miami, but it should be in a good position to put pressure on the sixth spot.
- Hawks (45-33) remaining games: versus Knicks, at Cavs, versus Cavs, at Heat
- 76ers (43-35) remaining games: at Spurs, at Rockets, at Pacers, versus Bucks
- Raptors (43-35) remaining games: versus Heat, versus Heat, at Knicks, versus Nets
- Hornets (43-36) remaining games: at Celtics, versus Pistons, at Knicks
- Magic (42-36) remaining games: versus Pistons, versus Wolves, at Bulls, at Celtics
- Heat (41-37) remaining games: at Raptors, at Raptors, at Wizards, versus Hawks
Who holds the tiebreakers? John Hollinger had the best breakdown of some ridiculous possibilities with these six. But let’s try to fill in some gaps here.
**Order of tiebreaker with three or more teams tied:**Division winner –> record among all teams against one another –> division record (if all in the same division) –> conference record –> better record among playoff eligible teams –> point differential
- **Atlanta:**4-0 versus Philadelphia | 0-4 versus Toronto | 1-3 versus Charlotte | 4-0 versus Orlando | 1-2 versus Miami (one left)
- Philadelphia: 0-4 versus Atlanta | 2-2 versus Toronto | 2-1 versus Charlotte | 2-1 versus Orlando | 1-2 versus Miami
- Toronto: 4-0 versus Atlanta | 2-2 versus Philadelphia | 2-2 versus Charlotte | 2-1 versus Orlando | 2-0 versus Miami (two left)
- Charlotte: 3-1 versus Atlanta | 1-2 versus Philadelphia | 2-2 versus Toronto | 3-1 versus Orlando | 1-3 versus Miami
- Orlando: 0-4 versus Atlanta | 1-2 versus Philadelphia | 1-2 versus Toronto | 1-3 versus Charlotte | 5-0 versus Miami
- Miami: 2-1 versus Atlanta (one left) | 2-1 versus Philadelphia | 0-2 versus Toronto (two left) | 3-1 versus Charlotte | 0-5 versus Orlando
West 1-2 seeding
***Situation:*The Thunder are three games ahead of the San Antonio Spurs for first in the West.
The Thunder just have to win two games or have the Spurs lose one game this week to clinch the top seed. They should be able to lock that up in the first two games and then rest their guys. This one should be all but done.
- Thunder (62-16) remaining games: at Lakers, at Clippers, at Nuggets, versus Suns
- Spurs (59-19) remaining games: versus Sixers, versus Blazers, versus Mavs, versus Nuggets
Who holds the tiebreakers? The Spurs hold the tiebreaker over the Thunder with a 4-1 season series record.
West 3-6 seeding
***Situation:*The Lakers and Nuggets are tied for third in the West, but the Lakers hold the tiebreaker. That pushes the Nuggets to fourth right now. The Rockets are one game behind Denver for fourth. Minnesota is three games behind Houston for fifth. Minnesota is three games ahead of the Phoenix Suns for sixth, but we’ll keep the Suns relegated to the Play-In section. Minnesota needs to win two games or have Phoenix lose one game to clinch a top-six spot.
The Lakers’ injuries have completely changed the way this quartet looks. Now everybody should be angling to match up with the Lakers in the first round. Denver should be able to climb into the third spot. The Lakers cannot drop to sixth because they own the tiebreaker over Minnesota, so the worst they can do is fifth. Houston can get up to third, but it doesn’t have the tiebreaker against Denver. The Wolves can only hold a tiebreaker against Houston.
- Lakers (50-28) remaining games: versus Thunder, at Warriors, versus Suns, versus Jazz
- Nuggets (50-28) remaining games: versus Blazers, versus Grizzlies, versus Thunder, at Spurs
- Rockets (49-29) remaining games: at Suns, versus Sixers, versus Wolves, versus Grizzlies
- Wolves (46-32) remaining games: at Pacers, at Magic, at Rockets, versus Pelicans
Who holds the tiebreakers? It’s not quite as complicated as the “Mid-6” in the East, but let’s break it down.
- **Lakers:**2-1 versus Denver | 2-1 versus Houston | 3-0 versus Minnesota
- Nuggets: 1-2 versus Lakers | 3-1 versus Houston | 3-1 versus Minnesota
- Rockets: 1-2 versus Lakers | 1-3 versus Denver | 1-1 versus Minnesota (one left)
- Wolves: 0-3 versus Lakers | 1-3 versus Denver | 1-1 versus Houston (one left)
Western Conference Play-In positioning:
Situation: The Suns have a three-game lead over the Blazers and Clippers for seventh. The Clippers and Blazers are tied for eighth, but the Clippers currently hold the tiebreaker over Portland. The Warriors are three games back of LA and Portland for ninth.
The Suns should be safe in the seventh spot and likely won’t move up to sixth. The Warriors aren’t likely to move up at all and are nearly locked into 10th in the West. So this really comes down to whether the Blazers can finish above the Clippers.
- Suns (43-35) remaining games: versus Rockets, versus Mavs, at Lakers, at Thunder
- Clippers (40-38) remaining games: versus Mavs, versus Thunder, at Blazers, versus Warriors
- Blazers (40-38) remaining games: at Nuggets, at Spurs, versus Clippers, versus Kings
- Warriors (36-42) remaining games: versus Kings, versus Lakers, at Kings, at Clippers
Who holds the tiebreakers? The Suns hold the tiebreaker over the Blazers (2-1 season series) and the Clippers (2-2 season series and would either win the division-record or conference-record tiebreaker). The Clippers have a 2-1 season series lead on the Blazers with one game to play. If they lose that game, they’ll lose the tiebreaker due to conference record.
Tanking — and the Pelicans!
***Situation:*We have to flip the standings for how we view this. We’ve lumped in all the bottom 10 teams for this section.
The Milwaukee Bucks play the Brooklyn Nets twice, so they’ll need to tank hard to have a chance to catch the Chicago Bulls. However, Chicago plays the Washington Wizards twice, so maybe this potential tie between them is still on the table? The biggest change/showdown that games may determine in this grouping is the game between the Indiana Pacers and Brooklyn this week.
- Bucks (31-47) remaining games: at Nets, at Pistons, versus Nets, at 76ers
- Bulls (29-49) remaining games: at Wizards, at Wizards, versus Magic, at Mavs
- Grizzlies (25-53) remaining games: versus Cavs, at Nuggets, at Jazz, at Rockets
- Mavericks (25-53) remaining games: at Clippers, at Suns, at Spurs, versus Bulls
- Pelicans (25-54) remaining games: versus Jazz, at Celtics, at Wolves
- Kings (21-57) remaining games: at Warriors, versus Warriors, at Blazers
- Jazz (21-58) remaining games: at Pelicans, versus Grizzlies, at Lakers
- Nets (19-59) remaining games: versus Bucks, versus Pacers, at Bucks, at Raptors
- Pacers (18-60) remaining games: versus Wolves, at Nets, versus 76ers, versus Pistons
- Wizards (17-61) remaining games: versus Bulls, versus Bulls, at Heat, versus Cavs
Tiebreakers do not apply to lottery slots. The NBA flips a coin between the teams to decide it.
By Zach Harper, via The Athletic