03/27/2024 at 15:11 CET
The NBA faces its final stretch of the regular season after another exciting course full of emotions and that will have its grand culmination in the next playoffs, a phase that will begin on April 20 and that will open the way to the finals, where the long-awaited Larry O’Brien trophy will be awarded to the 23/24 champion.
The reality is that it has been a rollercoaster of emotions in both conferences throughout the campaign, with now the top 10 teams in the West and East practically decided. With 10 games left to play, it will be necessary to close gaps in some position.
The Celtics lead a ‘close’ East
The Eastern Conference has been the ‘weaker’ of the two in terms of competition. Boston Celtics, with #1 already secured, are clear dominators with a balance of 57-15 how far it is from second in the table, Milwawukee Bucks, with a record of 46-26. Mazzula’s team is the best team in the NBA and they play what they want. They are the main contenders for the title and have demonstrated this from the beginning, so the bets are in their favor to reach the finals, which will run from June 6 to the 23rd of the same month. A good second half of the season has meant that Cavaliers (44-28) y Knicks (43-28) place third and fourth, a decisive court ‘factor’ for the future, while Magic (42-29) y Pacers (41-32) They are fifth and sixth, two young projects that started better than they are now but whose performance has been notable.
Miami Heat (39-33) marks the beginning of play-in positions in seventh place with the same balance as Philadelphia 76ers (39-33), a franchise that has plummeted since the injury of its MVP Joel Embiid, off the court since January. The ninth and tenth are far away, Chicago Bulls (34-38) y Atlanta Hawks (32-39)two teams that despite the disappointing year will have the opportunity to be in the play-in barring disaster. Brooklyn Nets (27-45)eleventh, is far from being a real danger.
Everything at stake in the ‘Wild West’
At the other conference there is a lot of fish left to sell. Denver (51-21), Thunder (50-21) y Timberwolves (49-22) They lead a race for the throne of the West that aims to be decided at the last moment. All three have led the table at different stages of the course, with Jokic’s Nuggets being the ones in the best shape currently, with a streak of four consecutive victories. Shai in Oklahoma and Anthony Edwards in Minnesota They will step on the accelerator hard, but they both know that their season is already a success.
Los Clippers (44-27) y Pelicans (44-28) They occupy fourth and fifth place, just ahead of some Dallas Mavericks (43-29) who dream of the home court factor for the playoffs. Led by a masterful Luka Doncic, MVP candidate, Jason Kidd’s team has won its last five games and has won 9 of the last 10. Kings (42-30) y Suns (42-30) They are in the first two places in the play-in of the West, one step above two of the greatest teams of all time. The Lebron’s Lakers (40-32) and Curry’s Warriors (37-34) They await in ninth and tenth place in the conference, an ‘old guard’ with hopes of surprising them in the play-off. In the Bay they still can’t relax: los Houston Rockets (36-35) They have won nine in a row and are only one game away in eleventh position.
2024-03-27 14:11:52
#Lebron #Curry #play
