NBA

NBA Playoff Race Update: The East Is Set, But the West Remains Wild

Russell Peddle  —  @rustypedalbike Apr 6th, 2018
Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse the slideshow

Western Conference - Sure Things

(1) Houston Rockets (64-15, clinched)
(2) Golden State Warriors (57-22, clinched)
(3) Portland Trail Blazers (48-31, clinched)
(4) Utah Jazz (46-33, 99.6%)

Most NBA teams have a mere three to four games remaining on their schedules, yet somehow, we only have three confirmed playoff teams up to this point in the Western Conference.

The Rockets and Warriors punched their tickets nearly a month ago, and the Trail Blazers joined them this week. That said, Portland only sits four games up on the ninth-place Denver Nuggets, so it's not like they've pulled away from the pack entirely or anything.

Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz -- a team that looked lottery-bound by the season's halfway point -- are suddenly fourth in the conference, in line to host a first-round playoff series and the closest thing we have to a sure thing out of all the non-clinched playoff hopefuls out West, with postseason odds of 99.6% heading into the season's final week.

Prev Next