On April 15, Beijing time, in the final game of the NBA regular season, the final ranking of the East and West was officially determined, with the Thunder in the West taking the first place, the Nuggets second, the Timberwolves third, and the Suns getting sixth, the Pelicans falling to seventh, the Eastern Knicks rising to second, the Bucks falling to third, and the 76ers still seventh. With the rankings determined, the four play-off matchups have also been officially determined, and the league has also announced the specific schedule.
The Pelicans, who are seventh in the West, are against the Lakers who are eighth, and the Kings who are ninth are against the Warriors who are tenth.
The matchup between the Pelicans and the Lakers will start first and will start at 7:30 am on the 17th, and the winner of the two teams will face the Nuggets in the second place in the West in the first round of the playoffs, while the losing side still has a chance to play against the winner of the Kings and Warriors. The Lakers won the final round against the Pelicans on the road and locked up eighth place in the West, and now they don't need to return to Los Angeles to stay in New Orleans and try to become the seventh seed to advance to the playoffs.
Next up is the Warriors, who will challenge the Kings on the road, also on the 17th, with a game time of 10 o'clock. Originally, they had a chance to finish eighth, but unfortunately lost to the Pelicans in the penultimate game and missed a great opportunity. Even if he wins the finale, he can't change the fate of being ranked tenth, which is somewhat a pity. Originally, they won in direct dialogue with the Lakers and had taken the initiative, but unfortunately they failed to withstand the key game with the Pelicans, and it depends on whether they can counterattack in the play-offs this time.
The Eastern Conference kicked off on the 18th, with the seventh-place 76ers playing against the eighth-place Heat, which started at 7 a.m. This is a strong conversation, the 76ers have a very strong momentum in the final stage, winning a wave of 8 consecutive wins, and once rushed to the top six, but unfortunately in the end the Magic and Pacers withstood their impact. This also allows the 76ers to face the Heat in advance, and the winner will face the second-place Knicks in the first round of the playoffs.
The other group is the ninth-place Bulls vs. the tenth-place Hawks, and this game is a little less interesting, after all, the West has the Lakers and Warriors.
In addition, the Warriors are also to watch this time to see if they have a chance to make history. In the previous three seasons, the 10th-ranked team failed to make the playoffs, and the Hawks' chances may be a little slim, but the Warriors still have a chance to surprise. Warriors coach Kerr said: "We're excited about that.