OKC Thunder: Daily playoff seed shuffle, April 5, 2019

Six days remain in the NBA regular season with the OKC Thunder and many yet to secure their playoff seeds. TI recaps the nightly games and their effect on the seeding.

It was a quiet day in the NBA with just three games on the schedule. Of those only two had any impact on the playoff picture and subsequent seeding. Neither game factored in the OKC Thunder seeding, but the slate of events for Friday, April 5th will no doubt see some shuffling on the ladder.

Let’s review the games and shifts from Thursday, April 4th and review the games for April 5th.

Milwaukee Bucks defeat Philadelphia 76ers: 128-122

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With the victory by Milwaukee, the Bucks have locked down home court seeding throughout the postseason. This means if the Bucks were to reach and win the Eastern Conference Finals they would hold the home court advantage in the NBA Finals as well.

For the 76ers, while Joel Embiid was back on the court he naturally displayed some rust having missed 12 of the teams last 20 games including the three prior to this match. In his absence, the team is functioning with a .500 record. This game saw Jimmy Butler swap positions with Embiid as he didn’t suit up due to back tightness.

The loss by the 76ers was their third in a row and means the Celtics and Pacers still have an outside chance of catching them to take the third seed.

Golden State Warriors defeat LA Lakers: 108-90

The win by the Warriors gives them a two-game edge over the Nuggets atop the conference. Each team has four games remaining. Given the Warriors own the tiebreak it essentially gives the Dubs a three-game cushion.

Revised seeding:

Eastern Conference:

• Milwaukee Bucks: 59-20
• Toronto Raptors: 56-23 (3,0)
• Philadelphia 76ers: 49-30 (10.0)
• Boston Celtics: 47-32 (12.0)
• Indiana Pacers:  47-32 (12.0)
• Detroit Pistons: 39-39(19,5)
• Brooklyn Nets: 39-40 (20.0)
• Miami Heat: 38-40 (20.0)
• Orlando Magic: 38-40 (20.5)
• Charlotte Hornets: 36-42 (22.5)

Western Conference:

• Golden State Warriors:  54-24 —
• Denver Nuggets: 52-26 (-2.0)
• Houston Rockets:  51-28 (-3.5)
• Portland Trail Blazers: 50-28 (4.0)
• Utah Jazz: 48-30 (6.0)
• LA Clippers 47-32 (7.5)
• OKC Thunder 45-33 (9.0)
• San Antonio Spurs: 45-34 (9.5)

April 5 Games:

Of the 13 games on the slate of events for the NBA on Friday all but two feature a team (or teams) jockeying for playoff seeding. The OKC Thunder are in the mix as they host the Detroit Pistons at 8:00 p.m. (see our preview here), but the main event features the Celtis at the Pacers where a win by either squad will likely give them the edge on home court seeding.

• Toronto Raptors at Charlotte Hornets – 7:00 p.m.
• Atlanta Hawks at Orlando Magic –  7:00 p.m.
• San Antonio Spurs at Washington Wizards –  7:00 p.m.
• Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers – 8:00 p.m.
• New York Knicks at Houston Rockets  – 8:00 p.m.
• Miami Heat at Minnesota Timberwolves – 8:00 p.m.
• Detroit Pistons at OKC Thunder – 8:00 p.m.
• Sacramento Kings at Utah Jazz – 9:00 p.m.
• Portland Trail Blazers at Denver Nuggets – 10:30 p.m.
• Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors – 10:30 p.m.
• LA Lakers at LA Clippers – 10:30 p.m.

Check back tomorrow for the results from the night’s matches and how they affected the playoff ladder.

And, if you’re seeking more details on each team’s remaining games and where they can potentially finish check out TI’s initial article in this series.