12. Washington Wizards (40-30)
The Washington Wizards survived without John Wall, who was out due to a knee injury. He’s reportedly close to returning and should be back by the time the playoffs come around. That’s huge, considering many were questioning how far they would fall with him out.
The opposite has happened. In fact, you could make the case that the Wizards arguably hit their stride with him sidelined.
The Wizards are sitting in the 5th seed of the East, and are only one game back of the third seed. It’s not out of the realm of possibility for this team to finish ahead of Cleveland in the standings and as one of the three best teams in the East.