With less than two weeks left before the start of the NBA Playoffs, the New Orleans Pelicans and Minnesota Timberwolves are getting hot at the right time.
There are officially less than two weeks remaining in the regular season. While the Eastern Conference has pretty much settled on the six teams that will automatically qualify for the NBA Playoffs and its Play-In Tournament slate, the Western Conference is still very much up in the air.
With roughly a week and a half remaining in the season, there is still very much that needs to be settled in the Western Conference. However, there are two teams that seem to be getting hot at the right exact time. The New Orleans Pelicans and Minnesota Timberwolves, who have won five and four-straight games, respectively, seem to be cementing their spots in the playoffs.
Heading into Tuesday’s action, the Wolves are now in the sixth seed and just one game back of the LA Clippers for the fifth seed in the West standings. The Pelicans are currently the eighth seed in the West standings but are just a half-game back of both the Golden State Warriors and Wolves.
We should get some NBA Playoff clarity this week
The next few days should offer some much-needed clarity in the Western Conference playoff picture. But it’s looking more and more like the Pelicans and Wolves will be in the NBA postseason one way or another.
The same can’t be said for the Dallas Mavericks who are quickly fading in the standings. With just six games remaining, the Mavs are outside the top 10 in the West standings and have a pretty tough schedule to close the season.
There’s a very real chance that the Mavs could end up missing the playoffs (Play-In Tournament included) this season. The Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder are clinging to the 9th and 10 seed, respectively, but still have some work to do over the next week and a half.
For many of these teams, there isn’t much margin for error if they want to cement their place in the NBA postseason. And the next few days, into next week, will prove to be quite entertaining.
Which teams will hold on and win just enough games to qualify for the NBA Playoffs? It’s a question that we will soon get some clarity on. Buckle up, the NBA Playoffs will be here before we even know it.