BASKETBALL NBA ARTICLES

The Philadelphia 76ers might be newcomers to the playoffs, but they looked like old pros in their first foray on Saturday. The 76ers blew out the No. 6 seed Miami Heat to take an early lead in their first round series and will aim to take a two-game lead when the teams meet once again in Philadelphia early next week. ... 

The Cleveland Cavaliers did not have the smoothest of regular seasons, finishing as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference heading into the playoffs. Even though they are in a 4-5 matchup that is traditionally hard-fought, the Cavaliers are heavy favorites to knock off the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the postseason.... 

The Golden State Warriors’ title defense will begin with a tough first-round matchup against the No. 7 seed San Antonio Spurs. These teams are used to meeting deeper in the postseason, but an injury-plagued regular season dropped San Antonio to one of the final teams into the playoffs.... 

A strong finish helped the Oklahoma City Thunder vault to the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference, giving it home court advantage in the first round. The Utah Jazz lost its regular season finale to drop to the No. 5 seed. This should be one of the most intriguing series in the first round as it features a pair of wildly different teams.... 

The Portland Trail Blazers were not projected to finish with the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference when the season began, but here they sit heading into the playoffs. Damian Lillard has taken a big step toward superstardom and he has gotten some help from a solid supporting cast.... 

The Golden State Warriors enter the postseason dealing with injuries and without the top seed in the Western Conference, but they are still the favorites to defend their championship. The start of their journey is a tough one as the No. 2 seed Warriors have to face off against the No. 7 seed San Antonio Spurs.... 

The Houston Rockets finished the regular season with the best record in the NBA and are neck and neck with the Warriors as the team to beat in the playoffs. The Rockets will begin their journey in a matchup against the No. 8 seed Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the postseason.... 

The Toronto Raptors have made the playoffs in four consecutive years but the farthest they have gotten is the Eastern Conference Finals. This is their best chance yet at advancing to the NBA Finals and the journey will begin with a first-round matchup against the Washington Wizards. ... 

The Boston Celtics finished the regular season as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, but injuries have oddsmakers wondering how far they can go. The Celtics have been without star Gordon Hayward for nearly the entire season and also won’t have star Kyrie Irving the rest of the way. Boston should still be favored in the first round and it will be interesting to see how well it plays against the No. 7 seed Milwaukee Bucks.
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The Philadelphia 76ers enter the playoffs as the hottest team in the NBA. Can the inexperienced up-and-comers keep it going when the heat turns up? The most intriguing team in the Eastern Conference has wrapped up the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference and will face off against the No. 6 seed Miami Heat in the first round. ... 

The Cleveland Cavaliers finished as only the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, but they have been listed as the favorites to once again advance to the NBA Finals. The faith in LeBron James remains extremely high as the oddsmakers believe he can lift up a team with flaws. The Cavaliers will begin their trek in the first round against a No. 5 seed Indiana Pacers team which will be a sizable underdog.
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A blazing hot winning streak has catapulted the Philadelphia 76ers into the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference, a spot that seemed impossible to reach a month ago. Philadelphia can stay there if it wins out and will be favored in its regular season finale in a matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks.
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The Western Conference jumble is coming down to the final games, as seven different teams can move up or down depending on their finishes. Two teams currently in line for home court advantage in the West are the Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers, but each could dip with a poor finish. Those two teams will face off in one of many critical matchups down the stretch.
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The Washington Wizards have dropped like a rock of late, and now are sitting in the final seed of the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Washington is going to make the postseason but would love to move up as the regular season winds down. The Wizards’ only real chance at catching either the Heat or Bucks ahead of them is by winning next week against the Boston Celtics.
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The Houston Rockets have already clinched the best record in the NBA, and are on the short list of contenders for a championship run. While they will be revved up and ready to go for the postseason, it remains to be seen how hard they will play the rest of the way in the regular season.
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The Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers are both on the outside of the Western Conference playoff chase as the regular season winds down, but within striking range of sneaking into the postseason. Neither team has much room for error and they will face off in a critical matchup this week.... 

The Houston Rockets are in cruise control, knowing full well they will enter the playoffs with the best record in the NBA and the top seed in the Western Conference. They seem like serious contenders to Golden State’s crown and may rest some key players down the stretch to be primed to go. That would be music to the ears of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who must hit the road this week and face off with the Rockets in Houston.... 

The Golden State Warriors are not exactly flying into the playoffs looking like another unstoppable group. While Golden State is the defending champion and is certainly going to be a handful for any team in the postseason, injuries have taken their toll of late and the Warriors are limping to the finish line as the regular season winds down.... 

The Cleveland Cavaliers aren’t going to finish atop the Eastern Conference like many envisioned when the year began, but they are playing a good brand of basketball as the playoffs approach. Cleveland dealt with more than its fair share of tumult early in the season but has smoothed everything out and is beginning to play like a title conference contender.... 

The New Orleans Pelicans are hanging on by a thread to one of the final playoff spots in the Western Conference. Several teams are clumped together and the Pelicans’ fate could be decided with how they play in the final few games down the stretch of the regular season.... 

The No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference will be up for grabs when the Cleveland Cavaliers hit the road to face off against the Philadelphia 76ers in a pivotal late-season contest this week. Cleveland has held the spot for nearly the entire season but Philadelphia is charging hard.... 

The Minnesota Timberwolves have slid down the Western Conference standings of late and have to play well down the stretch in order to ensure a playoff berth. They have to hit the road in a game this week but it is a winnable one against the Los Angeles Lakers.... 

The Cleveland Cavaliers are one of the hottest teams in the NBA of late. The problem is, they are getting chased by a team playing even better. Cleveland has won nine of its past 10 games but sits only a half-game ahead of the 76ers in the standings because Philadelphia has reeled off 11 straight wins.
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The race for the final playoff spots in the Western Conference has been a jumbled mess for weeks, and as the season comes to a close there will finally be some clarity. The Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets are right smack dab in the middle of that mix so their matchup this week is a huge one. ... 

The Boston Celtics have closed the gap on the Toronto Raptors for the top spot in the Eastern Conference, suddenly making their showdown this week one of the most critical games in the NBA. Boston would love to overtake Toronto for the top seed and home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference but has no room to spare. The Celtics must figure out a way to pull out the win on the road against a strong Raptors squad. Toronto will be the favored team in this matchup because of the home court advantage in NBA basketball spreads.
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