With the playoffs less than 50 days away, teams vying for elite seeds are buckling down. The Western Conference is highly competitive among all 8 spots. The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs are battling for the top seed with only 1.5 games separating the spurs from taking top position away from the Thunder. Meanwhile, teams such as the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, and Portland Trailblazers have secured safe positions in the 3rd,4th & 5th positions. As always, the most interesting battle occurs in the lower seeds. Currently a lethal Golden State squad holds the 6 seed, but do not count out the rising Phoenix Suns who have proved to be a tough match-up for any opposing team. The two teams fighting for the 8th seed are the Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies. Both teams are usually postseason competitors, yet this year's playoff picture seems to only have room for one of the contenders.
In the weaker Eastern Conference, it is no surprise that the Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat sit atop the conference. However, the surprise lies with just how far back the 3rd place teams is from the Pacers and Heat. The Toronto Raptors, who currently hold the 3 spot in the east, are a lengthy 12.5 games behind the second place Heat. This has been a down year for the Eastern Conference. With only two teams in the conference having a winning percentage above .600, any onlooker can see the lackluster performance of the other 13 teams of the Eastern Conference. Nonetheless, teams are still battling for remaining playoff positions. The Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards claim the 4th and 5th seeds, but they surely are not safe from the now red hot Brooklyn Nets who hold the 6th seed. Surprisingly enough the Charlotte Bobcats have burst into the playoff picture and have the 7th seed. Meanwhile, the Atlanta hawks have fallen to the 8th seed with a mediocre record of 1-9 in their last 10 games.
Regardless of standings, NBA teams still have the opportunity to control their own destiny. However with only 20-25 games remaining in the season, teams should probably buckle down to make their playoff run sooner rather than later.
- Mitchell Berrang
http://espn.go.com/nba/standings
