NBA playoff picture: Thunder clinch No. 1 seed in West; Suns, Pacers secure final bid in each conference

The 2023-24 NBA regular season is over, and we now know the six playoff teams from each conference, as well as the four teams competing in the play-in tournament for the bottom two seeds in the Eastern and Western conferences.

The Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers secured the six playoff spots in the East.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns will compete in the West First Round.

In the East play-in tournament, the Philadelphia 76ers will face the Miami Heat and the Chicago Bulls will face the Atlanta Hawks. The West will see the Los Angeles Lakers take on the New Orleans Pelicans and the Sacramento Kings take on the Golden State Warriors.

The play-in tournament will take place Tuesday through Friday, and the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs begins on Saturday.

Thunder wins three-way battle for West No. 1 seed

The matchups were finalized Sunday on the final day of the regular season with playoff positioning on the line at all levels. The Thunder asserted themselves in a three-way race for the No. 1 seed in the West with a 135-86 loss to a Mavericks team with nothing to play for, combined with a Timberwolves loss to the Suns. The Nuggets secured the second seed, thanks to a victory against the Memphis Grizzlies.

With its victory against Minnesota, Phoenix moved into sixth place and the last guaranteed playoff spot in the West. The Pelicans controlled the No. 6 seed on Sunday, but fell into play-in with a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

In the East, the Knicks overtook the Milwaukee Bucks for the No. 2 seed with an overtime win over the Bulls. The Bucks fell to the No. 3 seed with a loss to the Magic, who earned the No. 5 seed. The Pacers eliminated the Hawks, clinching the conference’s final guaranteed playoff spot, relegating the 76ers and Heat to the play-ins.

EAST CONFERENCE

1. Boston Celtics
2. New York Knicks
3. Milwaukee Bucks
4. Cleveland Cavaliers
5. The magic of Orlando
6. Indiana Pacers

Play
7. Philadelphia 76ers
8. Miami Heat
9. Chicago Bulls
10. Atlanta Falcons

Games schedule
Wednesday April 17

No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers vs. No. 8 Miami Heat, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)

No. 9 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 10 Atlanta Hawks, 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Friday April 19

76ers-Heat loser vs. Bulls-Hawks winner, time to be determined (ESPN)

First round matches

No. 1 Boston Celtics vs. No. 8 seed (secondary play-in winner)

No. 2 New York Knicks against No. 7 seed (winner of the 76ers-Heat)

No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks vs. No. 6 Indiana Pacers

No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 5 Orlando Magic

WESTERN CONFERENCE

1. Oklahoma City Thunder
2. Denver Nuggets
3. Minnesota Wolves
4. Los Angeles Clippers
5. Dallas Mavericks
6. Phoenix Suns

Play
7. New Orleans Pelicans
8. Los Angeles Lakers
9. Sacramento Kings
10. Golden State Warriors

Games schedule

Tuesday April 16

No. 7 New Orleans Pelicans vs. No. 8 Los Angeles Lakers, 7:30 p.m. ET (TNT)

No. 9 Sacramento Kings vs. No. 10 Golden State Warriors, 10 p.m. ET (TNT)

Friday April 19

Pelicans-Lakers loser vs. Kings-Warriors winner, time to be determined (TNT)

First round matches

No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 8 seed (secondary play-in winner)

Denver Nuggets No. 2 vs. No. 7 seed (Pelicans-Lakers winner)

No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 6 Phoenix Suns

Los Angeles Clippers No. 4 vs. Dallas Mavericks No. 5

2024 NBA Finals Schedule

Thursday June 6: Game 1
Sunday June 9: Game 2
Wednesday June 12: Game 3
Friday June 14: Game 4
Monday June 17: Game 5 (if necessary)
Thursday June 20: Game 6 (if necessary)
Sunday June 23: Game 7 (if necessary)