Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The NBA Play-In Tournament begins Tuesday, Apr. 14, featuring teams from both conferences vying for the final playoff spots.
- Key matchups include preseason contenders like the Magic and 76ers facing unexpected challenges and like the Warriors battling for a chance to advance.
- The outcomes of these games will set the seeding and strategies for the upcoming postseason.
The NBA's Play-In Tournament kicks off tonight as the race to secure the final playoff spots heats up. The Eastern Conference's Play-In Group features a mix of preseason contenders who failed to meet lofty expectations (Philadelphia and Orlando), the Miami Heat in their seemingly annual appearance, and the Charlotte Hornets seeking their first playoff appearance in a decade.
The Western Conference group has two distinct sets of opponents: Phoenix and Portland, both of whom were questionable postseason entrants in the preseason, as well as a pair of star-studded groups that underachieved in the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors. Let's take a look at what's on the line for each Play-In matchup.
Eastern Conference Play-In
Orlando Magic vs. Philadelphia 76ers
The winner of this game is set to earn the 7th seed in the East, where they will draw a first round matchup with the Boston Celtics. It is a bit surprising for both teams to be here, but Orlando largely underachieved after their big offseason trade to land Desmond Bane while Philadelphia has dealt with injury issues as well as a 25-game suspension for Paul George.
It doesn't look like the 76ers will have Joel Embiid for the Play-In Tournament as he is still recovering from an emergency appendectomy. Andre Drummond is expected to get the majority of minutes for Philadelphia at the five, but George and Tyrese Maxey will need to carry the offensive load to get out of this game.
The situation for Orlando is more complicated since they made an all-in bet on this roster by trading a slew of future picks for Bane only to land in the Play-In Tournament. Failure to get a win here would drop them to the eighth slot, where they would await the Miami-Charlotte winner for a chance to face Detroit in the first round.
There may not be a coach in the Play-In Tournament with more pressure than Orlando's Jamahl Mosely, who could pay with his job if the Magic don't advance. Since there isn't much the Magic can do to alter their roster makeup at this point, it wouldn't be surprising to see him get the axe with the front office targeting a different coach who could get more out of this group.
Miami Heat vs. Charlotte Hornets
This game will tip off first on Tuesday night with Charlotte hosting Miami for the right to travel to the Orlando-Philadelphia loser on Friday night to battle for the eight seed. The Heat are Play-In Tournament veterans at this point, having participated in the past four Play-Ins, but the intrigue here surrounds the Hornets.
Few expected Charlotte to be relevant this season but the addition of Kon Knueppel, who is in a dog fight with former Duke teammate Cooper Flagg for Rookie of the Year honors, helped them turn into one of the league's hottest teams once the calendar flipped to January. The Hornets have a fun young trio of players to build around in Knueppel, LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller so any playoff experience they could get here will be huge for their future.
It doesn't feel as if the Heat are incredibly concerned about their potential to make a playoff run anyway as they have been fishing for roster upgrades for a while to land their next superstar. Perhaps a run to the 8th seed and an exciting push against the Pistons could lead to more interest from Giannis Antetokoumpko, who reportedly prefers to play on the East Coast if he gets moved by Milwaukee in the offseason.
Western Conference Play-In
Phoenix Suns vs. Portland Trail Blazers
This game will determine who earns the right to face Victor Wembenyama and San Antonio in the first round. The fact that both Phoenix and Portland are in this position is a positive for their team building efforts, especially in the case of the Suns.
Few expected Phoenix to be a playoff factor after moving on from Kevin Durant in the offseason, resetting their roster around Devin Booker with Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green as the key pieces in that return. Brooks has fit like a glove and brought some serious swagger to the Suns, who have also scored a major player development win with Collin Gillespie seizing the starting point guard spot.
Portland also deserves credit for landing here as their Play-In potential appeared to suffer a distraction when head coach Chauncey Billups was arrested for his role in an illegal gambling scheme. Interim Tiago Splitter has done well to guide the Trail Blazers to this point and could be a candidate to have the interim tag removed if Portland can reach the postseason.
A playoff run would be helpful for the Trail Blazers as key youngsters like Shaedon Sharpe, Deni Avdija, Scoot Henderson and Donovan Clingan can use reps in pressure situations. Jrue Holiday has been a solid leader for them and Damian Lillard's return next season could super charge them despite being in a loaded Western Conference.
Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors
The draw in this game will be to see Kawhi Leonard and Steph Curry face off in an elimination game. The Clippers will host this matchup for the right to face the Phoenix-Portland loser for the eight seed, which brings with it the juggernaut that is Oklahoma City.
Few teams got off to a worse start than the Clippers, who flopped early in the season and made a mess of the Chris Paul situation. A few key trades, including sending James Harden to Cleveland for Darius Garland, have helped Los Angeles finish the season on a heater to get in position to at least get in the playoffs.
The Warriors' season was derailed by injuries with Jimmy Butler going down for the year with a torn ACL and Curry missing a lot of time with various ailments. Curry returned at the end of last week but Golden State plans to keep him on a minutes restriction in this game, keeping him under 40 minutes despite the do-or-die nature of the contest.
It appears that the front office realizes their odds of going deep in this year's playoffs are low given their positionining. The long game, which would allow the Warriors to keep Curry healthy entering next season, is the priority as they try to get one more title run with him performing at near-peak performance.
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