Sixers pick (currently 3rd):
- New York won (good):
- Minnesota lost (bad):
Lakers pick (top 5 protected, currently 4th):
- Really nothing happened here. LAL (who are on a three game winning streak) were off, as were Orlando, Denver, and Sacramento. New York won (which would be bad for LAL pick) and Minny lost (which would be good), but both impact the Sixers pick, which is more important, so I put them in that category.
Miami pick (top 10 protected, currently 16th):
- Brooklyn won (good): The Brooklyn win puts the Nets 1 win away from passing Miami, which would drop Miami down to the 15th slot.
- Detroit lost (bad?): I’m not entirely sure where to classify this. Detroit was one of the teams I was counting on to pass Miami, but they’ve now lost 3 games in a row and, at 23-36, have 2 less wins and 3 more losses than Miami, and currently sit 8th. Boston, winners of 3 in a row, are now between Miami and the 10th spot, rather than Detroit.
- Not a lot else happened, as Charlotte, Boston, and Indy were all off.
Oklahoma City pick (top 18 protected, currently 17th):
- Wizards won (bad): The Wizards finally stopped their skid, beating Detroit 99-95. The return of Bradley Beal should help them get back on track, and make OKC’s quest for the 19th slot just a little bit tougher. With the win, Washington is 2 wins ahead of OKC.
- Milwaukee lost (good): Milwaukee fell to Utah and have now lost 2 in a row. The loss puts Milwaukee at 32-27, tied with OKC.
- San Antonio won (good): This can be argued either good or bad. As long as OKC passes Washington, you want San Antonio to win. But if Washington goes on a hot streak, or OKC falters down the stretch, you want as many options as you can get. With Derrick Rose’s injury, San Antonio struggling down the stretch shouldn’t be necessary.
- Toronto lost (bad?): Similar situation to San Antonio. Toronto shouldn’t be necessary, but they’ve now lost 5 in a row to put them 5 wins ahead of OKC and make them a (slight) possibility.
Tonight’s games:
- LAC @ Chicago: I’m going to hope Chicago loses, as I suppose I want one more team to stay around OKC as a backup plan in case Washington goes on a run, and I think Chicago is the most likely, even though they play in the Eastern Conference.
- Charlotte @ Orlando: A Charlotte win could push them to within a win of Miami, and also give the Lakers the chance to make up a game on Orlando for the 5th spot. The Lakers are miraculously on a 3 game winning streak and only 3 wins behind Orlando for the 5th spot.
- Portland @ Sacramento: A Sacramento loss keeps them, at worst, within 4 wins or the Lakers. The Lakers passing two of Denver, Sacramento and Orlando would slide the Lakers to 6th spot.
- OKC @ LAL: Tough one, as either outcome could be good for the Sixers. OKC could be without Durant and Westbrook, so picking up a win would be a huge schedule win for a team the Sixers are hoping passes Washington. That being said, if your’e a gambling man, another Lakers victory keeps the dream alive.
- New Orleans @ Denver: New Orleans passing OKC would be worst case scenario, as it would bump OKC into the lottery and take away any chance the Sixers have of getting that pick, and they’re only 1 win behind OKC at the moment. But I can’t see it happening. A Denver loss, if the Lakers win as well, could pull the Lakers to within 3 wins of the 6th-slotted Nuggets, amazingly.