Western Conference Playoffs and Seedings Are Set

The Western Conference playoffs and seedings are set for the postseason. The Oklahoma City Thunder will be the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Houston, the Los Angeles Lakers, and Denver Nuggets round out the top 4 seeds. The Eastern Conference playoffs were a couple days prior to the season finale. In the west, it was tough all season seeing numbers 4 through 7 were determined on the final day. Denver blew out the Rockets to lock up the fourth seed because Houston was already the third seed. In a game that went into OT, the Clippers beat the Warriors to secure the 5^th seed. With the loss, Golden State dropped to the 7^th seed and will host Memphis in a play-in game. Minnesota beat Utah to secure the 6^th seed behind 43 points from Anthony Edwards. Check out the Western Conference matchups below.

Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the frontrunner for league MVP. They have been the best team in the West throughout the season. They will face the 8^th seed in the first round of the playoffs. The winner of the Golden State and Memphis game will be the 7^th seed. The loser of that game will face the winner of the Sacramento and Dallas game. Whoever wins that game will meet the Thunder in the first round.

Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets are the 2^nd seed in the Western Conference playoffs. This young team surprised everyone by climbing up the Western Conference rankings. The Rockets weren’t listed as one of my top 5 Western Conference teams after the All-Star break. Houston will meet the winner of the Golden State and Memphis play-in game. The Rockets will have a tough matchup against either Golden State or Memphis.

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves

The 3 versus 6 series in the Western Conference will see the Los Angeles Lakers battle the Minnesota Timberwolves. These two teams split their four games against each other this season. The Lakers finished third in the West and they were my number three team after the All-Star break. Minnesota finished the season winning eight of their final nine games. There’s a lot of superstar power for this season and it should be exciting.

Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Clippers

The 4 versus 5 series in the Western Conference will see the Denver Nuggets host the Los Angeles Clippers. These two teams split their four games they played this season. Denver had a lot going on this past season. Coach Michael Malone was fired a couple of weeks ago, will they help or hurt Denver? Nikola Jokic finished the season with a triple-double, which is unheard of for a big man. On the flipside, the Los Angeles Clippers are arguably the hottest team heading into the playoffs. Los Angeles finished the season on a eight game winning streak. This should be a very exciting series between these two teams.

Golden State vs. Memphis (7 vs. 8 Play-In Game)

We have the 7 versus 8 play-in game as the Golden State Warriors host the Memphis Grizzlies. The Warriors lost three of their final five games. They beat this Memphis team in two of their three matchups this season. Memphis finished the season with a blowout win over Dallas to stop their 2-game losing streak. The winner of this game will take on the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs. The loser would play the winner of the Sacramento and Dallas game. Whoever leaves with the win in that one will battle Oklahoma City in the first round.

Sacramento vs. Dallas (9 vs. 10 Play-In Game)

The 9 versus 10 play-in game will see the Sacramento Kings host the Dallas Mavericks. Sacramento defeated the Suns in the season finale to end their two game losing streak. The regular season record against Dallas won’t matter in this game. Sacramento traded DeAaron Foxx and of course, the Mavs traded Luka also. The injury to Kyrie Irving and him being loss for the season was the icing on the cake for Dallas. The winner of this game will face the loser of the Golden State and Memphis game. The winner of that game will head to Oklahoma City for a first round matchup against the Thunder.