Play-ins to decide 8th seeds
The Oklahoma City Thunder were 40-42 last season and didn’t make the playoffs. This season they were 57-25 to earn the Western Conference top seed.
In 2022-23 the Minnesota Timberwolves were 42-40; this season they finished 56-26, the No. 3 seed in the West.
The Orlando Magic had just 34 victories last season and posted a 47-35 mark this season, good for the No. 5 seed.
While it’s a changing NBA in some ways, some things are familiar. The Boston Celtics went from 57-25 to 64-18 (top seed in the East), and the defending champion Denver Nuggets had four more wins this season, finishing 57-25 (second seed in the West).
Meantime, the Miami Heat are hoping a right knee injury suffered by Jimmy Butler in a loss Wednesday is just a sprain and he’ll be available for Friday’s play-in game for the East eighth seed.
Will one of the upstarts get to the NBA Finals or will the two teams (Celtics, Nuggets) many expect to get there meet for the title?
A look at the first round of the playoffs, all times p.m. EDT:
Eastern Conference No. 1 Boston Celtics vs.
No. 8 Chicago Bulls or Miami Heat
Game 1, Sunday: at Boston, 1, ABC
Game 2, April 24: at Boston, 7, TNT
Game 3, April 27: at No. 8, TNT
Game 4, April 29: at No. 8, time and TV TBD
Game 5, May 1: at Boston, time and TV TBD
Game 6, May 3: at No. 8, time and TV TBD
Game 7, May 5: at Boston, time and TV TBD
Key stats: The Celtics finished first offensively (122.2 points per 100 possessions) and No. 2 defensively (110.6 points per 100 possessions).
Who to watch: The Celtics have the best starting five: Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Derrick White and Jrue Holiday.
No. 2 New York Knicks-No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers Game 1, Saturday: at New York, 6, ESPN
Game 2, Monday: at New York, 7:30, TNT
Game 3, April 25: at No. 7, 7:30, TNT
Game 4, April 28: at No. 7, 1, ABC
Game 5, April 30: at New York, time and TV TBD Game 6, May 2: at No. 7, time and TV TBD
Game 7, May 4: at New York, time TBD, TNT
Season series: Knicks won 3-1
Key stats: Four teams finished in the top 10 offensively and defensively, and the Knicks were one of them.
Who to watch: Jalen Brunson’s ability to carry the Knicks without Julius Randle; the Sixers have two All-Stars in Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks-No. 6 Indiana Pacers Game 1, Sunday: Indiana at Milwaukee, 7, TNT Game 2, Tuesday: Indiana at Milwaukee, 8:30, NBA TV Game 3, April 26: Milwaukee at Indiana, 5:30, ESPN Game 4, April 28: Milwaukee at Indiana, 7, TNT Game 5, April 30: Indiana at Milwaukee, time and TV TBD Game 6, May 2: Milwaukee at Indiana, time and TV TBD Game 7, May 4: Indiana at Milwaukee, time TBD, TNT Season series: Pacers won 4-1
Key stats: Get ready for scoring. The Pacers had the No. 2 offense (120.5 points per 100 possessions), the Bucks No. 6 (117.6 points per 100 possessions); neither ranked in the top 15 defensively.
Who to watch: The health of Bucks stars Giannis Antetokounmpo (missed final three regular-season games with a strained left calf), and Damian Lillard (sore adductor muscle) and the Tyrese Haliburton-Pascal Siakam playoff debut for the Pacers.
No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers-No. 5 Orlando Magic Game 1, Saturday: Orlando at Cleveland, 1, ESPN Game 2, Monday: Orlando at Cleveland, 7, NBA TV Game 3, April 25: Cleveland at Orlando, 7, NBA TV Game 4, April 27: Cleveland at Orlando, 1, TNT Game 5, April 30: Orlando at Cleveland, time and TV TBD Game 6, May 3: Cleveland at Orlando, time and TV TBD Game 7, May 5: Orlando at Cleveland, time and TV TBD Season series: Tied 2-2
Key stats: The Magic’s No. 3 defense (110.8 points allowed per 100 possessions) vs. the Cavaliers’ No. 7 defense (112.1 points allowed per 100 possessions).
Who to watch: Second-year All-Star Paolo Banchero and third-year forward Franz Wagner are appearing in their first playoff series, and the Cavaliers feature Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley – a formidable inside-outside foursome.
Western Conference
No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs.
No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans or Sacramento Kings
Game 1, Sunday: at Oklahoma City, 9:30, TNT Game 2, April 24 : at Oklahoma City, 9:30, TNT Game 3, April 27: at No. 8, 3:30, TNT
Game 4, April 29: at No. 8, time and TV TBD
Game 5, May 1: at Oklahoma City, time and TV TBD Game 6, May 3: at No. 8, time and TV TBD
Game 7, May 5: at Oklahoma City, time and TV TBD
Key stats: The Thunder were one of two teams to finish the regular season with a top-four offensive and defensive ranking.
Who to watch: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams of the Thunder are the present and the future.
No. 2 Denver Nuggets-No. 7 LA Lakers
Game 1, Saturday: LA Lakers at Denver, 8:30, ABC Game 2, Monday: LA Lakers at Denver, 10, TNT Game 3, April 25: Denver at LA Lakers, 10, TNT Game 4, April 27: Denver at LA Lakers, 8:30, ABC Game 5, April 29: LA Lakers at Denver, time and TV TBD
Game 6, May 2: Denver at LA Lakers, time and TV TBD Game 7, May 4: LA Lakers at Denver, time TBD, TNT Season series: Nuggets won 3-0
Key stats: The Nuggets are No. 5 offensively (117.8 points per 100 possessions) and No. 8 defensively (112.3 points allowed per 100 possessions).
Who to watch: Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, a wizard with the basketball, may just end up winning his third MVP Award in four seasons, and the Lakers with LeBron James and Anthony Davis are back.
No. 3 Minnesota TimberwolvesNo. 6 Phoenix Suns
Game 1, Saturday: Phoenix at Minnesota, 3:30, ESPN Game 2, Tuesday: Phoenix at Minnesota, 7:30, TNT Game 3, April 26: Minnesota at Phoenix, 10:30, ESPN Game 4, April 28: Minnesota at Phoenix, 9:30, TNT Game 5, April 30: Phoenix at Minnesota, time and TV TBD
Game 6, May 2: Minnesota at Phoenix, time and TV TBD Game 7, May 4: Phoenix at Minnesota, time TBD, TNT Season series: Suns won 3-0
Key stats: It’s the Timberwolves’ top-ranked defense (108.4 points allowed per 100 possessions) against the Suns’ No. 10 offense (116.8 points per 100 possessions).
Who to watch: Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony form a Big 3 for the Timberwolves, and Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal do the same for the Suns.
No. 4 LA Clippers-No. 5 Dallas Mavericks Game 1, Sunday: Dallas at LA Clippers, 3:30, ABC Game 2, Tuesday: Dallas at LA Clippers, 10, TNT Game 3, April 26: LA Clippers at Dallas, 8, ESPN Game 4, April 28: LA Clippers at Dallas, 3:30, ABC Game 5, May 1: Dallas at LA Clippers, time and TV TBD Game 6, May 3: Los Angeles Clippers at Dallas, time and TV TBD
Game 7, May 5: Dallas at Los Angeles Clippers, time and TV TBD
Season series: Clippers won 2-1
Key stats: Who likes offense? The Clippers are No. 4 (117.9 points per 100 possessions) and the Mavericks are No. 8 (117 points per 100 possessions).
Who to watch: The Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and James Harden present problems on both sides of the court; Dallas’ Luka Doncic keeps inching closer to an MVP Award.