With their victory on Friday against the Orlando Magic, the Philadelphia 76ers secured first place in the NBA East conference while the Dallas Mavericks sealed their direct ticket to the playoffs in the West.
The teams that finish on Sunday, the last day of the regular phase, between 1st and 6th place in each conference advance directly to the playoffs while those classified from 7th to 10th place will face each other in the ‘play in’ (repechage) for the last tickets to the playoffs.
The group of 20 teams that either have qualified for the playoffs or will play the ‘play in’ between May 18 and 21, was closed on Friday with the entry of the Washington Wizards and the elimination of the Chicago Bulls.
Until Sunday the struggle to determine the final positions will continue, with the great doubt of whether the Los Angeles Lakers will reach the direct ticket to the playoffs or will have to win it in the ‘play in’.
In the East, the Philadelphia 76ers sealed the first place in the conference for the first time since the 2000-01 season following their comfortable 122-97 win over the Orlando Magic on Friday.
Cameroonian center Joel Embiid, a candidate for the MVP (Most Valuable Player) award, only had to play 23 minutes in the game, with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
With their victory, the Sixers will no longer be able to be reached in the first position by the Brooklyn Nets (2nd) or the Milwaukee Bucks (3rd) and will enjoy the advantage of playing on their court an eventual seventh game of each tie.
“I am happy with what we have achieved, but we have a long way to go,” stressed Embiid. “We have been dominant at home. We hardly lose here. It means a lot to be ranked number one. “
– Lakers or Portland, last unknown –
With a triple-double by Luka Doncic (20 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists), the Dallas Mavericks beat the Toronto Raptors 114-110 and consolidated in fifth place in the West.
In this way, the Mavericks secured their place in the playoffs, mathematically avoiding falling to seventh place, which entails playing the ‘play in’ and is currently occupied by the Los Angeles Lakers.
To avoid the playoffs, the reigning NBA champions need to win their two games on Saturday and Sunday, against the Pacers and the Pelicans, and for the Portland Trail Blazers (6th) to lose Sunday against the Denver Nuggets.
The Lakers have not yet confirmed whether they will recover injured LeBron James for the weekend.
The format of the ‘play in’ contemplates a first confrontation between the 7th classified of each conference against the 8th and the 9th against the 10th.
The winner of the match between 7th and 8th advances directly to the playoffs while the loser will have a new chance to get the ticket against the winner of the match between 9th and 10th.
– Washington to play repechage, Bulls eliminated –
Without his figure Bradley Beal, the Washington Wizards beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-105 and sealed their presence in the ‘play in’.
The Wizards ‘playoff qualification ruined the Chicago Bulls’ chances, which are out of the playoffs for the fourth straight season despite the brand new signing in February of All-Star center Nikola Vucevic.
Point guard Russell Westbrook, who this week broke the record for triple-doubles in history, added one more on Friday with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 17 assists.
– Denver catches up with Clippers –
The Utah Jazz claimed the top spot in the Western conference with a 109-93 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Croatian forward Bojan Bogdanovic, with 22 points, and French center Rudy Gobert, with 16 points and 18 rebounds, led the Jazz.
For the Thunder, Argentine forward Gabriel Deck added 18 points, the best mark since his NBA debut two weeks ago, adding 1 triple and 6 rebounds.
The Denver Nuggets beat the Detroit Pistons 104-91 and took third place in the West from the Los Angeles Clippers, who lost 122-115 to the Houston Rockets in a game in which they gave rest to their figures Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Unlike other stars and some teammates, including the Argentine Facundo Campazzo, Serbian center Nikola Jokic did not rest this Friday in his second night in a row in action and finished with a triple-double of 20 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists. (GG) (AFP)
Results of Friday’s day in the NBA:
Washington Wizards 120-105 Cleveland Cavaliers
Detroit Pistons 91-104 Denver Nuggets
Philadelphia 76ers – Orlando Magic 122-97
Oklahoma City Thunder 93-109 Utah Jazz
Dallas Mavericks 114-110 Toronto Raptors
Houston Rockets – LA Clippers 122-115
Memphis Grizzlies 107-106 Sacramento Kings
Golden State Warriors 125-122 New Orleans Pelicans