Starting 5, April 12: East seeds set, Lakers clinch 3rd, 7 West seeds still in play

Luka with the toss. LeBron with the slam. Lakers clinch the 3 seed.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
April 12, 2025

Saturday’s Snapshot: What we learned on Friday & what’s at stake for Sunday’s finale

Volatile West: Lakers clinch 3 seed, Grizzlies clinch Play-In, leaving 4 teams for 3 spots

East Playoff Set: A Bucks win & Pacers loss locks up the seeds for the East top 6

East Play-In Set: Wins by the Hawks & Bulls clinch the 8 & 9 seeds, keep Heat at 10

Roundup: Mavs’ hopes for 9 still alive, while Celtics, Thunder & Suns roll

1. WHAT WE LEARNED LAST NIGHT & WHAT’S AT STAKE FOR SUNDAY

What we learned during Friday’s 15-game slate:

• The East postseason field is set with all 10 teams locked in their seeds following Friday night
• East Playoffs: The Pacers’ loss locked the Knicks at 3 and the Pacers at 4. The Bucks’ win over the Pistons locked them at 5 and 6, respectively
• East Play-In: The Hawks’ win clinched the 8 seed. The Bulls’ win clinched the 9 seed as they hold the tiebreaker over the Heat
• The Lakers clinched the 3 seed in the West with a win over the Rockets
• The Grizzlies are locked in the West Play-In (as the 7 or 8 seed) with a loss to the Nuggets
• Seven seeds remain up for grabs in the West – three Playoff spots, four Play-In spots – entering the final day of the regular season
• Nikola Jokić will become the 3rd player in NBA history to average a triple-double

Eastern Conference Snapshot

• Postseason Field & Seeds Set: (1) Cavaliers, (2) Celtics, (3) Knicks, (4) Pacers, (5) Bucks, (6) Pistons, (7) Magic, (8) Hawks, (9) Bulls and (10) Heat
• Playoff Matchups Set: (3) Knicks vs. (6) Pistons and (4) Pacers vs. (5) Bucks
• Play-In Matchups Set: (8) Hawks at (7) Magic (Tuesday, Time TBD) and (10) Heat at (9) Bulls (Wednesday, Time TBD)
  

Western Conference Snapshot

• Playoff Teams: (1) Thunder, (2) Rockets and (3) Lakers
• Play-In Teams: Grizzlies, Kings, Mavericks
• To Be Determined: Nuggets, Clippers, Warriors, Timberwolves
• Seeds Open: 4, 5, 6 (Playoffs); 7, 8, 9, 10 (Play-In)

What’s at stake during Sunday’s regular-season finale:

• Nuggets at Rockets: The Nuggets clinch the 4 seed with a win and can drop as low as 6th with a loss
• Clippers at Warriors: A Clippers win can clinch the 4 seed (with a DEN loss) or the 5 seed (with a DEN win). A Clippers loss can drop them as low as 7th (with DEN and MIN wins). A Warriors win clinches the 6 seed. A Warriors loss can drop them to 7th (with a MIN win)
• Jazz at Timberwolves: A Wolves win clinches a Playoff berth. The Wolves can finish as high as 4th with a win and as low as 8th with a loss (with a MEM win)
• Mavericks at Grizzlies: The Grizzlies can finish as high as 7th with a win (and MIN loss) or as low as 8th (with a loss OR a MIN win). The Mavs can finish 9th with a win (and SAC loss) or 10th (with a loss OR SAC win)

• Suns at Kings: The Kings clinch 9 seed with a win, but can drop to 10th with a loss (and DAL win)

In tomorrow’s Starting 5, we’ll break down every potential scenario for Sunday’s 15-game slate to close out the regular season.

Up Next: The SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament tips off on Tuesday.

• Tuesday: No. 7 vs. No. 8 in each conference with the winner earning the No. 7 seed in the Playoffs
• Wednesday: No. 9 vs. No. 10 in each conference with the winner still alive and loser eliminated
• Friday: 7/8 Loser vs. 9/10 Winner in each conference face off – the winner earning the No. 8 seed in the Playoffs
• One Week Away: The 2025 NBA Playoffs presented by Google tip off on Saturday, April 19

2. THE WILD WEST 3-8 RACE GETS SOME CLARITY

The West 4-8 seeds entering Friday night

How volatile is the race to secure the final three Playoff spots in the West?. 

With every team in action on Friday, we kept our eyes on how the standings shifted throughout the night as games were completed.

Nuggets 117, Grizzlies 109: Trailing by five with under five minutes to play, the Nuggets closed the game on a 14-1 run – with 12 of the 14 coming from Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray – taking the lead for good on a stepback jumper from Murray with 2:46 to play. | Recap

• History Confirmed: Nikola Jokić (26 pts, 16 reb, 13 ast), who posted his 34th triple-double of the season, is guaranteed to join Russell Westbrook (4x) and Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history to average a triple-double. | Joker’s top dimes | Joker’s best buckets 

Dunking Machine: Aaron Gordon led all players with 33 points, including a season-high eight dunks – including one off a sweet behind-the-back dime from Murray

Timberwolves 117, Nets 91: Rudy Gobert had his highest scoring game since 2017, dropping 35 points and 11 boards, while Julius Randle added 21 points to lead the Wolves to their 7th win in the last eight games. | Recap

• No Ant For Sunday: Anthony Edwards picked up his 18th technical foul of the season, forcing a one-game suspension for Sunday’s season finale
• Standings Update (11:15 pm ET): After wins by the Nuggets (over Memphis) and Wolves, the Wolves jumped from 8th to 6th, bumping the Warriors to 7th and the Grizzlies to 8th

Clippers 101, Kings 100: After their last matchup was decided on a Kawhi Leonard buzzer-beater, the Kings had a chance at revenge on Friday, but DeMar DeRozan missed a potential game-winning jumper to seal the win and a season series sweep for LA. | Recap

• LA Trio: Kawhi (28) had his 14th straight 20+ pt game, while James Harden (23 pts, 11 reb, 10 ast) posted his 80th career triple-double and Ivica Zubac (17 pts, 10 reb) had his 14th straight double-double
• Top 25: DeRozan (16 pts, 8 ast) passed Reggie Miller (25,279) for 25th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list in the loss
• On A Roll: The Clippers have won seven straight, nine of their last 10 and 17 of their last 20 as the postseason approaches
  
  Warriors 103, Blazers 86: Jimmy Butler III (24 pts, 7 ast) and Buddy Hield (16 pts, 4 3pm, his 7th season with 200+ 3pm) combined for 40 points to lead the Warriors to the win to stay in the West’s top 6. | Recap
• Jimmy Effect: Since Butler’s Warriors debut on Feb. 8, Golden State leads the league in steals (10.7 spg, 15 on Friday) and assist percentage (73.3%, 26 assists on 33 baskets for 78.8% on Friday
• Standings Update (12:30 am ET, Lakers game in progress): After wins by the Clippers and Warriors, the Warriors jumped the Wolves for 6th place and locked the Grizzlies in the Play-In

Lakers 140, Rockets 109: Luka Dončić followed his Dallas masterpiece with another brilliant performance (39 pts, 8 reb, 7 ast, 5 3pm) to lead the Lakers to their 50th win of the season and the West’s 3 seed. | Recap

• Lakers Rolling: Austin Reaves (23 pts, 6 ast) and LeBron (14 pts, 8 ast) combined for 37 as the L.A. won its 4th game in the last five
• Luka  Kobe: Dončić joined Bryant (Dec 15-17, 2006) as the only Lakers to put up back-to-back games with 35+ pts, 5+ reb, 5+ ast and 5+ 3pm
• Standings Update (1:00 am ET, all games complete): The Lakers clinched the 3 seed with their win, while the rest of the standings held entering the final day of the season

3. EAST PLAYOFF FIELD SET AFTER FRIDAY NIGHT

Bucks 125, Pistons 119: Giannis Antetokounmpo (32 pts, 11 reb, 15 ast) posted his 11th triple-double of the season – and 4th in his last five games – to lead the Bucks to a pivotal win over Cade Cunningham (36 pts, 12 ast) and the Pistons, locking up the 5th seed in the East. | Recap

• Bench Bucks: Bobby Portis (17 pts, 10 reb) and Kevin Porter Jr. (16 pts, 7 ast) combined for 33 off the bench as Milwaukee finished with six players in double figures
• Playmaker: Giannis – who ranks 2nd in the NBA in assists in April (11.8) – became the first player in Bucks history to post multiple games with 30+ points and 15+ assists
• Seeds Set: Milwaukee’s win locks the Bucks into the 5 seed and the Pistons into the 6 seed in the East
  
  Magic 129, Pacers 115: Anthony Black filled the box score (21 pts, 6 reb, 7 ast, 2 stl) and Trevelin Queen had a career night (25 pts, 5 3pm) as the Magic snapped Indy’s six-game win streak in a game that saw eight players from each team score in double figures. | RecapSeeds Set:While Orlando was already locked in the 7 seed, the loss clinched the 4 seed for Indiana and the 3 seed for New York

Cavaliers 108, Knicks 102: Darius Garland scored 13 of his team-high 26 points in the 4th quarter as the Cavs outscored the Knicks 30-16 in the final frame to cap off a 23-point rally – their largest comeback win of the season. | Recap

• 3-Point History: Max Strus (5 3pm) helped the Cavs reach 10+ 3-pointers made in all 81 games this season, topping the mark from the 2022-23 Warriors for the most such games in a season
• Party Of 5: Cleveland’s Kenny Atkinson becomes the 5th coach to win 64+ games in their first season coaching a team. Three of the previous four coaches – Bill Sharman, Phil Jackson and Steve Kerr – won the title that same season

4.EAST PLAY-IN RACE SET AFTER WINS BY HAWKS, BULLS & HEAT

The Hawks, Bulls and Heat entered Friday night ranked 8th, 9th and 10th in the East Play-In race. With wins by all three, those same seeds are now locked – along with the 7th-place Magic to set the Play-In field.

Hawks 124, Sixers 110: Trae Young (36 pts, 11 ast, 6 3pm) and Caris LeVert (season-high 31 pts) combined for 67 points and 10 3s to lead the Hawks past the Sixers to clinch the 8 seed in the East Play-In. | Recap

Trae Day: Young posted his 25th career game with 35+ pts, 10+ ast and 5+ 3pm, tying Luka Dončić for the 2nd most such games in NBA history, trailing only James Harden (35)

Bulls 119, Wizards 89: A near triple-double from Nikola Vučević (15 pts, 12 reb, 8 ast) and 43 combined points from Julian Phillips and Matas Buzelis helped the Bulls clinch the 9 seed in the East Play-In. | Recap

• Closing Strong: The Bulls have won five of their last six games – averaging 122.8 points (3rd in NBA) during the stretch – and 14 of their last 19 dating back to March 6

Heat 153, Pelicans 104: Bam Adebayo (23), Tyler Herro (22) and Duncan Robinson (21) combined for 66 points to lead 10 Heat players in double figures as Miami posted its 2nd-largest win (+49) in team history. | Recap

• 150 Club: Miami joins Indiana (162) and Memphis (151 and 155) as the only teams to score 150 or more points in a game this season

5. ROUNDUP: MAVS KEEP RACE FOR 9 GOING, CELTICS, THUNDER & SUNS ROLL

Home-court advantage in the 9 vs. 10 Play-In game between the Kings and Mavs is still up for grabs heading into Sunday after Sacramento’s loss to the Clippers and Dallas’ win over the Raptors.

Mavericks 124, Raptors 102: Anthony Davis did it all – racking up 23 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists and 7 blocks in just 30:28 – to lead the Mavs past the Raptors, who got a combined 50 points from Scottie Barnes and Ochai Agbaji. | Recap

• Quick Work: Davis posted the 16th game in NBA history with 20+ points, 10+ rebounds, 10+ assists and 5+ blocks. He is the first to ever do it in under 31 minutes

Suns 117, Spurs 98: Suns rookie Ryan Dunn posted a career-high 26 points with 11 boards, Bradley Beal added 21 points and six assists as the Suns snapped an eight-game skid with a win over Julian Champagnie (23 pts, 6 3pm), Stephon Castle (16 pts 10 ast) and the Spurs. | Recap

Thunder 145, Jazz 111: Behind a combined 67 points and 14 3s from Aaron Wiggins (35 pts) and Isaiah Joe (32 pts, career-high 10 3pm) along with Jaylin Williams’ 3rd career triple-double (15 pts, 11 reb, 10 ast, 1 off the glass to himself), OKC rolled to its 67th win of the season. | Recap

• Jazz Duo: Svi Mykhailiuk scored a career-high 27 points with five 3s and an acrobatic finish, while Brice Sensabaugh added 25 points

Celtics 130, Hornets 94: Behind a combined 42 points and 10 3s from Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard off the bench and Jayson Tatum’s 16 points, 8 boards and 8 assists, the Celtics rolled to their 60th win of the season. | Recap

• Back-To-Back: Boston posts consecutive seasons with 60+ wins for the first time since the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons
• Triple Threat: Tatum (250), Pritchard (251) and Derrick White (265) became the first trio of teammates in NBA history to each record 250+ 3s each in a season