NBA standings, Western Conference playoff picture: Kings on cusp of No. 2 seed; Blazers into play-in field
The Sacramento Kings, who haven't been to the playoffs since 2006, the NBA's longest current drought, defeated the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday for their eighth win in their last 11 games, and are now just one game back of the No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies. Meanwhile, the Pelicans loss created a five-way tie at the bottom of the Western Conference play-in race, beginning with No. 9 Utah Jazz and ending with No. 13 Oklahoma City Thunder. Below is a comprehensive snapshot of where things stand in the Western Conference playoff and play- in races entering play on Tuesday. This post will update daily throughout the remainder of the regular season, or until all seeds are clinched. Reminder on how the play-in tournament works: No. 7 plays No. 8 and No. 9 plays No. 10. The winner of the 7-8 game gets the No. 7 seed, while the loser plays the winner of the 9-10 game for the No. 8 seed. ...