In East and West over the last few weeks the playoff race has been all over the place. It has been wild, and it has been wooly!
But at the moment, after Dallas has turned the magic back on in some key games, Atlanta nearly has the East's last spot buttoned up, and the Portlands, Indianas, and New Jerseys of the world have dutifully faded, there will likely only be just one playoff spot at stake over the last few days of the season.
That's the eighth spot in the West, and it's a dog fight between Golden State and Denver.
(Dallas, which now has Dirk Nowitzki back, is two games ahead of Golden State and Denver in the loss column. Two of the Mavericks' five remaining games are against patsy Seattle, and another is against banged-up Portland, which is mired in a season-long losing streak.)
Golden State and Denver are currently tied.
John Hollinger's playoff odds predictor likes the Warriors -- who play four out of five games at home the rest of the way. Hollinger's machine calls Golden State 63% likely to make the playoffs, as opposed to 38% for the Nuggets.
The two teams meet at Golden State this Thursday. Denver also has road games at the Clippers and Jazz, as well as at home against Memphis and Houston.
The Warriors are home against Sacramento, Denver, the Clippers, and Seattle. Their lone road game left is at the Suns.
Most likely it comes down to that game on Thursday.
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