All You Need to Know About Clippers' Playoff Race Down the Stretch

The NBA regular season is winding down, as the Los Angeles Clippers have seven remaining games left on the schedule. They're currently riding a pivotal five-game winning streak after a 127-113 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday. With a 39-36 record, the Clippers hold the eighth seed in the Western Conference.

LA is a lock for the play-in tournament, but its seeding is still very important. If the Clippers are either a seven or an eight seed, they would need to win one game to advance to the playoffs as opposed to winning two if they were a nine or 10 seed.

Let's take a look at the team records, tiebreakers, and upcoming schedules for the four teams currently in the West play-in tournament.

West Play-In Team Records and Tiebreakers

7. Phoenix Suns (41-33)

8. Los Angeles Clippers (39-36, 2.5 GB)

9. Portland Trail Blazers (38-38, 4 GB)

10. Golden State Warriors (36-39, 5.5 GB)

The Suns currently hold the tiebreaker over the Clippers. The teams split the season series 2-2, but Phoenix has a better division record, so the tiebreaker would go to the Suns. LA has a 2-0 head-to-head advantage over the Trail Blazers, but they still play each other two more times, so the Clippers need one win to clinch the tiebreaker.

Remaining Schedules

Suns (8 games): 3/30 (at Memphis Grizzlies), 3/31 (at Orlando Magic), 4/2 (at Charlotte Hornets), 4/5 (at Chicago Bulls), 4/7 (vs Houston Rockets), 4/8 (vs Dallas Mavericks), 4/10 (at Los Angeles Lakers), 4/12 (at Oklahoma City Thunder)

Clippers (7 games): 3/31 (vs Trail Blazers), 4/2 (vs San Antonio Spurs), 4/5 (at Sacramento Kings), 4/7 (vs Mavericks), 4/8 (vs Thunder), 4/10 (at Trail Blazers), 4/12 (vs Golden State Warriors)

Trail Blazers (6 games): 3/31 (at Clippers), 4/2 (vs New Orleans Pelicans), 4/6 (at Denver Nuggets), 4/8 (at Spurs), 4/10 (vs Clippers), 4/12 (vs Kings)

Warriors (7 games): 4/1 (vs Spurs), 4/2 (vs Cleveland Cavaliers), 4/5 (vs Rockets), 4/7 (vs Kings), 4/9 (vs Lakers), 4/10 (at Kings), 4/12 (at Clippers)

The big matchups for the Clippers will be against Portland. If LA can win on Tuesday, they'll hold a 2.5 game lead over the Trail Blazers and essentially secure a top-eight finish.

Potential Playoff Matchups for Clippers

In the West, it's a two-horse race for the top spot in the conference. Currently, the Thunder (59-16) holds a 2.5-game lead over the Spurs (56-18), despite San Antonio's eight-game winning streak. The Spurs have the tiebreaker over the Thunder, but it's hard to see a reality where OKC gives up the number one seed.

So, if LA ends up as the eighth seed and can defeat the Suns in the play-in tournament, they would match up with Victor Wembanyama's Spurs. The Clippers lost both games in February by just a combined eight points.

Ty Lue's team is playing some of its best basketball of the season, led by Kawhi Leonard and Darius Garland. This veteran group has plenty of playoff experience and would be a tough team to face regardless of the opponent.