Playoff Opponent Still Uncertain for Mavs
With their playoff berth secured, Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks (50-30) are waiting to see who will be their first-round opponent. It's between the Utah Jazz (48-32) and the Denver Nuggets (48-33).
These are the two possibilities, even if the Mavericks overtake the Golden State Warriors (51-29) for third in the West.
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Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
For Dallas to be third, it only needs to tie the Golden State. The Warriors and Mavs each have two games left. The Mavs own the season tiebreaker after after winning three of the four meetings against Golden State.
The Mavericks host the Portland Trailblazers on Friday and San Antonio Spurs on Sunday to conclude the regular season.
Portland likely won't put up much of a fight, having shut down key players like Damian Lillard, Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkic. The Spurs could be playing for home-court advantage in the play-in tournament against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Warriors play a road back-to-back at the Spurs on Saturday and at the Pelicans on Sunday. Both of Golden State's opponents are trying to get the home-edge in the play-in.
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Utah could take the fourth seed and home-court advantage if it wins its final two games, and if Dallas loses to both Portland and San Antonio.
On Friday, Utah hosts the Phoenix Suns, who have the best record in the NBA. The Jazz play the Trail Blazers on Sunday in Portland.
The race for fifth is even tighter as the Jazz lead the Nuggets by a half-game. For the Jazz to stay in fifth, they will need to win at least one game. Utah owns the tiebreaker after sweeping all four games against the Nuggets.
Denver needs some luck to move leapfrog Utah, needing the Suns and Blazers to beat the Jazz. Denver would need to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, who have already been eliminated from playoff contention.
