2025 NBA Playoff Picture, Bracket, Standings

Published April 11, 2025

The 2025 NBA Playoffs start next week, and the playoff picture is almost clearer.

Seeds 7-10 will compete in the NBA Play-in Tournament to advance to the first round of the NBA playoffs. Here's what the playoffs would look like if the season ended today:

Eastern Conference Seeding

Cleveland Cavaliers*** (63-17)
Boston Celtics** (59-21) 4 GB
New York Knicks* (50-30) 13 GB
Indiana Pacers* (49-31) 14 GB
Milwaukee Bucks* (46-34) 17 GB
Detroit Pistons* (44-36) 19 GB
Orlando Magic ** (40-40) 23 GB
Atlanta Hawks (38-42) 25 GB
Chicago Bulls (37-43) 26 GB
Miami Heat (36-44) 27 GB

Eastern Conference Bracket

(1) Cavs vs. (8) Winner of play-in
(2) Celtics vs. (7) Winner of play-in
(3) Knicks vs. (6) Pistons
(4) Pacers vs. (5) Bucks

Western Conference Seeding

Oklahoma City Thunder*** (66-14)
Houston Rockets** (52-28) 14 GB
Los Angeles Lakers* (49-31) 17 GB
Denver Nuggets (48-32) 18 GB
LA Clippers (48-32) 18 GB
Golden State Warriors (47-33) 19 GB
Memphis Grizzlies (47-33) 19 GB
Minnesota Timberwolves (47-33) 19 GB
Sacramento Kings (39-41) 27 GB
Dallas Mavericks (38-42) 28 GB

Western Conference Bracket

(1) Thunder vs. (8) Winner of play-in
(2) Rockets vs. (7) Winner of play-in
(3) Lakers vs. (6) Golden State Warriors
(4) Nuggets vs. (5) Clippers

NBA Play-In Tournament Bracket

Eastern Conference

(7) Orlando Magic vs. (8) Atlanta Hawks
(9) Chicago Bulls vs. (10) Miami Heat

Western Conference

(7) Memphis Grizzlies vs. (8) Minnesota Timberwolves
(9) Sacramento Kings vs. (10) Dallas Mavericks

* Clinched playoffs
** Clinched division
*** Clinched conference

How many teams make the NBA playoffs?

Sixteen teams in total make the NBA playoffs, eight teams from both the Eastern and Western Conference. The top six seeds in each conference advance based on the regular season record. The final two seeds in each conference are determined by the NBA Play-In Tournament.

2025 NBA Playoffs Schedule & Key Dates

April 15-18: NBA play-in tournament (ESPN, TNT)
April 19: NBA playoffs first round begin (ABC, ESPN, TNT, NBA TV)
May 5-6: NBA conference semifinals begin (ABC, ESPN, TNT)
May TBD: NBA conference finals begin (ABC, ESPN, TNT)
June 5: NBA Finals begin (ABC)

URL

https://www.foxnews.1eye.us/sports/nba-playoff-picture-bracket