The Portland Trail Blazers remain a possible play-in opponent for the Warriors.
Following Thursday’s controversial 118-117 loss to the Phoenix Suns, when Devin Booker clinched the game with two late free throws, the Blazers still are in danger of falling into the Western Conference’s No. 7 seed.
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The current No. 6-seeded Blazers (41-30) still are within striking distance of the seventh-seeded Los Angeles Lakers (40-30). The Blazers do own the tie-breaker over the Lakers. Obviously, both teams would rather rest and advance to the first round of the playoffs than have to sweat through the play-in tournament.
As much as the NBA would love to see Steph Curry and the Warriors face LeBron James and the Lakers in a play-in game, Steph against Damian Lillard wouldn’t be a bad matchup, either.
Curry has historically owned the head-to-head matchup of elite point guards, going 25-8 against Lillard, including 10-0 in the playoffs.
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Golden State Warriors
The Warriors still have some work to do to ensure their spot in the No. 7/No. 8 play-in game. They need to top the Memphis Grizzlies in Sunday’s regular-season finale to avoid dropping to the No. 9 seed for a single-elimination affair with the No. 10 seeded San Antonio Spurs.
It turns out the NBA’s new playoff format is adding some major drama to the final games of the regular season as teams jockey for postseason position.