Another day of NBA basketball unfolded on Friday, and the Warriors and Kings lost games that had major playoff implications.
With both Northern California teams locked in NBA Play-In tournament berths, the focus now shifts to where Golden State and Sacramento will finish in the Western Conference standings when they play their finals on Sunday of the regular season, thus determining who they will face. tournament and when.
The Warriors and Kings both fell in the standings on Friday: Golden State after its 114-109 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans at Chase Center, and Sacramento after a 108-107 loss to the Phoenix Suns at Golden 1 Center. The Los Angeles Lakers (46-35) beat the Memphis Grizzlies to move from No. 10 to No. 8.
Thus, the Kings (45-36) are now the No. 9 seed, compared to No. 8 before the defeat, and the Warriors (45-36) went from 9th to 10th place.
If the season ended now, here’s what the West play-in bracket would look like, via NBA.com:
The Kings and Warriors would face off as the No. 9 and 10 seeds, respectively, with the winner advancing to face the Suns-Lakers winner and the loser going home. From there, the Kings or Warriors could advance to face the No. 1 seed — currently the Oklahoma City Thunder — in a first-round NBA playoff series with another win.
As for when the games would take place, Game 7 vs. 8 would take place on Tuesday, Game 9 vs. 10 on Wednesday, and Game 7-8 losing vs. 9-10 winning on Friday, with the 2024 NBA Playoffs scheduled. to start on Saturday.
The Warriors and Kings both still have a chance to clinch the West’s eighth seed, but there’s no denying that a rematch of last season’s epic first-round playoff series, which Golden State won in seven, would be a play-in match to remember.
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