2026 NBA playoff picture: Standings, tiebreakers, projections as Lakers’ streak ends, Rockets suffer bad loss

The Los Angeles Lakers had their nine-game winning streak snapped on Monday by the Detroit Pistons, but they still have a firm grip on the West’s No. 3 seed with an effective three-game lead over the No. 4 Nuggets, No. 5 Wolves and No. 6 Rockets. 

Speaking of the Rockets, they took a terrible loss to the Bulls on Monday. That makes seven losses in their last 13 games, with a huge game against Minnesota slated for Wednesday. 

The Thunder, San Antonio Spurs and Detroit Pistons are the only teams to have clinched a playoff spot so far. 

The final day of the regular season will be on Sunday, April 12. Between now and then, we will be updating this playoff picture each day to keep you up to date on the standings, important magic numbers, all relevant tiebreakers and our SportsLine projections. 

Here is where we stand entering play on Tuesday, March 24. 

*Tiebreaker note: All tiebreakers are included for teams currently within one game (or one seed) of each other, but will only be listed in the current higher seed’s section. 

2026 NBA Playoff Picture

If the season ended today…

Play-In Tournament

East first round
No. 1 Pistons vs. No. 8 TBD
No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 TBD
No. 3 Knicks vs. No. 6 Hawks
No. 4 Cavaliers vs. No. 5 Raptors

West first round
No. 1 Thunder vs. No. 8 TBD
No. 2 Spurs vs. No. 7 TBD
No. 3 Lakers vs. No. 6 Rockets
No. 4 Nuggets vs. No. 5 Timberolves

Western Conference standings

As mentioned above, Oklahoma City and San Antonio have both clinched a playoff spot. The No. 2 Spurs still have an outside shot to catch the No. 1 Thunder, but one way or another, those are going to be the top two teams, with the Lakers in pretty firm control of the No. 3 seed. After that, the No. 4 Nuggets, No. 5 Wolves and No. 6 Rockets are tied in the loss column. 

1. Oklahoma City Thunder (57-15)

• Tiebreaker vs. Spurs: Spurs clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 1 seed

2. San Antonio Spurs (54-18)

• Tiebreaker vs. Thunder: Spurs clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 2 seed

3. Los Angeles Lakers (46-26)

• Tiebreaker vs. Nuggets: Lakers clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Wolves: Lakers clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Rockets: Lakers clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 3 seed

4. Denver Nuggets (44-28)

• Tiebreaker vs. Rockets: Nuggets clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Wolves: Nuggets clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 5 seed

5. Minnesota Timberwolves (44-28)

• Tiebreaker vs. Suns: Rockets lead 1-0
• SportsLine projection: No. 6 seed

6. Houston Rockets (43-28)

• Tiebreaker vs. Suns: Rockets clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 4 seed

7. Phoenix Suns (40-32)

• Tiebreaker vs. Clippers: Series tied 2-2, Suns hold because of division record
• SportsLine projection: No. 7 seed

8. Los Angeles Clippers (36-36)

• Tiebreaker vs. Blazers: Clippers lead 2-0
• SportsLine projection: No. 8 seed

9. Portland Trail Blazers (36-37)

• Tiebreaker vs. Warriors: Blazers clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 9 seed

10. Golden State Warriors (34-38)

• SportsLine projection: No. 10 seed

Eastern Conference standings

In the East, Detroit has a firm hold on the top spot over Boston with a 4 ½-game lead and the tiebreaker already clinched. Boston is more concerned with holding off the No. 3 Knicks, as it has only a one-game lead in the loss column with one head-to-head matchup remaining. 

1. Detroit Pistons (52-19)

• Tiebreaker vs. Celtics: Pistons clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 1 seed

2. Boston Celtics (47-24)

• Tiebreaker vs. Knicks: Knicks lead 2-1
• SportsLine projection: No. 3 seed

3. New York Knicks (47-25)

• Tiebreaker vs. Cavaliers: Knicks clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 2 seed

4. Cleveland Cavaliers (44-27)

• Tiebreaker vs. Raptors: Raptors clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 4 seed

5. Toronto Raptors (40-31)

• Tiebreaker vs. Hawks: Raptors clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 5 seed

6. Atlanta Hawks (40-32)

• Tiebreaker vs. 76ers: Hawks clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Magic: Hawks clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Heat: Heat leads 2-1
• SportsLine projection: No. 6 seed

7. Philadelphia 76ers (39-33)

• Tiebreaker vs. Magic: 76ers clinched
• Tiebreaker vs. Heat: Series tied 1-1
• SportsLine projection: No. 7 seed

8. Orlando Magic (38-33)

• Tiebreaker vs. Heat: Magic clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 9 seed

9. Miami Heat (38-34)

• Tiebreaker vs. Hornets: Miami clinched
• SportsLine projection: No. 8 seed

10. Charlotte Hornets (37-34)

• SportsLine projection: No. 10 seed

Notable magic numbers

• OKC’s magic number to clinch West’s No. 1 seed: 8
• Detroit’s magic number to clinch East’s No. 1 seed: 6