Key Races and Return Timetables Shape Final Week of 2025-26 NBA Regular Season
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The closing week of the 2025-26 NBA calendar is packed with decisive matchups, tight seeding battles and injury updates that could reshape the postseason picture before the regular season ends on Sunday, April 12.
Eastern Conference: Pistons locked in, scrambling below
Detroit has secured the No. 1 seed despite Cade Cunningham’s absence since March 17 because of a collapsed lung. Boston is in position for the second spot but must clinch it outright in the next four games. New York and Cleveland remain neck-and-neck for third and fourth; Atlanta, now fifth, hosts New York on Monday before a home-and-home with Cleveland on Wednesday and Friday that could finalize those slots.
Philadelphia and Toronto enter the week tied for sixth, the conference’s last guaranteed playoff berth. Toronto’s recent home loss to Sacramento looms as a potential tiebreaker setback.
East play-in: Charlotte’s surge draws attention
The Hornets, 26-13 since mid-January, could become the most dangerous team in the play-in field if they finish seventh through tenth. LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and Rookie of the Year frontrunner Kon Knueppel are all healthy, giving Charlotte the firepower to challenge a weakened Detroit or a familiar Boston coaching staff in Round 1.
Western Conference: Thunder, Spurs chase top seed
Oklahoma City leads San Antonio by three games with four remaining. The Spurs own the tiebreaker and have gone 27-3 since Feb. 1, yet the Thunder are 17-1 since MVP favorite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander returned from an abdominal strain. Denver, tied with the Lakers for third, plays Oklahoma City on Friday and visits San Antonio on Sunday, matchups that could decide the conference’s pole position.
Seeds 3-6: Injuries cloud home-court race
Luka Doncic (left hamstring strain) remains out indefinitely, while Austin Reaves (oblique) is sidelined through the regular season, putting Los Angeles’ bid for first-round home court in doubt. Houston and Minnesota, currently fifth and sixth, meet in Houston on April 10 in a game that could swap their positions.
West play-in: Curry’s return changes the narrative
Golden State is locked into 10th, but Stephen Curry’s comeback after two months on the sideline elevates the Warriors’ upset potential. Phoenix appears cemented in seventh. Portland and the LA Clippers, fighting for eighth, collide Friday night.
Key injured stars on the clock
Cunningham’s status tops the list of critical returns, though Detroit is 8-2 with a plus-11.9 net rating in his absence. Other notable players racing the calendar include Nikola Jokic (62 games), Kawhi Leonard (61), Evan Mobley (62) and Pascal Siakam (62), each needing three more appearances to satisfy the league’s 65-game awards requirement.
Awards outlook
Polls show Gilgeous-Alexander leading the MVP race, while Knueppel fronts Rookie of the Year despite Cooper Flagg’s 96-point weekend outburst. Victor Wembanyama is on track for unanimous Defensive Player of the Year honors if he reaches 64 games Monday against Philadelphia. Jalen Duren has surged into Most Improved contention, and Keldon Johnson’s 1,000-plus bench points place him atop the Sixth Man field.
Lottery watch
Washington, Brooklyn and Indiana hold the three worst records, but multiple head-to-head games—most notably Pacers vs. Nets on Thursday—could shift the odds. Dallas, Atlanta (via New Orleans), Memphis, Utah, Sacramento, Chicago and Milwaukee remain clustered, with each result affecting draft-lottery combinations in a class considered talent-rich at the top.
The final week’s results will cement every seed, play-in matchup and award-eligibility case before postseason play begins next week.
Source: ESPN
