Oklahoma City locked up the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference on Wednesday night, defeating the Los Angeles Clippers 128-110 at Crypto.com Arena for its 64th win of the season. With only two games remaining, the Thunder cannot be overtaken by San Antonio, which sits three victories back, ensuring OKC will finish first in the West for the third consecutive season and own home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
The victory also secures the league’s best overall record, giving the Thunder the right to host every potential postseason series, including the NBA Finals if they advance that far.
Historic winning pace
Oklahoma City has taken 19 of its last 20 contests and now joins rare company: only Chicago (1995-97) and Golden State (2014-17) had previously posted at least 64 wins in back-to-back years.
“It’s impressive,” guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “None of it matters if you don’t win in the end, but checking these boxes shows we’re headed in the right direction. We’re still far from the finish line, but we know where we’re going.”
West playoff picture
San Antonio’s 61 wins are enough for the No. 2 seed, while the two play-in survivors will face Oklahoma City and the Spurs in the first round.
- Phoenix clinched the No. 7 slot with a win over Dallas and will host the 7/8 play-in game.
- Golden State is locked into No. 10 and must win twice on the road to reach the postseason bracket.
- Los Angeles Clippers and Portland continue to battle for No. 8.
- Minnesota, after falling to Orlando, is guaranteed the sixth seed.
- Denver holds a two-game edge on Houston and the Lakers for No. 3.
Eastern race tightens
In Cleveland, Atlanta missed a chance to clinch its playoff spot, falling short in a late rally. The Hawks remain fifth in the East with two games left, but the Raptors, Magic and 76ers are all within 1.5 games. Atlanta meets Cleveland again on Friday.
The regular season concludes Sunday, after which the play-in tournament will determine the final two playoff entries in each conference.
Source: Hoops Rumors
