NBA Playoff Picture 2023: Updated Standings, Predictions After Lakers Win vs. Magic

Adam Pantozzi/NBAE through Getty Images A roller rollercoaster couple of weeks for the Lakers in the NBA standings continued Sunday night after Los Angeles came away with a 111-105 win over the Orlando Magic at Crypto.com Arena. With the win, the Lakers enhanced to 35-37 on the year and discovered themselves back in the playoff image as they moved into the 10th seed, which is the last play-in competition area. With how jumbled the middle tier of the Western Conference is, it’s tough to inform precisely where they’ll end up. There are sure to be plenty of more twists over the last 11 or so video games. Here are the upgraded standings and some insight on what to eagerly anticipate over the house stretch of the routine season. Eastern Conference Standings1. Milwaukee Bucks (51-20) 2. Philadelphia 76ers (48-22) 3. Boston Celtics (49-23) 4. Cleveland Cavaliers (45-28) 5. New York City Knicks (42-30) 6. Brooklyn Nets (39-32) 7. Miami Heat (39-34) 8. Atlanta Hawks (35-36) 9. Toronto Raptors (35-37) 10. Chicago Bulls (33-37) 11. Indiana Pacers (32-39) 12. Washington Wizards (32-39) 13. Orlando Magic (29-43) 14. Charlotte Hornets (22-50) 15. Detroits Pistons (16-56) Western Conference Standings1. Denver Nuggets: (48-24) 2. Sacramento Kings: (43-27) 3. Memphis Grizzlies (43-27) 4. Phoenix Suns: (38-33) 5. Los Angeles Clippers (38-34) 6. Dallas Mavericks (36-35) 7. Golden State Warriors (36-36) 8. Oklahoma City Thunder (35-36) 9. Minnesota Timberwolves (35-37) 10. Los Angeles Lakers (35-37) 11. Utah Jazz (34-36) 12. New Orleans Pelicans (34-37) 13. Portland Trail Blazers (31-40) 14. San Antonio Spurs: (19-52) 15. Houston Rockets: (18-53) Three groups have actually gotten approved for the playoffs in the Bucks, Celtics and Nuggets, all of whom have actually been the groups to beat in their particular conferences, though the Celtics have slipped a bit in current weeks after an actually strong start to the season. The Hornets, Pistons, Rockets and Spurs are all gotten rid of from playoff contention. As formerly mentioned, the most fascinating story to supervise the last couple of weeks of the season is how the Nos. 4-12 seeds in the Western Conference are going to clean, as there are simply 4 video games separating the four-seeded Suns from the 12th-seeded Pelicans. An apparent aspect that’ll play a substantial function is health, as the Lakers are still waiting for the return of super star LeBron James, who has actually missed out on the group’s last 11 video games with a foot injury. Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards just recently suffered an ankle injury and is in a strolling boot. The Mavericks are likewise hoping Luka Dončić goes back to action right after missing out on the last 4 video games.