Tim BontempsApr 11, 2026, 08:00 AM ETCloseTim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.Follow on XMultiple Authors
LA Clippers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Highlights (1:13)LA Clippers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Highlights (1:13)
Sunday’s 15-game slate will decide the play-in tournament pictures in each conference and which lottery-bound teams improve their odds ahead of the strong 2026 draft.
Whether the goal is to begin the chase for the Larry O’Brien Trophy, or to wait and see who will have the right to choose between AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer come June, here’s everything at stake heading into Sunday’s 2025-26 regular season finale.
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The Pistons long ago clinched the top spot in the East standings. They await their first-round opponent at the conclusion of next week’s play-in tournament.
Boston capped off its fantastic regular season by claiming the second seed, and now will await the winner of the 7-8 play-in game Tuesday night. The Celtics are the betting favorites to emerge from the East playoffs yet again — a remarkable turn of events less than a year after Jayson Tatum suffered a torn Achilles.
New York will be the third seed, and Sunday’s games will decide whether they host Toronto or Atlanta in Round 1.
Friday’s loss to the Hawks ensured Cleveland would be the 4-seed, setting up a matchup with Toronto or Atlanta.
The Hawks, who clinched the Southeast Division on Friday, are on a 20-5 run heading into the final day of the regular season. If Atlanta beats Miami Sunday, it will be the 5-seed. If Atlanta loses, it can still get the five seed if Toronto loses, or Orlando beats Boston.
Toronto had a chance to win its way to fifth, but instead lost to the Knicks Friday night at Madison Square Garden. A Raptors win Sunday against Brooklyn would guarantee a top-6 seed, and Toronto would rise to fifth if Atlanta and Orlando both lose.
While Joel Embiid remains sidelined after undergoing an emergency appendectomy, the Sixers do have a matchup with the lottery-bound Bucks. A Philly win and an Orlando loss would give the 76ers seventh, and drop Orlando to eighth.
It’s been an unbelievable turnaround for Charlotte, which was 16-28 and will end the regular season with the franchise’s most wins in a decade. The Hornets, however, are all but locked into the 9-10 game. They will host it with a win Sunday against the Knicks, but a loss paired with a Miami win would drop the Hornets to 10th.
It’s been a disastrous final stretch for the Heat, who have tumbled from top-6 contention to the likely 10th seed and needing two road wins to reach the playoffs — just like Miami pulled off last season.
A pair of wins this week in Los Angeles secured the third straight 1-seed for the defending champions.
The Spurs are 30-3 entering the final game of the season against the Nuggets. San Antonio will face the winner of the 7/8 play-in game in the first round.
Denver has won 11 straight games heading into Sunday’s regular season finale, but if the Nuggets lose and the Lakers win on Sunday, they will fall to fourth. Two years ago, a loss to the Spurs on the final day of the season cost the Nuggets the 1-seed in the West.
The Rockets’ loss Friday snapped an eight-game winning streak. It also took away any chance Houston had to host a first-round series. Houston will face the Lakers or Nuggets.
Minnesota has been locked into the six seed for nearly a week and will face either Denver or Los Angeles in the first round.
It’s been a fantastic season for Phoenix, which has far exceeded all reasonable expectations for the Suns heading into it. And while Phoenix is going to fall just short of escaping the play-in, they will host two games while only needing to win one to get in.
The Clippers turned a disastrous 6-21 start into a play-in appearance, but Friday’s loss means Sunday’s game against Golden State is likely a preview of the 9-10 game.
Friday’s loss locked Washington into the top spot in the NBA draft lottery — meaning they can’t fall further than fifth.
Losing to Toronto Sunday would open the possibility of Indiana beating Detroit and moving into a tie with Brooklyn, where a coin flip would determine both teams’ draft order if both aren’t selected in the draft lottery.
Both Utah and Sacramento won Friday, leaving both teams tied for fourth in the lottery standings. If still tied after Sunday’s games, a coin flip would determine which order the teams will pick in if neither moves up in next month’s draft lottery.
The Kings have gone 8-9 over the past two weeks to fall out of the top 3 in the lottery. They missed a chance to claim fourth place in the lottery standings outright by defeating Golden State on Friday. They finish with a motivated Portland team Sunday.
Going 2-20 in their past 22 games has put the Grizzlies in position to get a high pick in this year’s draft, but their final positioning will be determined by what happens with Dallas and New Orleans Sunday. After losing to Utah Friday, the Grizzlies will likely lose to Houston. The Grizzlies will then be rooting for Dallas to beat Chicago and break the tie for sixth. Assuming the two teams remain tied, a coin flip will determine the order they’ll pick if neither moves up in the lottery.
New Orleans doesn’t have control of its pick, and yet has still sat its veterans for the past few games. Assuming the Pelicans do the same again Sunday in Minnesota, they will either be eighth in the lottery by themselves, or will move into a tie with Memphis and/or Dallas if one or both teams win Sunday.
Chicago’s loss to Orlando Friday, coupled with Milwaukee’s win over Brooklyn, has the Bulls sitting by themselves in ninth in the lottery standings. But if Chicago beats Dallas and Philly beats Milwaukee on Sunday, the Bulls and Bucks will be tied, with a postseason coin flip to determine which team will pick ninth.
The Bucks win on Friday left them a game behind the Bulls. The Bucks will either wind up in 10th, or tied with the Bulls for 9th.
Pistons 118, Hornets 100 Heat 140, Wizards 117 Hawks 124, Cavaliers 102 Celtics 144, Pelicans 118 76ers 105, Pacers 94 Knicks 112, Raptors 95 Magic 127, Bulls 103 p.m. ET Bucks 125, Nets 108 Spurs 139, Mavericks 120 Nuggets 127, Thunder 107 Timberwolves 136, Rockets 132 Jazz 147, Grizzlies 101 Trail Blazers 116, Clippers 97 Kings 124, Warriors 118 Lakers 101, Suns 73
Indiana has clinched a top-3 spot in the lottery, which is all a team needs to do to maximize its percentage at the top pick (14%). Because of the Ivica Zubac trade in February, Sunday’s game against Detroit only matters for the possibility of Indiana winning and moving into a tie with Brooklyn for the league’s second-worst record. That would cause a coin flip to see which team will finish higher if they don’t move up in the lottery. If the Pacers don’t land a top-four pick via the lottery, their pick goes to the LA Clippers.
LA Clippers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Highlights (1:13)LA Clippers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Highlights (1:13)
Tim BontempsApr 11, 2026, 08:00 AM ETCloseTim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.Follow on XMultiple Authors
CloseTim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.Follow on X
There is plenty left to play for on the final day of the NBA regular season.
1. Detroit Pistons vs. 8. Play-in winner TBD 2. Boston Celtics vs. 7. Play-in winner TBD 3. New York Knicks vs. 6. Toronto Raptors 4. Cleveland Cavaliers vs. 5. Atlanta Hawks
7. Orlando Magic vs. 8. Philadelphia 76ers 9. Charlotte Hornets vs. 10. Miami Heat Loser 7/8 vs. Winner 9/10
1. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8. Play-in winner TBD 2. San Antonio Spurs vs. 7. Play-in winner TBD 3. Denver Nuggets vs. 6. Minnesota Timberwolves 4. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 5. Houston Rockets
7. Phoenix Suns vs. 8. Portland Trail Blazers 9. LA Clippers vs. 10. Golden State Warriors Loser 7/8 vs. Winner 9/10
Three wins in the last two weeks led to some stress over the past few days in Brooklyn, but the combination of losing to Indiana Thursday and Milwaukee Friday and both Utah and Sacramento winning Friday means the Nets have locked in a top three spot in the lottery, and thus guaranteeing the highest possible chance of moving up.
Magic at Celtics, 6 p.m. ET (ESPN) Wizards at Cavaliers, 6 p.m. ET Pistons at Pacers, 6 p.m. ET Hawks at Heat, 6 p.m. ET Hornets at Knicks, 6 p.m. ET Bucks at 76ers, 6 p.m. ET Nets at Raptors, 6 p.m. ET Bulls at Mavericks, 8:30 p.m. ET Grizzlies at Rockets, 8:30 p.m. ET Pelicans at Timberwolves, 8:30 p.m. ET Suns at Thunder, 8:30 p.m. ET Nuggets at Spurs, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) Jazz at Lakers, 8:30 p.m. ET Warriors at Clippers, 8:30 p.m. ET Kings at Trail Blazers, 8:30 p.m. ET
LA Clippers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Highlights (1:13)