NBA playoff picture: Nets slip, Hawks rise in wild East jumble

The Atlanta Hawks grabbed a key 105-93 road win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, taking sole possession of fifth place in the Eastern Conference and moving just one game behind the Nets for fourth.

The Hawks and Nets are part of a blob in the middle of the East behind the Miami Heat, who are running away and hiding at the top. Just 3½ games separate the No. 2-7 seeds, with the Indiana Pacers currently holding the two and the Boston Celtics in the seventh spot. The New York Knicks have lost four in a row and sit one game behind the Pacers in third. The Chicago Bulls have an identical record with the Celtics, but hold the sixth seed due to the tiebreaker.

There’s plenty of potential for change in the standings on Monday night, as the eighth-seeded Milwaukee Bucks are the only East playoff team not in action.

Here are the full East standings:

• The morality of Lakers trolling

• Did Dahntay Jones intentionally hurt Kobe Bryant?

• The brilliance of Marc Gasol

• Printable bracket for March Madness

• Kentucky’s NBA draft bubble