NBA playoff update: Blazers aren’t safe yet

With 10 games featuring many potential NBA playoff teams, Friday had major ramifications for the outlook without actually shifting teams at all.

In the West, the Spurs outlasted the Jazz in an overtime barn-burner. That kept San Antonio in the No. 6 slot with 30 losses — the same as Nos. 4 and 5 Thunder (who beat the Heat) and Pelicans (resting). Utah, meanwhile, stayed in the No. 8 slot with 32 losses, one more than the No. 7 Timberwolves (who beat the Knicks).

This is complicated by the No. 9 Nuggets beating the Wizards, moving Denver to within a game of the Jazz! Those two teams split their season series, and the Nuggets have an advantage in the next tiebreaker, division recording (6-6 currently to Utah’s 6-8). The upshot is that the Jazz probably need to be a game better than them if the final playoff spot comes down to those two teams.

And it might, because the Clippers lost to the Pacers. That puts No. 10 Los Angeles at 34 losses, two behind Utah. The Jazz and Clips have one clash remaining on April 5, with Utah holding a 2-1 season series advantage. L.A. has won the season series tiebreaker over the Nuggets already.

But perhaps the most interesting Western result was the Blazers’ cardiac loss to the broken Celtics. This is Portland’s second loss after rattling off a 13-game win streak. The Blazers remain in the No. 3 slot, but now sit just two games ahead of the Thunder, Pelicans, and Spurs in the loss column. The bad news for Portland is that the team’s next two games are against ... Oklahoma City (Sunday) and New Orleans (Tuesday) on the road.

The Blazers will very likely make the playoffs because of their cushion over Denver and L.A. But that No. 3 spot is looking a bit more uncertain than it did a week ago when Portland couldn’t lose.

Here’s the current Western playoff bracket.

Rockets (1) vs. Jazz (8)
Thunder (4) vs. Pelicans (5)
Blazers (3) vs. Spurs (6)
Warriors (2) vs. Timberwolves (7)
Outside: Nuggets (9), Clippers (10)

In the East, we have four teams jockeying for position in the Nos. 3-6 slots. Three teams played Friday, and two of them — the Pacers and Cavaliers — won. Cleveland remains in No. 3 with 29 losses. They’ve quietly won four straight games as they’ve gotten a little healthier. The Pacers remain in the No. 5 slot with 31 losses, two more than Cleveland and one more than No. 4 Philadelphia.

The Wizards, meanwhile, lost their second straight game, falling to Denver. That gives Washington 32 losses and sticks them squarely in the No. 6 slot, which would currently mean a date with the Cavaliers in Round 1. That’s bad: LeBron’s teams have won 21 consecutive first-round games, and he has never lost a first-round series.

The other race in the East -- Miami vs. Milwaukee for the No. 7 seed — almost merged with this broader race, but the Heat lost to the Thunder to drop them to 34 losses, two more than Washington. A Bucks win over the Bulls let Milwaukee gain ground. Both teams have 34 losses, but Miami has the season series tiebreaker. (There’s an argument to be made that a team like the Heat or even the Wizards would prefer to be the No. 7 seed given Boston’s immense injury trouble than the No. 6 across from the Cavs.)

Here’s what the East playoff bracket looks like.

Raptors (1) vs. Bucks (8)
Sixers (4) vs. Pacers (5)
Cavaliers (3) vs. Wizards (6)
Celtics (2) vs. Heat (7)

Saturday features just two games with playoff implications: Timberwolves vs. Sixers 6 p.m. ET, League Pass) and Pelicans vs. Rockets (8 p.m., NBA TV).