Orlando Magic Standings & Playoff Chances After Heat Game

Getty The Orlando Magic is battling the Miami Heat for the No. 8 seed.

The Orlando Magic and Miami Heat matchup has major implications for the NBA playoff race. Both teams are fighting for the No. 8 seed in the East. Heading into the Heat-Magic game, Miami had a half game lead on Orlando.

If the Magic defeat the Heat, Orlando would have a half-game lead on the Heat with seven games remaining on their schedule. A win for the Heat would put them one and a half games up on the Magic. Heading into the matchup, the Heat were a game back from both the Nets and Pistons for the No. 6 and No. 7 spot. With a little help, Orlando could climb to as high as No. 6 in the standings.

The Bucks are the most likely opponent for whoever lands the No. 8 seed. Five Thirty Eight’s projections expect the Magic to make the playoffs. Five Thirty Eight gives Orlando a 61 percent chance to make the postseason, while the Heat has a 48 percent chance at making the playoffs.

An Orlando win over Miami would also mean the Magic hold the tiebreaker over the Heat thanks to winning the season series 3-1. A Miami win means the tiebreakers would come down to the team with the better division record followed by conference record. Orlando has been in a playoff drought since Dwight Howard was traded and Nikola Vucevic noted Orlando is ready for a playoff run.

“We talk about it a lot,” Vucevuc explained to NBA.com. “When I was here my first year with Jameer, JJ, Turk and Glen “Big Baby’’ (Davis), they used to tell me about how the city was crazy about the Magic when they were winning. Obviously, our fans are great all the time, but when you are winning it brings the best out of them as well…We can already feel it. When I go around the city, people are really pumped now and they’re really into it…That’s why if we could make the playoffs, this would be huge for us and for the whole city.”

Here is a look at the Magic’s remaining schedule: at Pistons, at Pacers, at Raptors, Knicks, Hawks, at Celtics and at Hornets.

Check out the Eastern Conference standings below. It is based on the standings heading into the March 26th games and will be updated as games go final.

NBA Eastern Conference Playoff Standings