Western Conference Playoff Picture 2019: Standings, Scenarios & Seeds

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The Nuggets and Rockets are fighting for playoff positioning.

The Western Conference playoff teams have been determined for some time, but the postseason picture is far from clear. Golden State and Utah are the only two teams in the West to have locked up their seed. The other six seeds will be determined on the final night of the regular season.

All eight playoff teams have already been determined in the West, and we will finally know the playoff matchups after tonight’s games have been completed. The Nuggets and Rockets are fighting for the No. 2 seed. Portland or Houston will be the No. 3 seed. The Thunder, Spurs and Clippers will be the final three seeds in the West, in some order.

Here is a look at the current Western Conference playoff standings and scenarios. The standings are based on the table heading into the final night of the regular season, and we will be updating the seeds as games go final.

Western Conference Playoff Standings 2019

Teams listed in bold have clinched a playoff berth. Teams listed in italics are locked into their current playoff seed.

Western Conference NBA Playoff Matchups 2019

Here is a look at the Western Conference playoff matchups based on the current standings.
No. 1 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 LA Clippers
No. 2 Denver Nuggets vs. No. 7 San Antonio Spurs
No. 3 Portland Trail Blazers vs. No. 6 OKC Thunder
No. 4 Houston Rockets vs. No. 5 Utah Jazz

Western Conference Playoff Scenarios

Here is a look at the playoff scenarios for the eight teams in the West.

Golden State Warriors- Locked in at No. 1 seed.
Denver Nuggets- Will either finish No. 2 or No. 3. The Nuggets own the tiebreaker over the Blazers, but lose the tiebreaker against the Rockets if the two teams finish with an identical record.
Houston Rockets- Can finish No. 2, No. 3 or No. 4 depending on the outcome of tonight’s games. The Rockets own the tiebreaker over the Nuggets but would lose a tiebreaker against the Blazers.
Portland Trail Blazers- Can finish either No. 3 or No. 4. The Blazers need to win and have the Nuggets defeat the Timberwolves in order to be the No. 3 seed. Portland owns the tiebreaker over the Rockets but loses one against the Nuggets.
Utah Jazz- Locked in at the No. 5 seed.
Oklahoma City Thunder- Can end up as the No. 6, No. 7 or No. 8 seed. The Thunder will finish No. 6 if they defeat the Bucks. If the Thunder end up with an identical record with the Spurs, Oklahoma City loses the tiebreaker.
San Antonio Spurs- The Spurs need a win over the Mavs along with a Thunder loss to climb to the No. 6 seed. San Antonio can finish as the No. 6, No. 7 or No. 8 seed.
LA Clippers- The Clippers will either finish No. 7 or No. 8. A Clippers win combined with a Spurs loss would give them the No. 7 seed. Any other scenario gives the Clippers the No. 8 seed.