The Denver Nuggets have the top seed in the West in their hands after defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday. Then Victor Wembanyama happened.
The NBA rookie led the last-place Spurs to a stunning 121-120 win over the defending champions on Friday, scoring 34 points on 12-of-27 shooting with 12 rebounds, five assists and two blocks. That included 17 points in three minutes, plus a pivotal block from Nikola Jokic in prime time.
The winning basket was provided by Devonte' Graham, who fed Jamal Murray in transition To put Tottenham in front with 0.9 seconds left in the match.
If the Nuggets had taken care of things against the 60-21 Spurs, they would have finished first in the West. After its win over the Timberwolves, Denver was one game ahead of both Minnesota and the Oklahoma City Thunder with two games to play, both against non-playoff teams. All they had to do was win.
Now, the three teams are tied at 56-25. Instead of settling for a 54-27 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, the Nuggets need the Thunder and Timberwolves to lose on Sunday because they don't have a tiebreaker. The Thunder will play the Dallas Mavericks at home, while the Timberwolves will face the Phoenix Suns at home.
Here's how all the playoff games work, Via ESPN's Andrew Lopez:
The three teams win or lose: 1. Thunder, 2. Timberwolves, 3. Nuggets
Thunder and Timberwolves win, Nuggets lose: 1. Timberwolves, 2. Thunder, 3. Nuggets
Thunder and Nuggets win, Timberwolves lose: 1. Thunder, 2. Nuggets, 3. Timberwolves
Timberwolves and Nuggets win, Thunder lose: 1. Timberwolves, 2. Nuggets, 3. Thunder
The Nuggets get the easiest opponent of this trio, but arguably the worst position.
Every other NBA team has playoff stakes on Sunday
The top of the Western Conference isn't the only spot up for grabs before Sunday. Here every other team has something to play for. You can see the full NBA standings here.
East No. 2 seed
The New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks are currently tied for second place in the Eastern Conference with a score of 49-32, and the Cleveland Cavaliers are one game behind them. The Bucks get the No. 2 seed by beating the Orlando Magic, the Knicks get it if they beat the Chicago Bulls and the Bucks lose, and the Cavaliers get it if they win and the Knicks and Bucks lose.
East No. 5 and 6 seeds
The Magic, Indiana Pacers, and Philadelphia 76ers are tied for fifth place with a score of 46-35, while the Miami Heat looms in eighth place with a score of 45-36. This leaves four teams competing for two qualifying spots, rather than having to play in the tournament.
If every team wins, it's the Magic and Pacers in the playoffs.
West No. 6 seed
The New Orleans Pelicans are in last place in the automatic playoffs with a score of 49-32, but the Phoenix Suns are directly behind them with a score of 48-33 and retain the tiebreaker. The Suns would need to defeat the Timberwolves and the Pelicans to lose to the Lakers to exit the play-in tournament.
West No. 8 seed
The Lakers are in second place in the best match with a score of 46-35, while the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors are tied for ninth place with a score of 45-36. The Lakers' win over the Pelicans clinches the No. 8 seed, but both the Kings and Warriors have the lead in the head-to-head tiebreaker (the Kings have the tiebreaker over the Warriors). A three-way tie would give it to the Kings.
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