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Just a quick personal power ranking of all the teams that will be participating in the playoffs/play-in that start this evening. I’ve separated the teams into seven tiers with a brief description of each tier and the best possible outcome for the teams in it.

Tier 7 – Thanks for showing up, but I’ll show my ass if you somehow manage to win one playoff game.

20) Miami Heat (37-45)

19) Atlanta Hawks (40-42)

18) Chicago Bulls (39 – 43)

17) Dallas Mavericks (39-43)

16) Sacramento Kings (40-42)

Tier 6 – You’ve had a disappointing regular season and your postseason will be no different. A tough fight in a first round exit is your best case scenario.

15) Orlando Magic (41-41)

14) Memphis Grizzlies (48-34)

Tier 5 – You’ve had a tremendous regular season, turning your franchise around, and therefore you should be proud. Unfortunately the road ends in the first round.

13) Detroit Pistons (44-38)

Tier 4 – A conference finals appearance seems like the best possible outcome, but even then their respective star player will need to play lights out whilst playing heavy minutes. The second best player on each team will also need to elevate their play, something that has been questionable for these teams all year.

12) Milwaukee Bucks (48-34)

11) Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33)

10) Golden State Warriors (48-34)

9) Denver Nuggets (50-32)

Tier 3 – Great teams, fun to watch with some exciting pieces. However a conference finals appearance seems like the peak. If they can make some good moves this off-season then next years playoffs will be a different conversation.

8) Indiana Pacers (50-32)

7) Houston Rockets (52-30)

Tier 2 – These teams starting 5 and coaching staff are good enough to make the finals, maybe even win the championship. However one injury and that objective will become near impossible. Even with injury luck, they’ll need a few bounces and calls to go their way.

6) New York Knicks (51-31)

5) Los Angeles Clippers (50-32)

4) Los Angeles Lakers (50-32)

Tier 1 – The truest of contenders. These teams have the best coaching staffs and are deep enough to withstand an injury here and there to their non superstars. Great locker rooms filled with a balance of veteran leadership and youthful athleticism. They can always get a stop and can always get a bucket. The Vegas favourites for a reason.

3) Cleveland Cavaliers (64-18)

2) Oklahoma City Thunder (68-14)

1) Boston Celtics (61-21)