It came down to a blown DeMar DeRozan overtime buzzer beater attempt, but the Knicks finally clinched the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed in a nationally broadcast ESPN clash this afternoon.
Earlier in the day, several other East playoff and play-in clubs wrapped up their 2023-24 regular seasons, thus cementing the conference’s top 10 heading into the postseason. Remarkably, three teams sport identical 47-35 records.
Obviously the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds will be determined by the play-in tournament, which will tip off midweek. That will thus dictate the 1-8 and 2-7 matchups of the first round.
Here is the finalized order of the Eastern Conference’s top 10 for the 2024 postseason:
- Boston Celtics (64-18)
- New York Knicks (50-32)
- Milwaukee Bucks (49-33)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (48-34)
- Orlando Magic (47-35)
- Indiana Pacers (47-35)
- Philadelphia 76ers (47-35)
- Miami Heat (46-36)
- Chicago Bulls (39-43)
- Atlanta Hawks (36-46)
Two matchups are now locked-in. The No. 3-seeded Bucks will square off against the No. 6-seeded Pacers. Indiana owns a 4-1 season record against Milwaukee (they faced off during a round of this year’s inaugural In-Season Tournament). The No. 4-seeded Cavaliers will play the No. 5-seeded Orlando Magic. Those two teams have split their season series, 2-2.
Per the NBA, here is the breakdown of this year’s Eastern Conference play-in tournament, slated for this Wednesday, April 17:
- No. 7 Philadelphia will host No. 8 Miami at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN. The victor will advance advances as the No. 7 seed to play the Knicks, who will be without All-Star power forward Julius Randle for the duration of the playoffs.
- No. 9 Chicago will host No. 10 Atlanta at 8:30 p.m. PT. The winner will advance to play whichever team loses the 7-8 matchup
- Loser of the Sixers-Heat matchup plays the winner of Bulls/Hawks on Friday, April 19 – the winner advances as the No. 8 seed to face the Celtics.
The first round of the playoffs will officially tip off on Saturday, April 20.
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