Eastern Conference Playoff Seeding Will Be One Of The Top Storylines Over the Final Month of the Season

Where will the Hawks end up in the standings at the end of the season?

Jackson Caudell | Feb 25, 2025

Feb 24, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guards Trae Young (11) and Dyson Daniels (5) react after the Hawks defeated the Miami Heat at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

In this story:

Atlanta Hawks

The NBA is entering the final stretch of its season and there is just a little more than a month to go until the playoffs. Right now in the Eastern Conference, there is a race to see who can get in the last playoff spot and avoid the risk that comes with playing in the NBA's play-in tournament.

Right now, it appears that the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, and Milwaukee Bucks are all going to be safely in the playoff field and with the way the Detroit Pistons are playing right now (winners of seven straight), they might not just be a lock, but they could even move up in the standings if they keep playing like this. When it comes to the teams bunched up 7-9 though, they are all right next to each other and fighting to climb out of the play-in to avoid playing the Celtics or the Cavs in round one.

RIght now, the Orlando Magic occupy the No.7 spot in the East, just a half-game ahead of the Atlanta Hawks who are 8th. Atlanta is tied with Miami for 8th and they are 2-0 vs the Heat this season. The two teams play each other again on Wednesday and if Atlanta were to win, they would win the season series and own the tiebreaker over their divisional rivals. The Hawks are 1-1 vs the Magic and have two games left against them this season. Right now, Chicago is No. 10, but they are four games back of Miami. Brooklyn believe it or not is No. 11 and they are 1.5 games back from Chicago for the last play-in spot.

Can any of these teams get all the way up to No. 6? It is not impossible, but they need to get hot and also have one of either the Pacers, Bucks, or Pistons take a tumble. If Orlando gets Jalen Suggs back soon, they seem like the most logical candidate. Atlanta is still navigating the season without star forward Jalen Johnson and may not have that kind of run in them to avoid the play, not to mention the Pistons own the tiebreaker over them.

Miami has not been playing well since moving Jimmy Butler, including scoring only 86 points in a loss on Monday vs Atlanta. They seem unlikely to be able to make a big move up, but Erik Spoelstra is the best coach in the NBA and will get the most out of his team down the stretch.

Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus talked about the Eastern Conference race as one of the top storylines for the rest of the season:

"Matchups are everything in the playoffs. A team might win a title if it can avoid the one franchise that has its number.

The Cleveland Cavaliers (46-10) have dominated the East and will draw the bottom winner of the play-in. The Boston Celtics (40-16) appear to be No. 2, with the New York Knicks (37-19) still in striking range at No. 3. Boston will draw the play-in winner between Nos. 7 and 8.

Outside of the top three, the East is in flux, with quality teams like the Indiana Pacers (31-23), Milwaukee Bucks (31-24) and the upstart Detroit Pistons (30-26) currently slotted above the play-in. The Orlando Magic (28-30), Miami Heat (26-28) and Atlanta Hawks (26-30) are pressing for playoff runs.

The Chicago Bulls (22-35) and Brooklyn Nets (21-35) may be destined for a play-in appearance unless the Sixers start winning games (see above)."

The likely outcome seems to be that these three teams are going to see each other in the play-in tournament, but it is worth monitoring to see if one of them can catch fire and make a move up the standings to avoid what would almost certainly be a quick exit vs the Cavs or Celtics.

Related Links