NBA Previews

The New Orleans Pelicans can secure the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference playoffs by beating the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday. The Lakers can clinch the No. 8 spot and strengthen their position for the play-in tournament by winning. A lot is at stake for both teams as they meet in the regular-season finale in New Orleans. New Orleans (49-32) won at Golden State, 114-109, on Friday to complete a sweep of a

The Indiana Pacers will attempt to officially lock down an Eastern Conference playoff berth on Sunday afternoon when they face the Atlanta Hawks in Indianapolis. Currently sitting in sixth place in the East, Indiana (46-35) enters the regular-season finale holding the last guaranteed playoff spot in the conference. But unfortunately for the Pacers, they find themselves in a tight race, as the fifth-place Orlando Magic and seventh-place Philadelphia 76ers also sport 46-35 records. Indiana owns

The New York Knicks are making a push for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs as they prepare to meet the visiting Chicago Bulls in Sunday’s regular-season finale. With Friday’s win over the Brooklyn Nets in their previous outing, the Knicks (49-32) clinched a top-four seed in the East and home-court advantage for the opening round of the NBA playoffs. “That’s a big deal, home-court advantage is huge,” Knicks center Mitchell Robinson

The Miami Heat have a lot to play for on the final game of the regular season Sunday. Miami (45-36), hosting the Toronto Raptors for the second straight game, is still competing for a top-six berth in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Heat currently sit eighth in the Eastern Conference, one game behind the Orlando Magic, Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers. Teams finishing seventh through 10th will head to the play-in tournament. Miami coach Erik

The Cleveland Cavaliers will tune up for the playoffs on Sunday afternoon when they host the Charlotte Hornets in the regular-season finale. Cleveland clinched a playoff berth with Friday night’s victory against the Indiana Pacers, and the Cavaliers could be hitting another gear at just the right time. “We should celebrate this accomplishment because everybody has worked hard to make this happen,” center Jarrett Allen said. “But the job is not done.” The Cavaliers (48-33)

The Washington Wizards will attempt to end their season on a high note and halt a five-game losing streak Sunday when they visit the Boston Celtics on the final day of the NBA’s regular season. The Wizards (15-66) were the first Eastern Conference team eliminated from playoff contention this season. Only Detroit (14-67) has a worse record in the NBA. The team’s coaching situation is one issue the Wizards will have to address following Sunday’s

The Los Angeles Clippers will look to secure the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference on Friday when they host the Utah Jazz. The Clippers (51-29) can clinch that seed with one victory or one loss by the Dallas Mavericks (50-30) over the teams’ final two games of the regular season. Both teams are locked into the first-round matchup, with the home-court advantage still to be decided. The Clippers hold the tiebreaker over the

The New Orleans Pelicans and Golden State Warriors will have plenty at stake on Friday night when they tip off in San Francisco. The Pelicans (48-32) retained a one-game lead over the Phoenix Suns (47-33) in their tussle for the sixth and final guaranteed playoff position in the Western Conference with a 135-123 road win over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night. The Suns hold the tiebreaker over New Orleans, meaning the Pelicans must retain

A surge by Jalen Brunson is creating a weekend of varied playoff scenarios for the New York Knicks. Brunson is heating up heading into the final weekend of the regular season, and the Knicks still have a shot at landing the second seed in the Eastern Conference as they prepare for a Friday night home game against the Brooklyn Nets. Brunson scored 39 points in 30 minutes on Thursday as the Knicks led by as