With three games remaining in the 2025-26 NBA regular season, the race for the final playoff berths in both conferences has produced the kind of drama that league officials and television partners could not have scripted better, five teams separated by two games in the West, three teams jockeying for a single direct playoff spot in the East.
In the Western Conference, the Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, and Phoenix Suns are all fighting for seedings six through eight. The Kings hold the most precarious position, clinging to the six-seed by half a game over Golden State.
"Every possession of every game matters now," Sacramento head coach Mike Brown said after Sunday's overtime win over Portland. "We know what's at stake. Our guys feed off this energy."
Golden State's Steph Curry, 38, has been the defining storyline of the Warriors' playoff push. Curry has averaged 28.2 points over the final month of the season, recapturing something approaching peak form after a quad injury cost him six weeks in January.
The NBA's play-in tournament tips off April 15, with the full postseason bracket set by April 18.