Western Conference standings update, April 9: Bucks, refs help Warriors

Golden State jumped from 8th place to 6th thanks to a Minnesota Timberwolves collapse in Milwaukee

In the tightly packed Western Conference standings, one small mistake can be the difference between making the playoffs and having to fight through the play-in tournament. Or one giant mistake like blowing a 24-point lead in the last 10 minutes of a game.

The Milwaukee Bucks outscored the Minnesota Timberwolves 40-13 in the final quarter of Tuesday’s 110-103 win, going on a 34-3 run late against four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert. The loss dropped the Timberwolves to 46-33, one game behind four of their rivals, three of whom won Tuesday night, while the Denver Nuggets settled for axing their entire leadership in a move our own Daniel Hardee called “organizational malpractice that makes the Chernobyl control room look like a model of careful decision-making.”

The Warriors blew out the disheartened Phoenix Suns. A furious 24-point effort from former Warriors Harrison “The Black Falcon” Barnes wasn’t enough to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, who handled the San Antonio Spurs, 122-117. The Memphis Grizzlies kept their finger guns holstered in a 124-100 win over the Charlotte Hornets.

These four teams are one game behind the Los Angeles Lakers, who were leading a close game against the Oklahoma City Thunder when Luka Doncic cursed at a fan and a referee thought the fiery Slovenian was yelling at him. (Note to bartenders: A “Fiery Slovenian” requires 151 rum, an orange peel, brandy, and a photo of Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison.)

Doncic got ejected, Austin Reaves forgot how to play basketball for a few minutes, and the Thunder ran away with a 136-120 victory. The ejection is probably bad news for the Dallas Mavericks, who host Doncic and the Lakers Wednesday night, though perhaps Luka’s desire to score eleventy billion points against his old team might backfire. Then again, the Mavericks just dropped two games to the Clippers by a combined 54 points.

The Lakers also have games against the Portland Trail Blazers and the Houston Rockets, who have clinched the No. 2 seed but may be eager to avenge a loss from March 31 and prove they can shut down Gabe Vincent and Dorian Finney-Smith.

Here’s the logjam, with the Clippers holding 4th place based on tiebreakers that we might get into later this week. Or not at all! The Warriors have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Memphis and Minnesota and no one else.

3. Lakers, 48-31

4. Clippers, 47-32

5. Nuggets, 47-32

6. Warriors, 47-32

7. Grizzlies, 47-32

8. Timberwolves, 46-33

What does this mean for the Warriors? They can still control their own destiny, at least when it comes to avoiding the play-in, by simply winning their final three games. They host the Spurs Wednesday, fly to Portland to play the Blazers Friday night, and then host the Clippers in a battle of two teams who are really glad they didn’t give Paul George a max contract.

Here are the most important games for your scoreboard-watching.

Wednesday

Besides Luka vs. The Brow vs. Nico, the reeling Nuggets go to Sacramento, where Zach LaVine is on a tear, scoring 80 points in his last two games (against good teams!).

Thursday

The Wolves travel to Memphis, where the Warriors should be excited to learn that one team is guaranteed to lose! Most of the West gets the night off.

Friday

Memphis visits Denver in David “Son of Rick” Adelman’s second game as head coach. The Warriors go to Portland, the Rockets visit the Lakers, and Clippers go to the home of the A’s to play the Kings. Unfortunately for the Warriors, the Kings may have clinched the No. 9 seed over the Mavericks by Friday.

Saturday

No games. Take a nap watching the Masters and study up on strength-of-schedule rankings.

Sunday

The Warriors try to finally beat the Clippers this season with the season finale at the Chase Center. Memphis and Minnesota should have easy games hosting the Mavericks and Jazz, respectively, while Denver goes to Houston, who won’t have anything to play for.

The conclusion? If the Warriors handle their business against the Spurs and Trail Blazers, they are in good shape heading into Sunday. If Minnesota beats Memphis Thursday, the Warriors can clinch at least the No. 6 seed with two wins. If the Warriors win out, they’ll have an excellent chance to finish 4th and get home-court in the first round.

It’s going to be a wild final five days of the 2024-25 season. Imagine how much crazier it would be if four teams weren’t tanking and the Suns didn’t suck!