EMPIRE OF THE SUNS
Suns still have unsettled Western Conference tiebreakers
There’s a feeling that the Phoenix Suns looked ready to separate and secure a first-round home playoff series when Kevin Durant helped them win three games in a row.
Then he twisted his ankle and a two-game skid against division rivals changed the tenor of the Suns’ remaining 14 games. Ten of their remaining games are against other teams in the Western Conference playoff race.
At 37-31, the Suns sit in fourth place.
They are 1.5 games ahead of the Golden State Warriors, who beat the Suns on Monday, and 3.5 games behind the Sacramento Kings, who dropped Phoenix on Saturday.
But the Suns still have strong tiebreakers going for them in the bunch of teams from Sacramento in the No. 3 seed down to the Utah Jazz in the No. 12 seed. Still, only one of those — coincidentally against Golden State — is securely locked in.
Between No. 4 Phoenix and No. 13 Utah, there is only a 4.5-game difference in overall records.
Of notable trends since we last did this exercise on Feb. 15:
— Dallas has gone 3-7 since then, falling from the sixth seed to the eighth seed. The Kyrie Irving addition saw the Mavs win their first two games before the ugly 10-game stretch. Durant’s heroics in Phoenix’s thrilling March 5 win stand out, as it tied the teams’ season series at 2-2 and made the tiebreaker the teams’ respective conference records — the Suns’ is better at the moment.
— The Warriors have moved from ninth to fifth place in the Western Conference. They are rolling.
— The Los Angeles Lakers, despite an injury to LeBron James, have come together after a roster overhaul at the trade deadline. They are 7-3 since Feb. 15 and have moved from the 13th seed all the way to ninth.
Without further ado, here’s a quick peek at tiebreakers with the other Western Conference teams to illustrate the gravity of the final 14 games.
Phoenix Suns tiebreaker tracker
No. 3 seed – Sacramento Kings (40-27)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-1 with one game left (March 24)
No. 5 seed – Golden State Warriors (36-33)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns — LOCKED
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 3-1 with no games left
No. 6 seed – Los Angeles Clippers (36-33)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-1 with one game left (season finale on April 9)
No. 7 seed – Minnesota Timberwolves (35-34)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-1 with one game left (March 29)
No. 8 seed – Dallas Mavericks (34-35)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-2 with no games left
Second tiebreaker – Division leader wins tie from team not leading a division: Not applicable
Third tiebreaker – Division won-lost percentage for teams in the same division: Not applicable
Fourth tiebreaker – Conference won-lost percentage: The Suns at 24-17 (.585) have an advantage over the Mavericks’ 25-21 (.543) record.
No. 9 seed – Los Angeles Lakers (33-35)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-0 with two games left (March 22, April 7)
No. 10 seed – New Orleans Pelicans (33-35)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-2 with no games left
Second tiebreaker – Division leader wins tie from team not leading a division: Not applicable
Third tiebreaker – Division won-lost percentage for teams in the same division: Not applicable
Fourth tiebreaker – Conference won-lost percentage: The Suns at 24-17 (.585) have a slim advantage over Pelicans’ 22-18 (.550) record.
No. 11 seed – Oklahoma City Thunder (33-35)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 2-0 with two games left (March 19, April 2)
No. 12 seed – Utah Jazz (33-36)
Who has the tiebreaker right now? Suns
First tiebreaker – Suns’ record vs. them: 1-1 with one game left (March 27)
Second tiebreaker – Division leader wins tie from team not leading a division: Not applicable
Third tiebreaker – Division won-lost percentage for teams in the same division: Not applicable
Fourth tiebreaker – Conference won-lost percentage: The Suns at 24-17 (.585) have an advantage over Utah’s 21-22 (.488) record.
