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Clippers, Warriors and Pelicans in hunt for 5th seed to face Suns in 1st round of NBA playoffs

duane rankin, arizona republic
·4 min read
12

The Los Angeles Clippers can take all the mystery out of this.

If they win Sunday at Phoenix, the Clippers (43-38) will have the fifth seed in the West and play the Suns in the first round of the NBA Playoffs that begins April 15.

The Suns (45-36) have the fourth seed clinched.

The Clippers own the tiebreaker over defending NBA champion Golden State (43-38). So even if the Warriors beat the Blazers (33-48) to also finish 44-38, they’d wind up a sixth seed because the Clippers have the tiebreaker edge.

They split their regular season series, 2-2, but the Clippers would have the better record in the Pacific Division at 9-7 to Golden State’s 7-9 mark.

That’s easy enough, but what if the Clippers lose as they’re 1-2 against Phoenix this season?

Enter Warriors and Pelicans.

If the Clippers fall and the Warriors win at Portland, the Warriors will clinch the fifth seed and face the Suns in the first round.

This would pit Kevin Durant against the team he led to back-to-back NBA titles along with Stephen Curry.

Suns guard Chris Paul (3) and forward Kevin Durant (35) talk after a foul against the Nuggets during a game at Footprint Center, April 6, 2023.
Suns guard Chris Paul (3) and forward Kevin Durant (35) talk after a foul against the Nuggets during a game at Footprint Center, April 6, 2023.

The odds appear against an Suns-Warriors matchup considering Devin Booker (rest), Chris Paul (rest), Deandre Ayton (rest), Bismack Biyombo (knee), Cameron Payne (back) and Durant (left ankle injury management) are listed out Sunday versus the Clippers.

The Warriors dropped three out of four games against the Suns in the regular season with Phoenix winning the first three before the trade deadline.

The Suns traded Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, four first round picks and a pick swap to Brooklyn for Durant and T.J. Warren right before the Feb. 9 trade deadline.

The Warriors won the final meeting March 13 in San Francisco, but Durant didn’t play due to the ankle injury suffered March 8 in a pregame workout that sidelined him 10 games.

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates in front of Phoenix Suns guard Josh Okogie (2) after making a three-point shot in the fourth quarter at the Chase Center in San Francisco on March 13, 2023.
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates in front of Phoenix Suns guard Josh Okogie (2) after making a three-point shot in the fourth quarter at the Chase Center in San Francisco on March 13, 2023.

Now if the Clippers and Warriors lose, that puts the Lakers (42-39) and Pelicans (42-39) in the tiebreaker mix.

Say the Clippers and Warriors lose Sunday, the Lakers beat Utah at home and the Pelicans fall at Minnesota. That’d create a three-way tie between the Clippers, Warriors and Lakers.

The Clippers would win the tiebreaker because they have the best head-to-head record among the three teams.

  • Clippers 6-2 (2-2 vs. Warriors, 4-0 vs. Lakers).

  • Lakers 3-5 (0-4 vs. Clippers, 3-1 vs. Warriors).

  • Warriors 3-5 (2-2 vs. Clippers, 1-3 vs. Lakers).

Feb 16, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton (22) defends Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac (40) at Footprint Center.
Feb 16, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton (22) defends Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac (40) at Footprint Center.

Going back to that same scenario, what if the Clippers, Warriors and Lakers all lose, but the Pelicans win?

The Lakers would first be eliminated from landing the fifth seed because the Pelicans and Clippers have a better record in head-to-head games among the three teams.

  • Pelicans 4-3 (1-3 vs. Lakers, 3-0 vs. Clippers).

  • Clippers 4-3 (4-0 vs. Lakers, 0-3 vs. Pelicans).

  • Lakers 3-5 (0-4 vs. Clippers, 3-1 vs. Pelicans).

The Pelicans would land the fifth seed because they won the head-to-head tiebreaker, 3-0, over the Clippers.

December 17, 2022; Phoenix, Ariz; USA; Suns guard Devin Booker (1) scores against Pelicans Zion Williamson (1) during the first half at the Footprint Center.
December 17, 2022; Phoenix, Ariz; USA; Suns guard Devin Booker (1) scores against Pelicans Zion Williamson (1) during the first half at the Footprint Center.

Finally, say the Clippers, Warriors, Lakers and Pelicans all finish 43-39.

That’d require the Warriors to lose at Portland, the Clippers to fall in Phoenix, the Lakers to beat the Jazz at home and the Pelicans to win at Minnesota.

If all of that happens, the Lakers and Warriors would be out of the running for the fifth seed as the Clippers and Pelicans have a better record in head-to-head games among the four teams.

  • Clippers 6-5 (4-0 vs. Lakers, 2-2 vs. Warriors, 0-3 vs. Pelicans).

  • Pelicans 6-5 (3-0 vs. Clippers, 2-2 vs. Warriors, 1-3 vs. Lakers).

  • Lakers 6-6 (3-1 vs. Pelicans, 3-1 vs. Warriors, 0-4 vs. Clippers).

  • Warriors 5-7 (2-2 vs. Pelicans, 2-2 vs. Clippers, 1-3 vs. Lakers).

December 17, 2022; Phoenix, Ariz; USA; Suns guard Devin Booker (1) pumps up the crowd agaisnt the Pelicans during the second half at the Footprint Center.
December 17, 2022; Phoenix, Ariz; USA; Suns guard Devin Booker (1) pumps up the crowd agaisnt the Pelicans during the second half at the Footprint Center.

That would leave the Pelicans and Clippers in the running for the fifth seed.

Advantage New Orleans.

The Pelicans swept the season series against the Clippers, 3-0.

The Suns would then face New Orleans in the playoffs for a second straight year. They split their regular season series, 2-2, this season.

The Pelicans pushed Phoenix to six games as an eighth seed with a losing record before falling to the top overall seed in the first round.

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Clippers, Warriors and Pelicans in running for 5th seed to face Suns