As teams enter the stretch run there are definitive tiers formed. The OKC Thunder are mired in the most interesting and complex with six teams who are all trying to land home court seeds.
The Bucks and Lakers sit fairly safely at the top of their respective conferences. Underneath those leaders are the aforementioned two – seven seeds in the West and all of them could land anywhere within that grouping. It does seem likely the Clippers won’t plummet but then other elite clubs are proving not to trust that hypothesis with many losing to lottery seeds in recent weeks.