The Portland Trail Blazers began life on the NBA bubble that Memphis followed by 3 1/2 games for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
Seven exciting games later, Portland (34-39) is in eighth place, half a game ahead of the Grizzlies (33-39) with one game left.
The Blazers’ 134-131 win over Dallas in seventh place on Tuesday night not only put them in the pole position below the stretch, it prevented them from falling all the way to 11th behind Memphis, Phoenix (33-39) and San Antonio ( 32-38).
But Portland is not yet in danger of falling out of the running. Many scenarios remain that could leave the Blazers anywhere from eighth to 11th.
Portland does not want to finish lower than ninth until at least quality for the play-in round, but the eighth finish is significantly more advantageous.
The No. 8 team must defeat No. 9 only once to advance to the NBA Playoffs, while No. 9 must defeat No. 2 twice to advance.
Here’s Thursday’s lineup of remaining games that matter:
Memphis vs. Milwaukee, 1 p.m.
Phoenix vs. Dallas, 1 p.m. (TV on TNT)
San Antonio vs. Utah, 3:30 p.m. (TV on TNT)
Portland vs. Brooklyn, 6 p.m. (TV on TNT, NBC Sports Northwest)
Here’s a look at the possible scenarios:
Yes Morant (12) of Memphis Grizzlies (12) dribbles against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, July 31, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Mike Ehrmann / Pool Photo via AP) APAP
PORTLAND
The Blazers will know where they stand at the time they take the court.
Portland could finish eighth with a win over the Nets.
Portland could still finish eighth, even after a loss to the Nets as the Spurs, Suns and Grizzlies all lost.
The Blazers would finish ninth with a loss only if two of the other three teams also lost.
A loss by Portland to wins by two of the other three additional teams would leave the Blazers on the outside.
MEMPHIS
The Grizzlies can no. 8 finish with a win and a Portland loss.
Memphis soe nr. 9 finish with a win and a Portland win. Or, with a loss if both the Spurs and Suns lose as well.
PHOENIX
The Suns sit 7-0 in the bubble, but started from back to back, so they still need help getting in and need to beat Dallas to have just one shot.
Phoenix can take eighth place with a win over Dallas and losses by both Portland and Memphis.
Phoenix can finish ninth if it wins, while Memphis can lose as Portland.
SAN ANTONIO
The Spurs must defeat Utah first. After that, they could climb all the way to eighth as Portland, Phoenix and Memphis all lost.
The Spurs could finish ninth with a win, along with two of the other three teams also losing.
– Aaron Fentress | [email protected] | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook).
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