It's a little early to be posting this, since the season ends tomorrow and pretty much every team still has one or two games left to play in the Regular Season, however, I'm posting this anyway, because the top four seeds in each conference are already clinched, and even though all of the teams in the bottom four seeds in the each conference have their playoff berths clinched, the bottom four seeds in the each conference are up for grabs. So here's the playoff picture.

Eastern Conference
1 Seed: Detroit Pistons (64-17, one game left in the season, clinched Central Division)
Detroit came so close to winning the NBA Finals last season...they had a 9-point lead in Game 7, only to blow it down the stretch and lose to the then-one-year-removed Champions, San Antonio Spurs. Could this season be the season the Pistons extract revenge on the Spurs like they did with the Lakers in the 89 Finals? The fact that the Pistons are a defensive-minded team with an offensive-minded head coach makes them all the more dangerous.

2 Seed: Miami Heat (52-28, two games left in the season, clinched Southeast Division)
A healthy Dwyane Wade, along with Shaq hitting his free throws at critical moments, would've gotten the Heat in the Finals last season. The Heat have to stay healthy in order to stand a chance against Detroit. Perhaps they could give Detroit a taste of their own medicine by exploiting Ben Wallace's weak free throw shooting should they meet in the Conference Finals...

3 Seed: New Jersey Nets (49-31, two games left in the season, clinched Atlantic Division)
The Nets probably would've had this playoff seed had Vince Carter been with the Nets all season last year. However, last year, they had to settle for an 8 seed, and be swept by Miami. This year, they could have a shot at revenge against the Heat in the Conference Semifinals. And if they do succeed at avenging their elimination from last year, they'll have to get past Detroit's stingy defense.

4 Seed: Cleveland Cavaliers (49-32, one game left in the season)
Take note that this will be LeBron James' playoff debut. Does he have what it takes to lead his team past the first round of the playoffs? That is the first true test. The second true test here is, can LeBron score past the stifling defense of the Detroit Pistons?

5-8 Seeds: Up for grabs between the Washington Wizards (40-40, two games left in the season) and the Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, and Chicago Bulls (40-41 each, one game left in the season each).
The Bucks finish their regular season schedule tonight against the Wizards, while the Pacers and Bulls finish theirs Regular Season schedule tomorrow, facing the Magic and Raptors, respectively. The Wizards finish their season tomorrow with a game at Detroit. However, here's how the tiebreaker situation is with regards to those four teams:
The Bucks tied the season series with both the Pacers and the Bulls; the Pacers also has their season series with the Bulls tied, and since those three teams are in the same Division, the next tie breaker is the Division record. The Bucks (division record of 6-10) are tied with the Pacers with that tie-breaker, and both teams hold the tie-breaker with the Bulls (whose Division record is 4-12). So with the Bucks and Pacers tied at both the Season Series AND the Division Records, the next tie-breaker up is the Conference Record. The Bucks (whose Conference record is 29-22) holds the tie-breaker over the Pacers (whose Conference record is 23-28) by that virtue.
The Wizards, on the other hand, are not in the same division as the other three teams. The Wizards have three games against the Bucks this season. They lost two of them already (the last game between those two teams is tonight.) The Wizards also lost the season series with Chicago 3-1. However, the Wizards tied the season series with the Pacers 2-2. Therefore, by virtue of winning the season series, the Bulls and Bucks both own the tie-breaker over the Wizards. However, the Wizards own the tie-breaker over the Pacers by virtue of Conference record (the Wizards' conference record is 27-23). So this could be very weird as to who gets the 7 and 8 seeds in the event that all four of these teams end up with a 4-way tie. In a four-way tie, Milwaukee would obviously get the 5 seed. My guess is that Washington would get the 6 seed, Indiana the 7 seed, and Chicago the 8 seed.

Western Conference
1 Seed: San Antonio Spurs (62-19, one game left in the season, clinched Southwest Division)
Coming off an NBA Championship season (which they had to fight for), the Spurs have re-signed Robert Horry and Sean Marks, while signing Fabricio Oberto from Argentina, as well as free agents Nick Van Exel and Michael Finley (the latter of the two was the most high profile free agent during the off-season, and became such under the league's new Amnesty Clause in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement). The team's first-time All-Star and 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist Manu Ginobili perservered this season through various foot injuries, while Tim Duncan perservered all season through plantar fasciitis, and Nick Van Exel perservered through his elbow problems. The team struggled through the tail end of back-to-back nights all season long. Yet, despite all of this, they have matched their franchise record in the wins column, with a chance to break that record with one game left in their regular season schedule. And with last night's win over the Utah Jazz, the Spurs have finally clinched the number 1 seed in the Western Conference after being locked in a battle for that seed with their division rivals, the Dallas Mavericks. After losing three out of five in their last homestand of the regular season, the Spurs have jumped out and secured two blow-out victories on back-to-back nights. However, this season for the Spurs belongs to Tony Parker, but not because he's dating Eva Longoria. It's because his midrange jumper has improved, and made his All-Star debut this season, as well. He is having a career season, and expect him to only get better in the next few years. They seem to be ready for the playoffs. They seem to be ready to repeat as champions for the first time in franchise history. And even if the Spurs don't do so, their dynasty is most likely anything but over.

2 Seed: Phoenix Suns (53-28, one game left in the season, clinched Pacific Division)
Steve Nash's victory in the MVP voting last season probably raised a few eyebrows throughout the league's fans. However, Steve Nash proved his MVP victory last season was no fluke, as he led his team and continued to find his teammates open for shots in the absence of Amare Stoudemire. Last season, they not only had to go through the Dallas Mavericks, but also the San Antonio Spurs, two of their top Conference Rivals. Despite the Suns' run-and-gun offense somewhat reminiscent of the Showtime Lakers of the 80s, the Spurs proved that they were just as capable of run-and-gun offense as the Suns are, and in the process, exposed the Suns' weakness; lack of defense. That's why they signed Raja Bell this season. This time, they'll either have to go through Dallas OR San Antonio to get to the Finals (barring a first round upset). The Suns still look like a major playoff threat even without Amare Stoudemire.

3 Seed: Denver Nuggets (44-37, one game left in the season, clinched Northwest Division)
The Nuggets' season has been marred by injuries (most notably to Nene, who suffered a season-ending injury on the Nuggets' season opener against the Spurs; I was at that game). However, the Nuggets have risen to the top of the mediocracy-laden Northwest Division. They also made a Trade Deadline trade that involved four teams and 12 players, most notably sending Voshon Leonard packing for the "Jail Blazers" (adding another player of questionable character to that team) and getting from them the self-proclaimed "Kobe-Stopper", Ruben Patterson. The Nuggets, if they reach the Conference Finals, also hope to avenge their first round elimination from last year should the Spurs make it there, as well. And the Nuggets do have a chance to do just that, as the Nuggets won the last two games against San Antonio, after dropping their first two against them this season.

4 Seed: Dallas Mavericks (60-21, one game left in the season)
The Dallas Mavericks are still to this day known for the run-and-gun offense they had when they still had Steve Nash and Michael Finley. However, when Avery Johnson stepped in as the Head Coach of the Mavs in the middle of last season, he made it a point to improve the Mavs' defense. "The Little General" hopes to model his team after the defense of the very franchise he won a championship with in 1999, the San Antonio Spurs. After Dallas' disappointing loss to the Suns in the Conference Semifinals last year, the Mavs had two options; either wave the white flag, or build on the disappointment. As you can tell by the Mavs' record, they chose to build on their disappointment. All season long, they were in a race for the Southwest Division title, as well as the number 1 seed in the Western Conference, with the San Antonio Spurs. Now, why are the Mavs the 4 seed when they have the second best record in the Western Conference? Simple: The top three seeds go to the division winners, and seeds 4-8 go to the five teams with the best records who did not win their division. Turns out that Dallas and San Antonio are in the same division, so to these two teams, one loss or one win meant the difference between the 1 seed and the 4 seed. The Dallas Mavericks need to be playing defense more consistently in order to finally eliminate their division rivals from the playoffs. Dallas' defense certainly has improved, but it will take a while for that defense to reach that of San Antonio or Detroit's calibur.

5-6 Seeds: Up for grabs between the Memphis Grizzlies (47-33, two games left in the season) and the Los Angeles Clippers (46-34, two games left in the season)
The third straight playoff appearance for the Grizzlies (also the third in franchise history). Pao Gasol had his break-out season, as well, making his All-Star game debut this season. Will this be the season they win their first playoff game in franchise history? Or will they be swept in the first round again?
As for the Clippers...surprise, surprise. Bet you didn't predict them in the playoffs at the beginning of the season, let alone their surprising start at the beginning of the season. Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley have been the X-Factor in all of that, giving the team the veteran backcourt leadership they've never had. Though their explosiveness did cool down when Corey Maggette got injured, they still perservered. Elton Brand had an MVP-type season, and made his All-Star debut this season. They do have a shot at finally winning a playoff series.
On another note, the 5 and 6 seeds have been up for grabs up to this point between the Grizzlies and the Clippers. However, both teams have two games left in their schedule (just so happens that one of them is against each other), and only one game separates them. If the Grizzlies win, they own the tie-breaker by virtue of winning the season series, and by virtue of better Conference Record (right now, the Grizz have a conference record of 29-21, while the Clips have a conference record of 26-24). For the Clips to get the 5 seed, they have to win both games they have remaining, and Memphis has to lose both games they have remaining. However, regardless of who gets the 5 or 6 seed, 6 seed will have homecourt advantage in the First Round of the Playoffs, because both the Grizzlies and the Clippers have better regular season records than the 3-seeded Denver Nuggets (as I mentioned earlier, the Nuggets have the 3-seed only because they won their division).

7-8 Seeds: Up for grabs between the Los Angeles Lakers (44-37, one game left in the season) and the Sacramento Kings (43-38, one game left in the season)
Ahh...the classic rivalry...only this time, they're fighting for 7 and 8 seeds. Only a single game separates both teams. Both teams have their season series tied, and since they're in the same division, the next tie breaker is the Division Record. If the Lakers lose their last game on their schedule, and the Kings win theirs, their seeds will switch, as the Kings hold the tie-breaker over the Lakers by virtue of better division record (Lakers' division record is 9-7, while the Kings' is 10-6). And neither team wants the dreaded 8 seed, where they face the Spurs. Both teams have a chance at upsetting the Suns, but the only one of these two teams that stands a chance at upsetting the Spurs is the Kings, as the Kings' Ron Artest is a perimiter defender of the Spurs' Bruce Bowen's calibur. And, Artest's defensive antics have spread throughout the rest of his team, and Sacramento's trade to send only Peja Stojakovic to Indiana with only Ron Artest in return was enough to change the whole identity of the Sacramento Kings. The Kings used to be all offense. When Ron Artest came to the Kings, he changed all that around, and the Kings have suddenly become a defensive powerhouse. On top of that, there are no chemistry problems I'm aware of within the Sacramento Kings, so I guess the Kings have benefitted very nicely from this trade. The Lakers don't stand a chance against the Spurs. They used to years ago, when the Lakers eliminated the Spurs from the playoffs three times, but the only three players left from those Lakers rosters are Deavon George, Luke Walton, and Kobe Bryant; all the other players on those Lakers rosters are either retired or with other teams (one of them is with the Spurs; Robert Horry). Kobe will have trouble scoring over Bruce Bowen, that much is for sure. Kobe's got a better shot at getting easier scoring against the Suns than he does against the Spurs. Plus, even if the Lakers advance to the next round, they certainly aren't the powerhouse they were when they had Shaq. It will take a few years for the Lakers to return to dominance.


Now, as the last two games of the season wind down, feel free to predict who will get the last four seeds in each conference. I'll have the match-up updates as soon as early Thursday morning. Also feel free to make your predictions as to how far each of these sixteen teams will go in the playoffs. And when the playoffs begin, I intend to use this thread for all the developments in the playoffs.