Sixers winning again today. They could be alone in the 5th draft slot after today. How the lottery plays out this year will be so fascinating. There are so many teams jumbled up in the West in particular. When will Dallas, Pelicans, Suns Lakers etc know what they want to do? It seems any of those teams could somehow get a bit hot and be within a game or two of the playoffs. Portland got throttled again today and I have no confidence they will be able to run away with the 8th spot.
Assuming the Suns lose today, the Sixers will be tied for the 5th worst record with the Lakers.
Several of the teams in the West should go into tank mode soon but that's hard to do when you're only 4 games out of the playoffs. The strong, deep draft doesn't encourage tanking. Will any of the teams trade to try make the playoffs (and get demolished by GSW) or trade to tank (and possibly still be out tanked by several teams) or will they be satisfied with inaction?
I have to think that Mavericks really want to make the playoffs if they can stay within a stone's throw. There is a good chance this is Dirk's last year and even a demolition at the hands of the Warriors gives him one last playoff taste.
By the same token, I think the Pelicans and Kings want to make it just for the sake of appeasing their young centers and show a sign of progress.
The Suns would probably be best suited to tank.It looks like Len will never realize his talent, Knight has proven to be a below average guard and Bender and Chriss are pretty raw. They need another stud to add along those two and would be well served to get rid of Chandler and Bledsoe. However, it seems like their owner is obsessed with making the playoffs and being relevant so who knows.
I honestly thought the Lakers had to much talent to be this bad but Randle and Russell may prove to more solid starters as opposed to building blocks (probably like Smart). Clarkson seems to have regressed and has less upside (he turns 25 at end of season). If they trade Williams and Deng (deng could be tough to move) they really can join an intense race to the bottom if they get Walton on board to try and keep their pick. It would be pretty brutal for them to finish 3rd worst but then get bumped by someone.