NBA Playoff Picture 2023: Where Celtics stand after Spurs win, 1.5 games behind Bucks

BOSTON — The Celtics are feeling good after three straight blowout victories, including a comfortable win over the Spurs on Sunday. The C’s entered an easy part of their schedule, and they’ve taken care of business against the Pacers and Spurs. Next, they take on the Wizards on Tuesday.

The Celtics hold a 52-23 record with seven games left in the regular season, surpassing their win total from last season. But they still have work left to do if they want to secure the No. 1 overall seed in the East over the Bucks. Milwaukee, at 53-21, still holds the 1.5-game lead despite losing to the Nuggets on Saturday.

That means when the Celtics travel to Milwaukee on Thursday to take on the Bucks, it’s a crucial game for standing purposes. The winner of that game will also hold the tiebreaker as the teams have split their two matchups this season. A Bucks win virtually puts them in the driver’s seat for the No. 1 seed, pending a huge collapse. A Celtics win still gives them a chance to catch the Bucks in the standings.

Here’s a look at the current East standings after Sunday’s games:

The Celtics do have a 2.5-game cushion on the third-place Sixers now after Sunday’s game. The 76ers were briefly in a great spot and threatening the C’s, but they’ve dropped their last two games as part of a road trip. They also take on the Nuggets in Denver on Monday, which is another tough game.

Boston also holds the tiebreaker over Philadelphia, so the Sixers catching the Celtics for the No. 2 seed is starting to get unlikely. However, the C’s and Sixers do meet April 4 in Philadelphia, so there’s a chance that game could be important for seeding purposes depending on what happens next week.

The Cavaliers also have a solid grasp on the No. 4 seed in the East, which would give them home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The Knicks have a two-game cushion on the No. 5 seed, but it’s no guarantee they’ll keep that up after going 4-6 in their last 10 games.

The No. 6 seed and onwards is where the standings get tight. The Nets and Heat are tied now for sixth place in the East. Brooklyn has the tiebreaker after sweeping Miami in three games, including a blowout 129-100 victory earlier this week.

While the Nets aren’t as dangerous after their blockbuster trades, they’re still hanging around and could stay out of the play-in tournament. The Heat also always turn it up in the playoffs, led by Jimmy Butler, and that’s not necessarily an opponent the C’s want to see in the first round of the playoffs. How that race shakes up will be interesting over the next couple weeks.

Of note: Watch out for the Bulls. They’ve won seven of their last nine games and are one of the hottest teams in the league. Chicago could keep climbing up the standings and has a real shot at the No. 8 spot in the East. That means the Bulls could play themselves into a spot where the Celtics could seem in the first round after they appeared to be in no man’s land for most of the season.

Elsewhere, the Hawks and Raptors are tied for eighth place in the East with the Bulls right behind them. That’s play-in territory, though, and there will likely be plenty of movement that comes over the final stretch of games.

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