A big win over the Phoenix Suns Tuesday night dropped our Magic Number to five for a playoff spot and kept us in the fifth position in the Eastern Conference playoff standings.
The Milwaukee Bucks got a big road win in Charlotte, keeping them even with us in the standings, but we own the tiebreaker. The Pacers lost to Minnesota at the buzzer, dropping them a game back of both teams. Miami won at the buzzer, keeping themselves a half game ahead of idle Chicago for the final spot in the conference.
As far as who we may play in the first round? That didn't change Tuesday, as the top four teams in the East were all idle. If the playoffs started today, we would face the Raptors, a team we beat two out of three times in the regular season.
We travel to Philadelphia for a matchup with the improving 76ers Wednesday looking for our second straight win. The Bucks are in Boston in a game that could shift playoff seeding at both the top and bottom. Toronto hosts Charlotte looking for consecutive win number seven, Miami is in New York, Indiana is in Memphis and Washington begins another West Coast trip with a late tip against the Clippers. Cleveland and Chicago are idle again Wednesday.
The Magic Number to clinch a Playoff spot is five, meaning any combination of our wins and Chicago's losses can equal five for us to clinch.