The Toronto Raptors became the first team to clinch their NBA Cup group on Friday.
Toronto clinched first in East Group A by way of its win over the Washington Wizards.
The other three knockout-round spots from the Eastern Conference groups can only be filled by a handful of teams.
The competition is much different in the Western Conference, where seven teams across three groups have two wins each.
Updated NBA Cup Standings
- Toronto (3-0; +53 point differential)
- Cleveland (2-1; +33)
- Atlanta (1-1; +8)
- Indiana (0-2; -31)
- Washington (0-2; -63)
- Detroit (2-0; +27)
- Orlando (2-0; +20)
- Brooklyn (1-2; -17)
- Boston (1-2; -20)
- Philadelphia (0-2; -10)
- Milwaukee (2-0; +16)
- Miami (2-1; +46)
- New York (1-1; -2)
- Chicago (1-2; -42)
- Charlotte (0-2; -18)
- Oklahoma City (2-0; +63)
- Phoenix (2-0; +23)
- Minnesota (2-1; +53)
- Sacramento (0-2; -45)
- Utah (0-3; -94)
- Los Angeles Lakers (2-0; +19)
- Los Angeles Clippers (2-0; +2)
- Memphis (1-1; +9)
- Dallas (1-2; -11)
- New Orleans (0-3; -19)
- Portland (2-1; -18)
- Denver (2-1; +26)
- San Antonio (1-1; +10)
- Houston (1-2; +10)
- Golden State (1-2; -28)
Toronto clinched the first of eight quarterfinal berths on Friday night.
The Raptors’ wins over the Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks allowed them to secure the top spot in East Group A before their final group game.
Cleveland and Atlanta’s head-to-head showdown next Friday will determine which team from East Group A will fight for the top second-place spot in the East.
The Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic play in East Group B’s most important game next Friday. Both teams are 2-0. The winner of that matchup will win the group, while the loser will compete to advance as the best second-place team.
A similar situation will play out in East Group C on Wednesday, as the Milwaukee Bucks play the Miami Heat.
Miami currently has the best point differential of any second-place team, but a loss to the Bucks will eliminate it from the competition.
Atlanta, Detroit and Orlando all have two games left to play. Cleveland needs to beat Atlanta and run up the score, so that its point differential holds up.
Detroit’s extra game is against the Boston Celtics, while Orlando still has to face the Philadelphia 76ers. Both of those are tough games in which running up the margin of victory may be difficult.
The permutations are far more abundant in the Western Conference groups.
The Oklahoma City Thunder just need to beat the Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves next week to claim West Group A.
Minnesota needs to beat OKC just to stay alive in the competition. Phoenix can afford a loss to OKC as long as it beats the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday.
In that scenario, Phoenix needs to run up the score on the Kings and then play a tight game with OKC to protect its point differential.
The battle of Los Angeles on Tuesday night will determine the West Group B winner. The Lakers should be viewed as the favorite to win that matchup against a Clippers team with one win since Halloween.
West Group C is still messy. The Portland Trail Blazers are in first by way of their wins over the Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors.
Portland just needs a Wednesday win over the San Antonio Spurs to advance as group winner.
If Portland wins, Denver has to run up the score on the Spurs on Friday to advance as the top second-place team. The Nuggets currently have a better point differential than the Clippers and Suns, but they trail the Wolves and Thunder in the tiebreaker.
East: Toronto, Detroit, Milwaukee, Orlando
West: Oklahoma City, Los Angeles Lakers, Portland, Denver
