Spurs, Clippers unstoppable

The San Antonio Spurs (49-16) and the LA Clippers (47-19) have gone on unbelievable runs, with the Spurs amassing a streak of nine games to hold top spot in the West, compared to the Clippers’ 10-game streak in third.

The Spurs saw to the disdainful dismissal of the LA Lakers, for whom a play-off berth is now mathematically impossible, as the Spurs bench once again showed their superiority to other NBA benches. The Spurs had five role players in double figures as they routed the conference minnows 119-85.

Meanwhile, Blake Griffin continues to be the superstar many expected him to be, even taking the limelight away from the assists-machine CP3. The power-forward had 30 points and 15 rebounds, including a put-back slam some are calling the dunk of the season, as the Clippers handled the sixth-placed Golden State Warriors (41-26) 111-89.

After shockingly going down to the Lakers last week, the second-seeded OKC Thunder eventually recovered with a revenge blowout of the LA team, this after beating the fourth-seeded Houston Rockets (44-21) 106-98. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook had equal shares of 58 points and Serge Ibaka had 13 rebounds and seven blocks as the Thunder dispatched the Lakers 131-102.

Four to five teams continue to duke it out for the last few play-off spots as despite no team cementing their spots mathematically, it seems only questionable which of the following teams will earn a play-off berth: the Dallas Mavericks (39-27), the Memphis Grizzlies (39-27), the Phoenix Suns (37-28), or the Minnesota Timberwolves (32-32).

Miami, Indiana secure playoff berths

The Miami Heat (44-19) and the Indiana Pacers (49-17) have both unsurprisingly secured their spots in the NBA postseason among mediocre Eastern competition, with roughly 15-16 games to go for most teams in the regular season.

The Pacers recovered from a four-game slide last week to rack up three consecutive wins against the Boston Celtics (22-44), the Philadelphia 76ers who just haven’t been able to buy a win for 20 games, and the Detroit Pistons (25-41). Paul George had 30 points, seven assists and three steals and Indiana ensured that the Pistons can finish no better than .500 if they win all their remaining games.

Miami, meanwhile, have lost back-to-back tilts with the Brooklyn Nets (33-31) and the Denver Nuggets respectively. The sixth-seeded Nets trumped Miami 96-95 on Wednesday as Paul Pierce scored 29 to put Brooklyn 3-0 up in their season series of four against the Heat.

Meanwhile, the New York Knicks (27-40) are attempting to make a late push for a playoff berth as they have won six straight to cut the gap between themselves and the Atlanta Hawks (29-35), who are in the final play-off spot, to three-and-a-half games.

The other teams currently in play-off positions are: the Toronto Raptors (37-27), the Chicago Bulls (35-29), the Washington Wizards (35-31) and Charlotte Bobcats (32-34).