The 2025/26 National Basketball Association (NBA) regular season ended unceremoniously last weekend with games that saw an unprecedented number of players sitting due to reported injuries or illnesses. The fact that most playoff seedings were already decided before Friday significantly contributed to the absence of 168 regular players for the games that night and, pending the outcome of the last two play-In games tonight, the full slate of playoff combatants will be determined.

The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder ruled out 10 players for their regular-season finale, a home loss to the Phoenix Suns last Sunday, the same players who sat out the road loss to the Denver Nuggets last Friday. Not a surprise, considering they had already clinched the top seed in the Western Conference last week Wednesday, but what they couldn’t calculate was their potential path through this year’s playoffs. The Nuggets played the San Antonio Spurs in the regular season finale on Sunday night, and with Denver winning the contest, it cemented the top three seeds in the West, the Spurs in second and the Nuggets in third.

Oklahoma City has faced some of their hardest battles this season against San Antonio and Denver, particularly the Spurs, who won four of the five matchups against the Thunder this year. However, if the postseason plays true to form, the Thunder will not meet any of these two opponents until the Western Conference Finals, while the Spurs and Nuggets seemed destined to clash in the Conference Semi-Finals; therefore, the path to the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy appears set for the repeat, if the Thunder choose to take it.

The regular season was filled with drama, some still unresolved, and there was also some really good basketball, including amazing individual performances. Tanking was a massive concern, which Commissioner Adam Silver said the NBA will tackle, and the “65-game rule” was the catalyst for some amount of commotion. But it appears the NBA is staying the course on this one, at least for the time being. Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) and Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs) both qualified for postseason awards after satisfying the 65-game rule, but Luka Doncic (Los Angeles Lakers) along with Cade Cunningham (Detroit Pistons) are expected to appeal their status, based on ‘extenuating’ circumstances.

That said, Doncic is the scoring champ, averaging the most points this season (33.5), and Jokic is the rebounding (12.9) and assists (10.7) champ, making him the first in league history to lead in both rebounding and assists. On a less impressive note, this is the first season in NBA history in which a total of eight teams finished the regular season with more than 55 losses: the New Orleans Pelicans (26-56), Dallas Mavericks (26-56), Memphis Grizzlies (25-57), Sacramento Kings (22-60), Utah Jazz (22-60), Brooklyn Nets (20-62), Indiana Pacers (19-63), and Washington Wizards (17-65).

And now that the regular season is over, the business end of the year is truly on, but not before the conclusion of the Play-In Tournament tonight. Truth be told, watching sub-500 teams battle it out for a chance to roll with the big boys tend not to be very enjoyable, and usually lopsided. Last season, four of the six play-in games were decided by a margin of at least 14 points. However, the play-in games this year have been taking on a playoff atmosphere, with clutch plays, come-back wins, astounding individual performances, and controversies taking centre stage. The fourth-quarter comeback win by the Portland Trail Blazers over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, powered by Deni Avdija’s 41 points, and the battle royal won by the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night over the Los Angeles Clippers, were particularly breathtaking.

Six of the eight first-round series in the 2026 NBA Playoffs have already been confirmed, and the Pistons and Thunder will confirm their first-round opponents at the conclusion of the contests this evening; the winners of the Orlando Magic vs Charlotte Hornets and Suns vs Warriors, will play the Pistons and Thunder, respectively. Charlotte and Phoenix enter the matchups as JustBet favourites, but an upset could be brewing as Golden State appears inspired to make it to another postseason. The playoffs begin tomorrow, April 18, with four games on tap and two more on Sunday. All the home teams are favoured by JustBet, except for the Lakers, who are smarting from injuries, as it appears Doncic and Austin Reaves will miss most, if not all, of the first round.

After a long season, in which only 18 players across the entire NBA were able to participate in the full slate of 82 games for their team, the test of true grit begins, where skill can go so far, but desire and determination will need to kick in at some point. Sure, experience will be a factor, especially playoff experience, but the un-coachable aspects of the game tend to usually unearth the NBA champion.

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