NBA

How Sunday's results impacted the play-in race in the Eastern and Western Conference

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#Grizzlies #Spurs

At the beginning of the season, the NBA board of governors agreed to introduce a Play-In Tournament to the 2021 postseason.

Prior to the traditional 16-team playoff bracket beginning, the 7th ranked team will face the 8th ranked team to earn the No. 7 seed. Then, the 9th ranked team will face the 10th ranked team. The loser of the Seven-Eight game will host the winner of the Nine-Ten game with the winner of that matchup claiming the No. 8 seed.

#PlayIn

With the standings tight heading into the final month, let's take a look at how Sunday's results impacted the race for play-in seeds in each Conference:

East

Washington Wizards 121, Detroit Pistons 100

Chicago Bulls 106, Cleveland Cavaliers 96

What it means: 

#EastPlayIn

In the East, three of the four teams battling for the 10th seed in the East took the floor on Sunday.

The Bulls (current owners of the 10th seed) and Wizards, who have won six of their last seven, made gains on the 10th seed with wins. Chicago's win, which snapped their five-game losing streak, also further distanced the Cleveland Cavaliers,  who now trailing the Bulls by three games.

West

Boston Celtics 119, Golden State Warriors 114

Memphis Grizzlies 128, Milwaukee Bucks 115

San Antonio Spurs 111, Phoenix Suns 85

What it means:

#WestPlayIn

By defeating two-time reigning league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in Milwaukee, the Memphis Grizzlies reduced the gap to the seventh-seeded Dallas Mavericks, who have lost four of their last six. 

With Stephen Curry and the Warriors losing in Boston and the Spurs pulling off an upset in Phoenix, both franchises are now tied in the win percentage (.491). The Spurs' win further distances the 11th-seeded New Orleans Pelicans from the race, now leading the Zion Williamson-led squad by 2.5 games with only a month of the regular season remaining.

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