The Indiana Pacers and New Orleans Pelicans departed Sunday as the biggest winners in the NBA play-in race.
Indiana beat the Miami Heat at home, narrowly closing the gap in the race for sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
The Pacers have no time to rest, as the Philadelphia 76ers are one game back and will play the remainder of the regular season at home.
New Orleans snapped a four-game losing streak with the road win and is now tied with the Phoenix Suns.
Phoenix, the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference, is still ahead of the Pelicans thanks to head-to-head tiebreakers, but the Pelicans are in position to at least be out of the play-in spot next week. .
Updated NBA standings
eastern conference
1. Boston (62-16)
2. Milwaukee (47-31)
3. Orlando (46-32)
4. New York (46-32)
5. Cleveland (46-33)
6. Indiana (45-34)
play-in race
7. Philadelphia (44-35)
8. Miami (43-35)
9. Chicago (37-41)
10. Atlanta (36-42)
Indiana University's win over Miami kept them above the play-in standings for now.
The Pacers hold a one-game lead over the Sixers with three games remaining for each team.
Indiana visits the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers and hosts the Atlanta Hawks, while the Sixers host the Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets.
A full-strength Sixers team featuring Joel Embiid will likely win all three remaining games. Indiana needs to avoid Cleveland's missteps on the road to avoid a high-pressure finale.
The Pacers won two of their three games against the Sixers, so they need to finish evenly to avoid the play-ins.
Philadelphia intends to host the play-in game as the No. 7 seed and could jump to grab the No. 6 seed if Indiana fails.
The Heat have a game left against the Sixers, so they could slide into seventh place.
Miami needs wins over the Atlanta Hawks and Dallas Mavericks in its next two games to end the regular season with a convincing victory over the Raptors. A fourth straight win could be enough to put Miami at least in seventh place.
Indiana, Philadelphia, and Miami all need to make it into the proper playoff field, but they hope to win the second play-in game to earn the No. 8 seed and face the Boston Celtics in the first round. I don't think anyone would think so.
Play-in predictions: 7. Philadelphia, 8. Miami, 9. Chicago, 10. Atlanta
western conference
1. Minnesota (54-24)
2. Denver (54-24)
3. Oklahoma City (53-25)
4. Los Angeles Clippers (50-28)
5. Dallas (48-30)
6. Phoenix (46-32)
play-in race
7. New Orleans (46-32)
8. Sacramento (45-33)
9. Los Angeles Lakers (45-34)
10. Golden State (43-35)
New Orleans ended its losing streak with a road win at Phoenix, but it wasn't enough to advance into the top six.
The Pelicans lost to the Suns in the season series, so as long as the score is tied, the Suns have the advantage in the standings.
New Orleans ended a three-game tough streak with a trip to Portland on Tuesday. The Pelicans will visit the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors before taking on the Lakers at home.
Victories against the Kings and Lakers are most important for the Pelicans, as they have a three-game lead over the Warriors.
The Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the play-in race and dropped in the standings.
Los Angeles played the full game without LeBron James and Anthony Davis being sidelined with eye injuries.
The Lakers and Warriors will face off on Tuesday in a crucial game for ninth place versus second place. 10 games. Golden State has room to move up from No. 10, but will need a perfect finish to win a home game at 9-10.
Teams currently in the West Region play-in slot will not miss the play-in round. The Houston Rockets lost to the Dallas Mavericks and were eliminated from contention.
Play-in predictions: 7. New Orleans, 8. Sacramento, 9. Los Angeles Lakers, 10. Golden State
