Durant and James Set to Clash in Playoffs as NBA Seedings Are Finalized

The stage is set for a thrilling playoff series between NBA legends LeBron James and Kevin Durant, who will face off for the first time in eight years after the final seedings were confirmed on the last night of the regular season. Six teams from both conferences secured their playoff spots, with four more teams in each conference heading to the play-in tournament. The Los Angeles Lakers, led by James, claimed the fourth seed in the Western Conference, giving them home court advantage in their best-of-seven series against Durant's Houston Rockets, who are the fifth seed. The Eastern Conference saw a dramatic finale on Sunday night, with the battle for a top-six spot going down to the wire. The Boston Celtics defeated the Orlando Magic, which dropped Orlando to the eighth spot and the play-in tournament, where they will face the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night, with the winner advancing directly to the first round of the playoffs to meet the Celtics. The other play-in game in the East features the ninth-seeded Charlotte Hornets hosting the tenth-seeded Miami Heat, with the winner meeting the loser of the Magic-76ers matchup for the final Eastern playoff spot and the right to face the top-seeded Detroit Pistons. "This one is done," Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said after the loss in Boston. "You've got to make sure you focus your time and your attention and your energy all on the Philadelphia 76ers right now." The New York Knicks secured the No. 3 seed in the East and will meet a rejuvenated Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs, while the Cleveland Cavaliers will face the Toronto Raptors. In the West, the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Sacramento Kings to earn the eighth spot and will have two chances to win one game and clinch a playoff berth. The Trail Blazers will play the Phoenix Suns in the 7/8 play-in matchup, with the winner advancing to face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the playoffs. The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors on Sunday and will play again in Inglewood, California, on Wednesday in the 9/10 playoff elimination game. The winner of that game will meet the loser of the Suns vs. Trail Blazers for the chance to take on the defending champions and top seeds in the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Denver Nuggets, who ended the regular season on a 12-game winning streak, beat an under-strength Spurs to lock up the No. 3 seed and set up a first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The first-round playoff matchups are as follows: Oklahoma City Thunder (1) vs. 8th seed (TBC) San Antonio Spurs (2) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (7) Denver Nuggets (3) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (6) Los Angeles Lakers (4) vs. Houston Rockets (5) The play-in tournament schedule is as follows: 1. Phoenix Suns (7) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (8) 2. Los Angeles Clippers (9) vs. Golden State Warriors (10) 3. Phoenix Suns vs. Winner Game 2 In the East, the playoff matchups are: Detroit Pistons (1) vs. 8th seed (TBC) Boston Celtics (2) vs. 7th seed (TBC) New York Knicks (3) vs. Atlanta Hawks (6) Cleveland Cavaliers (4) vs. Toronto Raptors (5) The play-in tournament schedule for the East is: 1. Philadelphia 76ers (7) vs. Orlando Magic (8) 2. Charlotte Hornets (9) vs. Miami Heat (10) 3. Loser Game 1 vs. Charlotte Hornets The 2026 NBA playoffs will begin on Sky Sports this Sunday, April 19, with four live games on Sky Sports Action from 6 pm onwards. The schedule for the first day of the playoffs is as follows: 6 pm - East No. 7 seed @ Boston Celtics (2) 8:30 pm - West No. 8 seed @ Oklahoma City Thunder (1) 11 pm - East No. 8 seed @ Detroit Pistons (1) 2 am - Portland Trail Blazers (7) @ San Antonio Spurs (2) Sky Sports will also be showing all of the Western Conference Finals live from May 20. This season saw more points scored than any other in NBA history, with the previous record of 282,127 points being surpassed on Sunday evening. The final total for the season is 284,395 points. Denver's Nikola Jokic appeared in the Nuggets' game against San Antonio on Sunday night, which pushed his total to 65 games for the season, making him eligible for the NBA's award ballots. Jokic was second in last year's MVP balloting behind only Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, making Jokic just the third player in NBA history with a top-two finish in five or more consecutive seasons, joining Bill Russell and Larry Bird. Jokic won MVP in 2021, 2023, and 2024, plus was second in 2022 and again last year. The league's statistical champions have been known for some time, but now they're officially official. The Lakers' Luka Doncic won the scoring title with 33.5 points per game, while Jokic won both the rebounding and assist titles to complete another season in which he averaged a triple-double. Watch the 2026 NBA Playoffs live on Sky Sports. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.