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

The stage is set for a thrilling NBA playoff series between legendary players Kevin Durant and LeBron James, with their teams securing the fourth and fifth seeds in the Western Conference. James' Los Angeles Lakers will have home court advantage in their best-of-seven series against Durant's Houston Rockets. The final night of the regular season saw six teams in both conferences confirm their playoff spots, while four teams in each conference are headed for the play-in. The Eastern Conference witnessed intense drama, with the Boston Celtics defeating the Orlando Magic to secure their spot and send Orlando to the play-in. The New York Knicks locked up the No. 3 seed in the East and will face the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. In the West, the Portland Trail Blazers earned the eighth spot and will have two chances to win one game and clinch a playoff berth. The Los Angeles Clippers will play the Golden State Warriors in a playoff elimination game, with the winner meeting the loser of the Suns vs Trail Blazers for a chance to take on the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The Denver Nuggets, who ended the regular season on a 12-game winning streak, will face the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round. The 2026 NBA playoffs will begin on April 19, with four live games on Sky Sports Action. Notably, this season saw more points scored than any other in NBA history, with a total of 284,395 points. Denver's Nikola Jokic appeared in 65 games, making him eligible for the NBA's award ballots, while the Lakers' Luka Doncic won the scoring title and Jokic won both the rebounding and assist titles.