We have seen it coming for weeks, however the Philadelphia 76ers win over the Grizzlies made it official:
The Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls will face one another within the East 9 vs. 10 seed Play-In recreation on April 17. The place they may play that recreation stays undecided, though Chicago is most certainly (the Bulls are two up within the loss column and personal the tiebreaker between the groups).
The loser of that 9/10 recreation is finished for the season. No playoffs, simply a variety of hypothesis about stars being traded (Zach LaVine and Trae Younger are anticipated to be accessible once more for the proper worth) and a variety of questions on what comes subsequent for a franchise at a crossroads.
The winner of the sport advances to tackle the loser of the 7/8 Play-In recreation (presently Miami and Philadelphia, though Indiana might fall into a type of slots). The winner of that second recreation — the very best consequence for Chicago or Atlanta — will probably be rewarded with a first-round playoff matchup with No. 1 seed Boston.
The Bulls lead the season sequence in opposition to the Hawks 2-1 (they play thrice), however Atlanta received the newest matchup final Monday 113-101.
Chicago was within the play-in a season in the past because the No. 10 seed, the place they beat Toronto, then within the second recreation had a fourth-quarter lead in opposition to Miami earlier than falling (the Warmth went on to make the NBA Finals).
The play-in matchup grew to become official when the 76ers beat the Grizzlies on Saturday, making it inconceivable for Chicago to climb over Philly into the No. 8 seed (Brooklyn, sitting in eleventh, is just too far again to catch the Hawks for the No. 10 seed).
