NBA legends LeBron James and Kevin Durant will meet in a playoff series for the first time in eight years after seedings were confirmed on the final night of the regular season.
Six teams in both conferences confirmed their playoff place with a further four in each set for the play-in.
James’ LA Lakers locked up the fourth seed in the Western Conference, meaning they will have home court advantage in their best-of-seven series against Durant’s Houston Rockets, who are the fifth seed.
The big drama on Sunday night, the final round of regular season games, came in the Eastern Conference where the battle to secure a top-six place went down to the wire.
The Boston Celtics beat the Orlando Magic, which dropped Orlando into the eighth spot and the play-in – meaning they will play the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night (12.30am Thursday UK time) with the winner advancing directly to the first round of the playoffs, where the Celtics await.
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LeBron James will lead the Lakers into the playoffs at the age of 41
The other play-in game in the east sees the 9th-seeded Charlotte Hornets host the 10 seed Miami Heat, with the winner meeting the loser of the Magic-76ers match-up for the final Eastern playoff place 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 locked up the No 3 seed in the east, and will meet a rejuvenated Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. The Cleveland Cavaliers will face the Toronto Raptors.
Nuggets lock up three seed in west
In the west, the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Sacramento Kings to earn the eighth spot, and therefore will have two chances to win one game and clinch a playoff berth.
The Trail Blazers play the Phoenix Suns in the 7/8 play-in match-up, with the winner going on to face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in round one of the playoffs.
The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, with the teams to 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 defending champions as top seeds in the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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Can anyone stop defending champions 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.
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The Toronto Raptors claimed the fifth seed in the east
Western Conference first-round playoffs:
*First teams denotes home court advantage
Oklahoma City Thunder (1) vs 8th seed (TBC)
San Antonio Spurs (2) vs 7th seed (TBC)
Denver Nuggets (3) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (6)
Los Angeles Lakers (4) vs Houston Rockets (5)
Play-in tournament:
1. Phoenix Suns (7) vs Portland Trail Blazers (8)
2. Los Angeles Clippers (9) vs Golden State Warriors (10)
3. Loser Game 1 vs Winner Game 2
Eastern Conference first-round playoffs:
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)
Play-in tournament:
1. Philadelphia 76ers (7) vs Orlando Magic (8)
2. Charlotte Hornets (9) vs Miami Heat (10)
3. Loser Game 1 vs Winner Game 2
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Victor Wembanyama scored 37 of his 40 points in the first half as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Lakers
Points record fall
More points were scored this season than any other in NBA history, with the previous record of 282,127 points getting passed Sunday evening.
The final total for the season: 284,395 points.
Jokic will be award eligible
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The best of Nikola Jokic’s 2025 season for the Denver Nuggets in the NBA
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 – and therefore got him eligibility on the NBA’s award ballots that will be sent out later this week.
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.
Russell and Bird, a pair of Boston Celtics greats, each were first or second in the balloting in six consecutive seasons.
Stat leaders
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Luka Doncic scores 60 points for the first time as a Los Angeles Lakers player to help secure a 134–126 victory over the Miami Heat, on a night where LeBron James ties the all-time NBA appearance record
The league’s statistical champions have been known for some time, but now they’re officially official.
The Lakers’ Luka Doncic (33.5 points per game) won the scoring title, while Jokic won both the rebounding (12.9 per game) and assist (10.7 per game) titles to complete another season in which he averaged a triple-double.
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