Following an impressive surge following the trade deadline, the Golden State Warriors find themselves in the thick of the Western Conference standings. With just four games to go on the schedule, they are in a four-way tie for seeds five through eight.
This is a tricky situation, as all these teams want to finish in the top six. Falling into the last two spots would mean playing an extra game (or two) in the play-in tournament.
Currently sitting in the sixth seed, the Golden State Warriors are in a good position. However, they’ll have to finish the year strong if they want to avoid the play-in tournament. As things slowly come to a close, here is a breakdown of how they can maintain their positioning.
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Heading into their last four games, the Warriors still could climb in the standings. If they win out and the Denver Nuggets lose one game, Golden State could finish fourth. Due to tiebreaker rules, if the Warriors simply are victorious the rest of the way, they’re guaranteed to finish fifth.
As for holding on to the sixth seed, there are endless scenarios. Golden State could lose their upcoming matchup with the LA Clippers and still avoid the play-in. However, the Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves would each need to lose one game as well.
In the event they lose one of their games outside of the Clippers’ matchup, Golden State will need some more help. They’d need the Grizzlies to take down the Timberwolves, and then the Nuggets would have to beat the Grizzlies. If the Clippers beat the Warriors and then lose a different game down the stretch, these outcomes would also benefit Steph Curry and company.
The final scenario for the Golden State Warriors to hold on to sixth place is them losing to the Clippers and then LA losing a later game. After that, the Timberwolves would need to lose a game but still beat the Grizzlies coming up, and the Grizzlies will have to win their final game against the Nuggets.
Looking at the Golden State Warriors’ remaining schedule in the 2024-25 regular season
Diving into their last four games of the season, the Golden State Warriors are in a good position to dodge the play-in tournament. All of them are winnable games for Steph Curry and company, though some will still be competitive.
Kicking off the final stretch is a matchup with the Phoenix Suns on the road Tuesday. They still have something to play for at this point, but are two-and-a-half games out of 10th place in the West. Nonetheless, the Suns might still try to play spoiler from the Warriors.
After that, Golden State will take on the San Antonio Spurs and Portland Trail Blazers. Seeing that these teams are competing for much right now, the Warriors should be able to seemingly take care of business.
Last but not least, the Golden State Warriors will have their regular season finale on April 13th against the LA Clippers. The last game of the year typically doesn’t mean much, but that might not be the case here. Depending on how things unfold, both teams could have a lot to gain from securing a win in this matchup.
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Edited by Kevin McCormick
