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Five teams continue to jockey for the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. The Atlanta Hawks snapped Brooklyn's six-game winning streak on Saturday and bunched up the standings again where all five teams are separated by just two games in the standings. The Celtics pulled off a wild comeback win in Toronto while Miami saw a big lead slip away late against the Detroit Pistons.
Entering play on Sunday, the Nets are holding onto the seventh spot by a half game over the Celtics. The Heat find themselves on the outside looking in. Here is a look at the up to the minute standings along with the remaining schedules for each team.
| Team | W-L | GB | Remaining Schedule |
| 7. Brooklyn Nets | 35-41 | 22.0 | Por, Atl, Was, @Mil, Chi, Orl |
| 8. Boston Celtics | 35-42 | 22.5 | @Det, @Cle, Cle, Tor, @Mil |
| Miami Heat | 34-42 | 23.0 | @Ind, Cha, Chi, Tor, Orl, @Phi |
| Indiana Pacers | 33-43 | 24.0 | Mia, @NY, @Det, OKC, Was, @Mem |
| Charlotte Hornets | 33-43 | 24.0 | @Mia, Tor, @Atl, @Det, Hou, @Tor |
A week or so ago, the Indiana Pacers looked like they might charge all the way to the sixth seed. A recent slump has them 1.5 games out of the final playoff spot but they will get a boost on Sunday with the return of Paul George to the lineup.
This race may very well go down to the final days of the regular season and it still looks too close to call at this point.