Chapter 1: What are the latest updates on the NBA playoff races?
Good morning and welcome to the NBA Daily presented by Amazon Prime for March 2nd, 2026. I'm Dave DeFore. Here with Zena Keita and S. Baraheni. Coming up, six weeks left in the regular season. We're going to check in on the playoff races in the Western Conference, in the Eastern Conference after a weekend of big games. Good morning, everybody. What's up, guys? I'm happy to be back. Welcome back.
After you just did that intro, I'm happy you're back, too. My God. I struggle doing those things. I agree. Hey, I just got to say, first, off the top, thank you guys for doing such a great job piloting the ship last week. I didn't watch any basketball games. It was great, but I still know what was happening in the league because I listen to the show every morning.
There you go. I had to do it.
It's part of the job. But also, man, you guys were great. It was a lot of fun. Law Murray talking about power rankings. Oh, yeah. Accompanied me on a very nice hike. And I was, like, very intrigued by his entire process. So if you're listening or if you're watching on YouTube, great time to like, subscribe, leave a five-star review because it was on my mind.
I don't think I'm allowed to do it ethically. It's kind of like voting for yourself. It's a little bit lame. So, you know, if a few hundred people were to do that, that'd be fantastic. Yeah. Anyway, guys, my first weekend back and we get marquee matchups all weekend long. I mean, it started Friday where we had shorthanded Cavs. Sure. Got a great game with Cavs and Pistons.
I mean, the Rockets losing to the Heat is going to come up. But I thought that after all these big games and looking ahead at the schedule, we only have six weeks left until we get to the playoffs. It's all about the playoffs right now. So I thought it was a good time to check in on where we're at.
And as we're recording, look, the Oklahoma City Thunder are sitting exactly where they've been in the Western Conference. They're at number one. They've been there all year. And, you know, the Spurs just had this 11 game win streak.
So they were hot on their heels until they ran into the Knicks, which seems like the Knicks are the one team that's giving the Spurs some trouble right now this season, guys. Which is so strange, just considering the matchup and what the Knicks have allowed all season in terms of paint points. And the Spurs are really good at getting into the paint.
Now, do we think that when Minyama could probably do more scoring in the paint? Absolutely. We always believe that. But yeah, it just feels like the Knicks turn up the physicality when they go up against the Spurs. Would you say that is?
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Chapter 2: How does the health of the Nuggets impact their playoff chances?
defense around him. You don't have this like infrastructure to kind of protect and insulate him. And that hurts, especially when you have a team like Minnesota who can run the ball. I mean, Minnesota, I think had 30 fast break points tonight to Denver six. Like it was a game where pace and transition and whoever was leading that and owning that won this game outright.
And Minnesota completely broke the, Ooh, I don't know if I want to say that I was going to say broke their back, but that's what happened. I mean, it felt like it.
And look, transition defense is something the Nuggets have struggled with. I mean, we can, we'll talk about it with that OKC game and fourth quarter execution because defensively they struggle to guard in clutch time too. But I want to bring up a stat when it comes to Aaron Gordon, because I think you guys are right on the money.
So in the 640 minutes that Aaron Gordon has played this season for the Nuggets, the Nuggets are plus 13.8. They have a plus 13.8 net rating. In the 500 minutes he hasn't played, they are minus five. So it's basically the difference. It's a 20 point swing. Right. That's like that's an all star level player. Right.
That's Nikola Jokic on many, many years for the Nuggets was a 20 plus point swing for them. So I just think he's he's massive for this team, as is Peyton Watson. It's their two best wing defenders without those two guys who also provide a level of three point shooting, by the way.
I was going to say, that was their big problem in the game. They were 6-22, and both of those numbers are problems for them. The 6 and the 22. You just can't do that against a team like Minnesota that you know is just going to... I mean, Dante DiVincenzo had a run there where he's just bombing away. Rudy felt comfortable enough to... put up a three. Okay, come on now.
I know it was at the end of the shot clock, but still. Wait, just take it. Just take the shot clock.
Can I ask you guys a question here? So there's been a lot of like Nuggets skepticism recently, and I think that's valid just because they've struggled. But do you guys feel any skepticism heading into the playoffs for them?
Look, I know that this might
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Chapter 3: Can the Knicks continue their success against top teams?
The ability of Alex Caruso to come in and make multiple game winning defensive plays and game winning shots. Like it's just the combination of those two guys at the point of attack is an embarrassment of riches for OKC. That just, it makes them elite, man. And on the other side, like, Denver's defense in the clutch is terrible.
Like they're 29th in defense in clutch situations, 29th in defense and fourth quarter situations. I feel like that's an Aaron Gordon thing, but at the same time, it's something you have to flag moving into April, you know? Yeah.
1000%. All right, guys, stick around after the break, we'll go to the Eastern conference and figure out if the Hornets are going to make the playoffs.
I'm opening up crossplay. I've been playing against Dan, my colleague at the New York Times. I'm going to play stupe, S-T-U-P-E, across the triple word multiplier square.
Kat's played another move. Oh, and she did have an S. She played stupe for 36 points.
I've got a Z, which is 10 points. If I can put my X over there, I can make box.
I have two A's, N's, and T's. I'm guessing tanga is not a word. Let's see.
Tanga is a word. Oh-ho. Don't know what Tenga means, so I'm going to press down on the word and oh, definition popped up. Former monetary unit of Tajikistan. Learn something every time I play this game.
Even though I'm about 50 points ahead, one thing I've learned in cross-play is that the game is never over.
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Chapter 4: What factors contributed to the Timberwolves' recent performance?
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Yeah, I spent a lot of Cavs-Pistons Friday night thinking that the Pistons were about to lose to the Cavs without Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. I was going to say, oh, guys, got to watch out. Maybe the Pistons aren't who we thought they were. Okay. Wow, don't do that. They beat the Cavs. Even though Cade Cunningham fouled out, they beat the Cavs. That was an excellent game on Friday night.
Great games all weekend. It was a lot of fun. Then they beat the Magic pretty handily on Sunday. They're 11-3 in their last 14. We're not going to do this thing where we don't act like the Pistons are the best team in the East. Not even going to do it. I actually think it's boring to even debate that at this point.
It's all what are they going to do when we get to playoffs with the Pistons for me? Right. Yeah. Yeah. OK. The Charlotte Hornets, on the other hand, might be good. They're 30 and 31. They're the 10 seed. And I want to start with them because I think that they've got a shot to make the sixth seed. As we're speaking, Joel Embiid is going to miss a few games with a strained oblique.
So you got to start to worry about the Sixers sitting in that sixth seed. Look, any of the teams that are in the East play-in right now could pop out into the sixth seed. Absolutely. And what I love about the idea of the Charlotte Hornets being, even if they end up in the eighth seed, any of these, you know, the bottom four, they do well. They do better on the road than they do at home.
They have a winning record on the road, which they show up regardless of where they're at. Of course, we know that they have fun at home, but... In the last 20 games, their top five net rating. So we kind of almost have to look at like the first part of the season is like getting acclimated. And now they're rolling. And the teams that are rolling in March. Yeah.
Who is just it's an avalanche going into the playoffs. And that's what I feel like the momentum is definitely on the Hornets side.
It's one of those things, by the way, that they're starting five of Moussa Diabate, Miles Bridges, LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, Conk and Nipple. They're 18 and two when they're fully healthy this season. 18 and two. That's just it's an absurd number to consider. And on top of the fact that they are one of the best offenses in the NBA when those five play together.
So the offense is clicking in an incredible way. They have an identity where it's like, we are going to screen with these guards. They're going to pop out into empty space. They'll make decisions. And from that, we create everything.
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