NBA playoff picture, standings, potential matchups, schedule, magic numbers: 76ers jump Cavs for No. 3 as East takes shape

The Philadelphia 76ers jumped into the No. 3 seed after pulling off perhaps the win of the year over LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Friday night, and the Eastern Conference playoff picture is beginning to take shape with just five days left in the regular season. With the eight teams locked but seeds still being sorted out, here is the skinny on the East with everything from magic numbers to locked-in spots and potential matchups entering Saturday, April 7.

NOTE: Our SportsLine model, developed by predictive data engineer Stephen Oh, simulates the entire season 10,000 times to produce the most unbiased and precise projections imaginable.

Already Clinched

Toronto Raptors (No. 1 seed)

The Raptors have secured the No. 1 seed in the East with a three-game lead over the Celtics with there to play. Should the two teams end the season with the same record, Toronto holds the tiebreaker via conference record. As of Saturday, the Raptors would face the No. 8 Wizards in the first round. That's a tough draw that early in the postseason with John Wall back healthy.

Boston Celtics (No. 2 seed)

Boston had its show at the No. 1 seed but lost to Toronto on Wednesday. The Celtics are locked into the No. 2 seed, but any optimism going into the playoffs has been seriously dampened with the news that Kyrie Irving will not be coming back this season. Entering Saturday, the Celtics would face the No. 7 Bucks in the first round. Boston and Milwaukee split their season series 2-2.

Fighting for No. 3 seed

Philadelphia 76ers (No. 3 seed)

After knocking off the Cavs on Friday night in maybe the biggest win of the season so far, the Sixers have moved into the No. 3 spot out East, and according to SportsLine, they have an 89 percent chance of staying there. Should seeds hold, the Sixers would face No. 6 Miami in the first round. Philly has clinched no worse than the No. 4 seed.

Magic number to clinch No. 3 seed: Three
Remaining games: vs. Dallas, at Atlanta, vs. Milwaukee

Cleveland Cavaliers (No. 4 seed)

Cleveland still has a shot at the No. 3 seed, but at just 11 percent, according to SportsLine. With two games out (both against the Knicks), the Cavs need to win out and hope the Sixers lose one of their final three. If that happens, they would both end with a 51-31 record and Cleveland would claim the No. 3 seed on a tiebreaker via conference record. Meanwhile, one Cavs win, or one Pacers loss, would seal at least the No. 4 seed for Cleveland, so that race isn't quite over yet, either.

Playoff status: One back in loss column of No. 3 Sixers, two up on No. 5 Pacers
Magic number to clinch No. 4 seed: One
Remaining games: at Knicks, vs. Knicks
SportsLine Projection: 97.6 percent to earn top-four seed

Clinging to home-court hope

Indiana Pacers (No. 5 seed)

The Pacers have clinched no worse than the No. 5 seed. Their path to the No. 4 seed is simple: They win their final two games, and Cavs lose their final two. In that case, Indiana would win the higher seed via a 3-1 head-to-head record vs. Cleveland. Don't bet on the Cavs losing back-to-back games to the Knicks to close the season, but it's possible.

Remaining games: at Charlotte, vs. Charlotte
SportsLine projection: 2.9 percent to get top-four seed

Rounding out spots 6-8

Miami Heat (No. 6 seed)

Miami (43-37) is a half-game up on No. 7 Milwaukee (42-37), and holds the tiebreaker just in case they finish the season with same record. The Heat have a tough one Monday night vs. the Thunder, who are in their own playoff battle, then get Toronto, who will probably be resting its main players, to close the season.

Magic number to clinch No. 6: Two
Remaining games: vs OKC, vs. Toronto
SportsLine: Projected No. 6 seed

Milwaukee Bucks (No. 7 seed)

Milwaukee has one more game remaining than the Heat, and that game to close out the season against the Sixers is interesting. If the Bucks beat Philly, it could be to push them into the No. 6 seed (should Miami lose one of its last two). And in that case, if seeds hold, that would be a first-road preview with Philly and Milwaukee facing off in the 3-6 matchup. You could argue the Bucks would secretly rather stay in the No. 7 seed to face No. 2 Boston with Kyrie Irving being out.

Remaining games: at Knicks, vs. Orlando, at Philadelphia
SportsLine: Projected No. 7 seed

Washington Wizards (No. 8 seed)

Four straight losses have dropped the Wizards to the No. 8 seed, but with two winnable games to close out the season, as high as No. 6 is still in play with some help. If current seeds hold, Washington will play No. 1 Toronto in the first round.