The Western Conference playoff field will be determined on the final day of the season with both the Houston Rockets and Utah Jazz aiming to claim the eighth seed.
The prize: facing the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 2016 NBA Playoffs.
Although both teams are currently 40-41, the Rockets control their own destiny based on their conference record, as described by Calvin Watkins of ESPN.
If the Rockets win Wednesday against Sacramento, they will clinch a playoff berth, regardless of what the Jazz do against the Los Angeles Lakers. Houston owns the tiebreaker over Utah.
The Rockets know all they have to do is win. That's it. That sounds easy enough, but sometimes -- as evidenced by losses to Dallas and Phoenix last week -- Houston makes it hard.
Nevertheless, Jazz fans are already mourning the loss of their season, as described in this faux obituary by Clark Schmutz of Salt City Hoops.
The season was also plagued by countless injuries and inexcusable losses that couldn't be overcome. This Jazz season is survived by the Houston Rockets and one of the least inspiring seasons ever by a talented NBA team, and a Portland Trailblazers team that is short on talent, but was built in a more impressive manner than the Jazz were. Funeral services will be held at the Staples Center Wednesday night at 7:30 PM Pacific Coast Time. Cost of attendance will be about $4,000.
Yikes — seriously, you can just feel the frustration though the screen in that piece.
But reality is that the Jazz do still have a shot at this: they need help but any self-respecting playoff team should expect to beat the last place L.A. Lakers anywhere; the Rockets somehow recovered from challenging odds, but this has been "one of the least inspiring seasons ever" because Houston consistently "makes it hard" this season.
As Jeff Cheal wrote about 10 days ago, "Houston doesn't deserve to be in the conversation...but they still could find a way to sneak in."
And now here we are, living in something of a nightmare scenario for the Jazz.
Utah’s nightmare scenario: Dallas wins tomorrow, Houston wins out otherwise, Jazz lose to Clippers. Jazz lose on tiebreaker.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) April 6, 2016
Although the Rockets are clearly a team talented enough on paper to beat just about anyone (except the Warriors), they've split their last six games; a win in their final game would be their fourth in six tries, which is about as hot as they've been all season. Yet despite the justifiable disappointment from Jazz fans, they've actually finished the season stronger: a win tomorrow night would be their 12th in 17 games, which included the Warriors, Oklahoma City Thunder, and San Antonio Spurs. in short, the Rockets probably have the higher ceiling this season on any given night — especially if they're motivated — but the Jazz have arguably been playing more consistent basketball down the stretch (despite the observations of their fans).
So that leaves Warriors fans with a question: which team would you prefer to see in the first round?
We have officially narrowed the field to just two and there's a poll below. Vote and drop your more specific thoughts on the situation in the comments below.