We are at the one-month-to-go mark, and almost each team has played 50 games. Let’s take a look at the updated Western Conference standings and see which teams are on the move, either up or down in seeding and where they go from here.

About a month ago, I brought you an NBA All Star Break standings article, which focused on the Western Conference. I looked at the current standings and where I thought the final eight teams for the playoffs would shape out toward the end of the season. 

Western Conference 

  1. Oklahoma City Thunder (39-12 SU, 29-22 ATS) 4/1 

Still the number one seed in the West and looking stronger as the season progresses, the Thunder are the undisputed best of the West. They proved it again when they took care of the Los Angeles Lakers for the second time this season; this time in LA. 

The combination of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are dare I say looking more and more like Jordan and Pippen as the season progresses. Every night teams struggle to stop one or both of them and it leaves wide-open shooters on the perimeter. They also have had good value winning ATS at the tune of 57%. However, seeing as they are now almost certainly one of the best teams in the league, the sportsbooks might overvalue them to end the season. Watch out for them being large road favorites, because NBA bettors might find value in fading them on the road.   

  1. San Antonio Spurs (35-14 SU, 30-18) 15/1 

I mentioned in my article a month ago that the Spurs were, and are still the most underrated team in the league. They were winning ATS 60% of the time at the break, and with a month to go, they are winning 62.5% of their games ATS. The idea that they are done is far from the truth. San Antonio is healthy, and will be hunting for Oklahoma City’s top seed. They ruined having the #1 seed last season, as they lost to the Grizzlies. 

This season however, I see them staying put here in the two seed. They have a five game lead over the Lakers as of today, and are still three games back of the Thunder for the number one. Either way, their first round matchup will most likely be a cakewalk. They are still title contenders. 

  1. Los Angeles Lakers (31-20 SU, 21-29-1 ATS) 6/1 

The Lakers have moved themselves back into the title conversation, but catching the Spurs or the Thunder with only 15 games remaining in the season is next to impossible. The Lakers are five games back of the Spurs for the 2 seed, and eight games back of the first place Thunder. This is huge for this team, because we have all seen how bad they can play on the road. 

The Lakers will enjoy home court in the first round, but I don’t see them being able to dominate many people from this seed. Much like the East, the West is shaping up for teams to try and avoid playing the number one or two seeds in the first round. I see the Lakers staying put in this spot, but they will have a tough match up against either then Grizzlies or Mavs in the first round, and could be in danger of losing in the first round. 

  1. Los Angeles Clippers (29-21 SU, 25-24-1 ATS) 25/1 

Down one spot from a month ago, the Clippers have struggled and gone 9-10 in the last month. The Clippers also have nine of their last sixteen games on the road. They also have two games against the Thunder, along with one more meeting with both the Mavericks and Lakers. I mentioned that they have been overvalued throughout the season. This might change slightly to close out the season, but don’t expect them to all of a sudden start cashing ATS in large streaks. 

I don’t see the Clippers staying in the top four. They are a great turnaround story in the NBA, but I don’t see them getting higher then the five seed. They only hold a one game lead over the 5th and 6th seeds, Dallas and Memphis, and I see both of them taking over the Clippers’ spot. 

5. Memphis Grizzlies (27-21 SU, 22-26 ATS) 30/1 

The Grizzlies are back to full strength, and are set to make a nice run up the standings. They don’t have much of an ATS record, but they have found ways to win without their second best player. Now that Zach Randolph is back, things will go nothing but better. Eight of Memphis’ last twelve games will be played on Beale Street, and only three of those eight are against playoff teams.

They aren’t going to bring you a wealth of ATS covers to end the season but they will be good on some upset moneylines, like they were against the Lakers this past Sunday. I don’t think there is any chance the Grizzlies fall lower the sixth, and I could see them jumping up a spot before the end of April.

  1. Dallas Mavericks (29-23 SU, 25-26-1 ATS) 20/1 

The Mavs are one of those teams that you don’t know which side of them you’re going to get on any given night. One night they could look like the defending champs, the next game, they could look like they are nothing more then an average team. However, even if they are coasting through this season in hopes of persuading Deron Williams there, they are still dangerous and could win a first round series. 

If you remember last season, they playing the Blazers in the first round, and a lot of NBA writers (including myself) picked the Blazers to upset them in the first round. I’m not saying that they will win the NBA championship again, but they could have a shot of upsetting someone if they play to their potential. 

7 & 8.  Utah Jazz (27-24 SU, 27-24 ATS) 60/1, Houston Rockets (27-24 SU, 25-26 ATS) 100/1, Denver Nuggets (27-24 SU, 26-25 ATS) 50/1 

All three of these teams have identical record as of the end of March, and one or more of them could be on the outside looking in when the regular season is over. Once the Nuggets get healthy, I cannot see any reason to keep them out of the playoffs. They are one of the best scoring teams in the NBA, and when they get their best player Danilo Gallanari back, they will surely secure a playoff spot. 

Between the other two, they both have had separate problems, both winning and covering the spread. The Rockets’ two best players have serious injuries and the Jazz are extremely inconsistent. There is also a chance that neither of them make the playoffs, which I go into below. 

In the hunt 

Phoenix Suns (25-26 SU, 26-25 ATS) 100/1 

Even bigger news then the Suns’ good second half of the season may be the news that broke just yesterday. Steve Nash mentioned that he would be open to the idea of taking a huge pay cut to sign with the Miami Heat next season. Other than that the Suns have been making a good run. 

They currently sit two games out of the playoff race right now, but they have the talent and the leadership of the league’s best veteran. I could see them overtaking either Houston or Utah for the final spot to end the season. They also might be a good source of value to end the season. They have been playing great basketball since the All Star Break, and have been getting great production from unlikely sources, such as Michael Redd, Channing Frye and Jared Dudley.