Western Conference (NBA)

The Western Conference of the National Basketball Association is made up of fifteen teams, and organized in three divisions of five teams each.

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The three division winners are seeded 1, 2 and 3 for the playoffs in order of their record, with all non-division winners seeded 4 through 8. This leaves open the possibility that a #4 seed could have a better record than a #3 seed. On the other hand, home-court advantage in a playoff series is decided by record, not by seeding, so if a #3 and #4 team met in a playoff series in which the #4 team had the better record, the #4 team would have home-court advantage.

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The Western Conference playoffs is divided into three rounds, with the winner facing the Eastern Conference champion in the NBA Finals to determine the champion. All playoff series are best-of-seven.

Related Topics:
Eastern Conference - NBA Finals - Best-of-seven

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The current divisional alignment was adopted at the start of the 2004-05 season, when the Charlotte Bobcats began play as the NBA's 30th franchise. This necessitated the move of the New Orleans Hornets from the Eastern Conference's Central Division to the newly-created Southwest Division of the Western Conference.

Related Topics:
05 - Charlotte Bobcats - New Orleans Hornets

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The Western Conference teams are organized as follows:

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Northwest Division

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Denver Nuggets

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Minnesota Timberwolves

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Portland Trail Blazers

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Seattle SuperSonics

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Utah Jazz

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Southwest Division

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Dallas Mavericks

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Houston Rockets

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Memphis Grizzlies

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New Orleans Hornets

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San Antonio Spurs

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Pacific Division

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Golden State Warriors

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Los Angeles Clippers

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Los Angeles Lakers

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Phoenix Suns

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Sacramento Kings

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