Exciting weekend for the NBA playoff race, and today promises to add to the suspense. This weekend proved to be a roller coaster for the Miami Heat; they defeat the Pacers to win their number one position back on Friday, then lose to the Atlanta Hawks who needed that win to clinch the eighth spot on Saturday. As of today, Indiana is back on top with both teams protesting that having the top seed is not their biggest concern. In more exciting news, the struggling Mavericks edged out the Suns led by the increasingly healthy Nowitzki with some great help from the starting five to clinch their playoff berth.

On the flip side, the Knicks are finally booted out of contention giving Carmelo Anthony his first taste of a playoff-less NBA season. Hopefully, Phil Jackson can use this extra time to put them back on the road to success. As of today— before any Sunday games have been played— here are the Eastern and Western Conference standings courtesy of NBA online:

Eastern Conference:
1.Indiana
2. Miami
3. Chicago
4. Toronto
5. Brooklyn
6. Washington
7. Charlotte
8. Atlanta

Western Conference:
1. San Antonio
2. Oklahoma City
3. L.A. Clippers
4. Houston
5. Portland
6. Golden State
7. Dallas
8. Memphis

The games today (Eastern Times):

Thunder- Pacers: 1:00 PM
Raptors- Pistons: 3:30 PM
Magic- Nets: 6:00 PM
Bulls- Knicks: 7:30 PM
Timberwolves- Kings: 9:00 PM
Warriors- Trail Blazers: 9:00 PM
Grizzlies- Lakers: 9:30 PM

Image via Wikimedia Commons