3 Teams & 2 West Playoff Spots

As of Tuesday night there are 3 Western Conference teams vying for the final 2 playoff spots. Dallas, Denver and Golden State are in the thick of the playoff hunt, and all 3 make for dangerous first-round playoff opponents. The records and standings are stacked up as follows:

7) Mavericks 49-29

8) Nuggets 47-31

8) Warriors 47-31

The Mavs currently have the 2 game lead on Denver or Golden State. All 3 teams were in action and picked up wins Tuesday to keep the playoff race competitive.

The Dallas Mavs defeated the Seattle Sonics 99-83 thanks to Jason Terry's 22 and Josh Howard's 17. Lead scorer for the Sonics was Earl Watson with 22. Durant had an impressive jam down the lane and also tossed a great ally-oop to his fellow rookie Jeff Green. Dirk Nowitzki was back from his home country of Germany to participate in the game, helping his team to the win. This marked Dallas' 13th straight victory over Seattle, and also marked Seatlle's 60th loss this season, a franchise record for them.

The Nuggets took out the Clippers to avoid their 3rd straight loss. Carmelo Anthony finished with 36 points and Allen Iverson had 21 to help the Nuggets win over the Clips 117-99.

Golden State was also able to keep pace by handling the Sacramento Kings 140-132. Then again most teams have this season. There was a sick behind the back no-look pass from Monte Ellis to Baron Davis amongst the top highlights in this one. In the Warriors' victory, scored 33 points to lead the way and Stephen Jackson chipped in 20. Andris Biedrins pulled down an impressive 17 rebounds.

All 3 teams have tasted the playoffs as of last season, with the Warriors playing spoiler as they took out the Mavs, shocking the NBA world. The Nuggets seem to have the better chance at landing a playoff spot based on their tie-breaker advantage. Denver heads into enemy territory in Oakland on Thursday which should decide the final playoff spot.