We don’t blame you if you haven’t been paying attention to the bottom of the Eastern Conference playoff race.
The West obviously has been far more interesting. While Golden State looks secure in the top spot, the next six teams are all playing better than .600 basketball and separated by just seven losses. And Oklahoma City, New Orleans and Phoenix – all vying for the eighth and final spot – are within two games of each other.
The East? Well, the top six teams seem headed for the postseason, even with the recent stumbles by Toronto, Washington and Milwaukee. Then there is a precipitous drop to the next six, none of whom have more than 25 wins but all of whom are within 2 1/2 games of each other as they battle for the last two postseason spots.
No one would ever confuse the East playoff race for the Daytona 500. But with number of entrants, their repeated fits and starts, and the nightly position jockeying, it actually is a pretty interesting race, if turtle races are your sort of thing.
“One day we’re tied for eighth, then we’re back in ninth,” Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. “So we can’t look ahead. We have to take it game by game.”
The Pacers appear to have the inside track and could do the most damage in a first-round matchup with either Cleveland or Atlanta, who figure to snare the top two seeds. But not even the Pistons, who have been at least nine games under .500 since Thanksgiving, are out of the picture.
Gentlemen, start your turtles.
HEAT (25-33): They appear to have a favorable schedule with 14 of their remaining 24 games at home – until you realize that they are 10-17 on their own floor, the worst percentage among the six teams. Half of their remaining games are against teams above .500 – including two with Cleveland – and seven are against the West. Did we mention that the Heat also are without All-Star Chris 
Bosh for the rest of the season?
Goran Dragic is helping, but what would really help is getting Luol Deng more involved in the offense. Miami is 9-1 when Deng scores at least 20 points. If the Heat can hang on until the last week, they get a soft finish with a four-game homestand before the season finale at Philadelphia. But even if they do, they are just 1-4 combined vs. Atlanta and Cleveland.
PACERS (25-34): They were dead in the water at the end of January but are 8-2 since – primarily due to the return of George Hill – and trending better than any of the other playoff hopefuls. Indiana also has arguably the best remaining schedule, with 13 home games, just 10 vs. teams above .500 and four against the West, three less than any other team. Their odds of winning the East have dropped all the way to 50-1, though you might find a better price if you find the best sportsbook.
The Pacers still defend, have found some offense and also have the tantalizing possibility of the return of Paul George, who could make them a tough first-round foe. They are 2-4 vs. Atlanta and Cleveland, teams with whom they are very familiar. But they have a dicey finish with home games vs. Oklahoma City and Washington before visiting Memphis, and all three of those teams may need wins themselves.
NETS (24-33): They are finally back in Brooklyn after a stretch of 23 days and eight games on the road. So of course, their reward 
is a matchup with Golden State, the league’s top team. But that begins a stretch run in which the Nets play 16 of their final 25 at home and four against the league’s five worst teams, the best numbers of any of the playoff hopefuls. They also have the most talent of the six, which only makes them underachievers unless things start clicking.
The addition of Thaddeus Young and the infusion of athletic rookies Markel Brown and Cory Jefferson certainly has helped. But before you start planning any postseason parties, however, keep in mind that Brooklyn is just 10-15 at home, with Cleveland, Portland, Atlanta and Chicago still coming to Barclays Center. “We haven’t been a very good home team and we need to go home and establish and excite the Brooklyn fans,” coach Lionel Hollins said.
More than half of Brooklyn’s remaining games are against teams above .500 and seven are against the West. And April features seven straight games against playoff teams before the season finale vs. Orlando. The Nets are 0-4 vs. Cleveland and Atlanta.
HORNETS (24-33): Another team left for dead after a loss to Cleveland on Jan. 2 dropped them to 10-24. But the Hornets are 14-9 since and have done it mostly without point guard Kemba Walker, who will miss two more weeks. They continue to defend, and the acquisition of Mo Williams (23.4 ppg, 7.0 apg in five games) has been a godsend for a predictable, moribund offense.
But the schedule isn’t great, with 13 of the remaining 25 on the road and seven against the West, including a five-game trip in mid-March that ends in Chicago. The Hornets have 11 games left against teams above .500, including hosting Houston and visiting Toronto to end the season. And they are 1-4 vs. Cleveland and Atlanta, with the win coming early before the Hawks got rolling.
CELTICS (23-34): Giving away 26-point leads at home doesn’t help, even if it is to Golden State. Boston has 14 of its last 25 games on the road, where its 9-18 mark is the worst among the six challengers. The Celtics have seven games vs. the West, 12 vs. teams above .500 and are the only team in this group that still has three meetings with Cleveland, including two at The Q.
If the Celtics are going to make the postseason, they will have to navigate a tough finish of a home-and-home vs. Cleveland, a home game vs. Toronto and a visit to Milwaukee. They will have to do it without Jared Sullinger but may get Kelly Olynyk back this week. Everyone’s excited about Isaiah Thomas, but he doesn’t even start and gets a lot of his stuff snuffed at the rim. They are 1-3 vs. Cleveland and Atlanta, with a nice comeback win over the Hawks before the All-Star break.
If you get the sense that the folks upstairs would be OK with missing the playoffs, you may be right. If the Celtics qualify, none of their multiple first-round picks will be in the lottery.
PISTONS (23-36): They are 18-13 since dumping Josh Smith but just 6-9 since losing Brandon Jennings. Landing Reggie Jackson at the deadline was nice, but it would help if he could make a shot (.333 FGs). Detroit has just nine home games remaining
– the fewest of any team in the league – but maybe that’s a good thing; the Pistons are 12-20 at The Palace, with losses to the Knicks, Sixers, Wolves, Lakers and Magic, the league’s five worst teams.
There are just 10 games left against teams above .500, but there also are seven vs. the West. Six of those come in the next two weeks, and all of them are on the road. On the Ides of March, we will know whether the Pistons can make a run or be totally done. They are 1-5 vs. Cleveland and Atlanta.
TRIVIA: This week, LeBron James became the all-time leader in assists among forwards. Who is the all-time leader in assists among centers? Answer below.
THE END OF CIVILIZATION AS WE KNOW IT: An NBA player not currently on the Philadelphia 76ers took this shot.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul, after losing possession to Mike Conley in the final seconds of a home loss to Memphis on Monday, then watching it repeatedly on a tablet:
“All I could think about was if I was watching at home, this dummy didn’t even get a shot up.”
TANKS A LOT!: Just when the Lakers appeared secure in their quest to finish with one of the five worst records and keep their draft pick, they rattled off three straight wins, a streak that coincided with the return of Minus Man Carlos Boozer to the starting lineup. They now have the same number of losses as fifth-worst Orlando, with reeling Denver closing fast. Guard Wayne Ellington said, “We’re not coming here to lose any games. We’re out here fighting.” That’s the wrong strategy.
LINE OF THE WEEK: LeBron James, Cleveland vs. Golden State, Feb. 26: 36 minutes, 15-25 FGs, 4-9 3-pointers, 8-11 FTs, 11 rebounds, five assists, one block, three steals, six turnovers, 42 points in a 110-99 win. In a possible Finals preview and an MVP showdown with Stephen Curry, James had a season high in points and led all players in rebounds.
LINE OF THE WEAK: Tony Parker, San Antonio at Portland, Feb. 25: 27 minutes, 1-8 FGs, 0-0 3-pointers, 0-0 FTs, two rebounds, four assists, zero blocks, one steal, four fouls, four turnovers, two points in a 111-95 loss. This was the last of a brutal three-game stretch that saw the former Finals MVP manage nine points on 3-of-21 shooting with 14 assists and 10 turnovers in 69 minutes.
TRILLION WATCH: Friday was filled with close calls, the best of which was Timberwolves guard Glenn Robinson III receiving two free throws to kill a 9 trillion, which would have tied Xavier Henry for the top disappearing act of the season. On that same night, Jazz guard Grant Jerrett (at Denver) and Bulls rookie Doug McDermott (vs. Minnesota) had 3 trillions to gain a share of top weekly honors with Bucks rookie Johnny O’Bryant (Monday at Chicago), Mavs forward Charlie Villanueva (Tuesday vs. Toronto) and Spurs forward Matt Bonner (Wednesday at Portland).
GAME OF THE WEEK: Cleveland at Atlanta, March 6. The Cavaliers aren’t catching the Hawks for the top seed in the East. But they can send a message with a road win in the last meeting of the season between the teams. Neither team plays the previous night, so it should be a good one.
GAME OF THE WEAK: Denver at Minnesota, March 4. The Nuggets have lost six in a row and 19 of 21. The Timberwolves have 
the worst record in the West. Thankfully, this is the last meeting between the teams this season.
TWO MINUTES: The good news is Hawks forward Kyle Korver’s latest 3-point streak is up to 46 games, the second-longest of his career to his NBA record 127-game run. The bad news is Korver has been in a shooting slump since the All-Star break and has dipped below the historic 50-50-90 thresholds. Korver is shooting .494 overall, exactly .500 from the arc and .907 from the line. … In 14 minutes over four games since joining the Cavaliers, Kendrick Perkins has two points, five rebounds, eight fouls, three turnovers and a DNP. Yeah, that was a big signing. … Whenever folks talk about awful free-throw shooting, the conversation usually starts with Dwight Howard (.527) and DeAndre Jordan (.409) and moves onto Andre Drummond (.394) and Josh Smith (.459). But Pacers center Ian Mahinmi is worse than all of them. Mahinmi is 21-of-64 from the line this season after Friday’s 1-of-9 nightmare vs. Cleveland. … Speaking of Jordan, in his last eight games – all without injured All-Star Blake Griffin alongside him – the Clippers center is averaging 17.0 points, 20.5 rebounds and 2.13 blocks. He is shooting almost 69 percent from the field – which actually has dropped his season mark to a still-spiffy 72 percent – and averaging 13.3 free throws per game. Jordan has caught a couple of breaks by facing Dallas when Tyson Chandler got hurt in the first minute and Houston twice without Dwight Howard. But he also has faced Tim Duncan, DeMarcus Cousins, Marc Gasol, Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol. And the Clippers are 6-2 in that stretch. … Dallas had been 13-0 on the road vs. the East until Wednesday’s loss at Atlanta. The Mavs are just 7-6 at home vs. East teams. … San Antonio went 4-5 on its annual “Rodeo Road Trip,” the first time the Spurs have been below .500 on the trek since it began in 
2003. They were a collective 71-29 on previous trips before this season. “It’s very frustrating,” Tim Duncan said. “We’re not used to losing like this — games that we could’ve and should’ve probably won. So that in itself is bothersome, but nothing we can do about it.” San Antonio’s next six games are at home. … On Jan. 9, Wizards forward Rasual Butler made 3-of-5 3-pointers in a win over Chicago to boost his season totals to 56-of-113, just a make under 50 percent. Since then, Butler is just 18-of-76 from the arc, or below 24 percent. … Friday’s Magic-Hawks coaching matchup was the first between former longtime Spurs assistants James Borrego, who has replaced the fired Jacque Vaughn, and Mike Budenholzer. Both men started in the video department on San Antonio’s staff. “I may have spent more time with him than anybody in the NBA,” Budenholzer said. “Definitely more time locked in a room than anybody in the NBA.” … Think the Blazers needed Arron Afflalo? When the former Nuggets guard went for 18 points in Friday’s win over Oklahoma City, it marked the most points by any Portland reserve in any game this season. … Suns forward Markieff Morris has (a) established himself as a true pain in the neck for referees with 12 technicals and two flagrant fouls, both among the league leaders; (b) engaged in a shouting match with coach Jeff Hornacek on the sideline; and (c) gone after the fans in Phoenix. After Saturday’s awful home loss to San Antonio in which the Suns shot 8-of-43 for a franchise-record low 24 points in the first half, Morris said, “They don’t boo but they don’t cheer much, either. I know we’re a lot better than that. I know Phoenix fans are a lot better than that. We have a lot of genuine fans that cheer for us, the ones that’s in the first row, the second row, the third row. But once you go up you feel like people are just at the game watching. I just think we expect more from the fans. That’s basically what I’m getting to. We expect more. We expect this to be a home-court advantage every time we step on the court no matter if we’re playing Orlando or we’re playing Cleveland.” If you recall, Morris was one of the players Suns GM Ryan McDonough was touting after the trade of Goran Dragic. … Timberwolves rookie Zach LaVine was born March 10, 1995, or just 110 days before current teammate Kevin Garnett was drafted. … The Nuggets haven’t won at home since Jan. 14, dropping 10 in a row. That’s their longest home slide since dropping 11 straight during the 1997-98 season, when they became one of five teams to reach 70 losses with an 11-71 mark. “We are about to lose our sanity,” guard Ty Lawson said. “These are most games I’ve lost in my whole career.”
Trivia Answer: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 5,660. … Happy 27th Birthday, Dexter Pittman. … Richard Hamilton was the only one who didn’t know he already was retired.
Chris Bernucca is the managing editor of SheridanHoops.com. His columns appear Monday during the season. You can follow him on Twitter.