Inside the numbers: Some notes going into NBA playoffs

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) gets fouled by Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 14, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) 2026-04-18T10:00:08Z A winning season usually gets you to the NBA Playoffs. Not this year. There were a record-tying three teams — Charlotte at 44-38, Miami at 43-39 and the Los Angeles Clippers at 42-40 — that finished over .500 this season but failed to qualify for the playoffs. The only other years when that happened were 1971 and 2022. In NBA history, teams with records over the .500 mark have gone to the playoffs just over 95% of the time. For teams going at least 43-39 (or the equivalent in shorter seasons), that in-the-playoffs rate was 97.3%, until this season. Miami now has finished over .500 in 25 of its 38 seasons. Of the first 24 Heat teams with winning records, 100% wound up going to the playoffs. “My first year as a head coach, we won 43 games and we were the fifth seed,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We were the 10th seed this year with 43.” If playoff teams only counted ... If the playoff teams were their own 16-team league, counting only their games against one another in the standings, the top overall seed in these playoffs would be Detroit. The Pistons went 30-12 against the other playoff clubs, just ahead of Oklahoma City (31-14) and San Antonio (29-14). The Thunder had the biggest point differential in games against other playoff teams (8.4 per game), while the Thunder and the Spurs both had the most double-digit wins (18 apiece). The money matters The playoff pool for this season is the most in NBA history, with $35,740,226 to be divided up between the 16 teams. As the team with the NBA’s best record, the Oklahoma City Thunder are already assured $2,161,408 from that pool. If the Thunder win the NBA title, they will claim more than one-third of the pool — $12,805,503. Teams get shares for finishing with a top-six record in their conference, plus for making the playoffs and the size of the shares increase for advancing to later rounds. There’s about a $5 million difference between winning and losing the NBA Finals. (