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Who makes the play-offs?

Of the 30 NBA teams, 16 will go into the play-offs.

The top six teams in both the Eastern Conference and Western Conference, ranked by winning percentage, directly advance to the playoffs.

Teams ranked seventh through tenth compete in the NBA play-in tournament for the seventh and eighth seeds.

There are 82 regular-season games, and teams have between 26 and 29 matches left, so there is plenty to play for.

One side who can be certain of their spot in the play-offs are the Boston Celtics, who have won 41 of their 55 matches so far.

Since the play-in tournament was introduced for the 2020-21 campaign, a regular season of 40 or more wins has guaranteed making the post-season.

Who will win MVP?

The 76ers centre Joel Embiid will not be retaining his crown as the league's Most Valuable Player because of injury, which also saw him miss the All-Star Game.

Embiid had starred this season for the 76ers, but he will fall short of the minimum of 65 regular season matches played in order to be in the running for the award.

The Denver Nuggets' centre Nikola Jokic currently ranks as one of the big favourites, having won the award in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. Statistically, he has been the most efficient player in the NBA this season.

The Oklohoma City Thunder's guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is also in the running, leading the league in steals per game.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks' power forward who is also a two-time MVP winner, is a big contender, as is the Dallas Mavericks' point guard Luka Doncic who leads the league for points per game.

The Sacramento Kings' Domantas Sabonis leads in rebounds per game, double-doubles and triple-doubles, while the Milwaukee Bucks' point guard Damian Lillard is also in the frame.