Every 2021-22 NBA race charted day by day: East, Atlantic, Central, Southeast, West, Northwest, Pacific and Southwest. Final standings, from a season that ran October 19, 2021 to April 10, 2022.
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East standings, 2021-22
Team
W
L
Pct
GB
L10
Streak
Miami Heat (MIA)e
53
29
.646
-
6-4
L1
Boston Celtics (BOS)x
51
31
.622
2
7-3
W1
Milwaukee Bucks (MIL)x
51
31
.622
2
6-4
L1
Philadelphia 76ers (PHI)x
51
31
.622
2
6-4
W2
Toronto Raptors (TOR)x
48
34
.585
5
8-2
L1
Chicago Bulls (CHI)x
46
36
.561
7
4-6
W1
Brooklyn Nets (BKN)x
44
38
.537
9
6-4
W4
Cleveland Cavaliers (CLE)pi
44
38
.537
9
3-7
W1
Atlanta Hawks (ATL)x
43
39
.524
10
7-3
W1
Charlotte Hornets (CHA)pi
43
39
.524
10
6-4
W3
New York Knicks (NYK)
37
45
.451
16
7-3
W2
Washington Wizards (WAS)
35
47
.427
18
5-5
L3
Indiana Pacers (IND)
25
57
.305
28
0-10
L10
Detroit Pistons (DET)
23
59
.280
30
4-6
L3
Orlando Magic (ORL)
22
60
.268
31
3-7
W1
The dashed line on the chart is the pace of eighth place. Since 2020-21 the play-in decides the last two playoff spots.
Clinch key
x
clinched a playoff place
pi
clinched a play-in place
e
clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference
Turning points
The lead changed hands 14 times.
The Miami Heat trailed by as many as 4 games on December 14, 2021.
The Miami Heat took first place for good on March 28, 2022.
The Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls each won 9 games in a row, the longest run of the race.
The Brooklyn Nets led by 3 games as late as December 17, 2021.
The Miami Heat went 15-5 from December 17, 2021 to January 28, 2022, turning a deficit of 4 games into a lead of 1.5 games.
The top two ended the day within one game of each other on 98 of the 165 days played.
Ten teams held or shared first place.
The Miami Heat spent 77 of the season's 174 charted days in first place.