Somehow, some way, even though it feels like just yesterday that James Harden was alleging Daryl Morey doesn't wear flame-retardant pants, the 2023-24 NBA regular season ends in just a couple of weeks.

Time sure flies when you're tracking 30 teams' worth of basketball, huh?

But while the calendar is about to give way to the play-in tournament and conference playoffs and NBA Finals, it isn't there yet.

Plenty is left to figure out, follow, contemplate and lose sleep over. From postseason seeds and ascending threats to critical injuries and returns to shifting trends and impassioned end-of-year awards debates, we're in for a truly wild, high-stakes finish.

Which storylines and developments and questions will define the chaos we're about to see in advance of the regular season closing up shop on April 12?

Why, I'm so very glad (to assume) you asked.

Injury Impact on Playoff Race, Postseason

Can the NBA please turn off injuries? I'm asking for...*gestures wildly toward basically every single postseason hopeful*

It feels like injuries that will end up mattering are crescendoing to an all-time high. Monitoring the sheer breadth of them is liable to overwhelm.

Donovan Mitchell just underwent a nasal procedure and has been dealing with...something at various points this year. Evan Mobley (ankle) only just exited a walking boot. Tyrese Haliburton is playing, but his true shooting percentage has dipped by more than eight points and he just doesn't look the same since returning from his hamstring injury. Bennedict Mathurin's season-ending shoulder surgery also looms large for an Indiana Pacers squad that shipped out Buddy Hield at the trade deadline.

People will dismiss Russell Westbrook's fractured left hand. But it's become clear the Los Angeles Clippers miss his bursts of physicality, rebounding and rim pressure. The Miami Heat always seem decimated. Tyler Herro (foot) and Kevin Love (heel) haven't played in roughly forever, and Jimmy Butler is usually dealing with...something.

Khris Middleton is back for the Milwaukee Bucks following yet another lower body injury (left ankle this time). Will it stay that way? Karl-Anthony Towns underwent surgery on Mar. 12 to repair a torn left meniscus. His timeline for re-evaluation is basically the final day of the regular season. Can he return to the Minnesota Timberwolves rotation for the first round? What will he look like if he does?

Brandon Ingram, as I'm writing this, just suffered a left knee injury in the New Orleans Pelicans' Mar. 21 loss to the Washington Wizards that'll sideline him at least a couple of weeks. Bleck. Mitchell Robinson seems to be nearing a return for the New York Knicks, but Julius Randle (shoulder) remains out and OG Anunoby is still working through an elbow injury.

Joel Embiid (left meniscus) is reportedly a couple of weeks away from his own return. Will he be in the necessary shape and, you know, Joel Embiid-y enough to render the Philadelphia 76ers a genuine threat in the East? And will the team ever have a timeline for De'Anthony Melton's recovery from back issues that have sidelined him since the end of February?

Bradley Beal is currently available for the Phoenix Suns. He's also been in and out of the lineup all year. The Los Angeles Lakers might get Jarred Vanderbilt (foot) and Gave Vincent (knee) back in time for the play-in tourney. Or they might not. Is either a real difference-maker if he's available? Vince has appeared in just five games so far. Vando has played in 29.

Kevin Huerter could miss the rest of the season for the Sacramento Kings after suffering a dislocated left shoulder and labral tear. He's having a disappointing campaign to say the least, but conceptually, he's invaluable to keeping pressure on set defenses.

Josh Green (ankle) is slated to miss a few weeks for the Dallas Mavericks. Will he be back in time for the play-in and/or playoffs? Will the Atlanta Hawks have Trae Young (left pinkie finger) available for their own play-in romp? Meanwhile, Saddiq Bey (ACL) is done for the season. And Jalen Johnson will now miss time with a right ankle sprain.

The Chicago Bulls knew they'd have to push forward without Zach LaVine (foot). But they have since lost Patrick Williams (foot) for the season, too. And now Coby White is sidelined with a hip injury.

I'm sure I missed someone of consequence. I'm also certain more names will join this fray in the coming weeks. Injuries suck. And they're clearly going to have an impact on both conference playoff brackets.

The race to the Bottom

Most attention down the stretch will be paid to good teams. Because, duh. But there are a few intriguing races to monitor inside the win-loss doldrums.

Which three squads will finish with top-end draft-lottery odds (14 percent)? Detroit and Washington are virtual locks. The "pursuit" of the third-worst record, meanwhile, boils down to the San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets and Portland Trail Blazers.

San Antonio has the inside track according to most mathematical projections. But Victor Wembanyama tilts the math. The Spurs have won the minutes he's played over the past 40-plus games. Could his extraterrestrial tendencies open the door for Charlotte or Portland?

Beyond the lust for last-ish place, we have a couple of key "Will they keep their 2024 first-round pick?" situations playing out.

The Toronto Raptors' obligation to San Antonio is up against top-six protection. Can they out-lose the 25th-place Memphis Grizzlies to tip the lottery forecast in their favor? Better yet: Do they even want to? Or does it make more sense for the Raptors to try conveying the pick and moving on? How do the indefinite absences of Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl and, now, Immanuel Quickley shift that calculus?

Another midseason selloff, meanwhile, has positioned the Utah Jazz to keep the top-10-protected pick they owe to Oklahoma City KeepersofAllFirsts. Though the #TakeNote crew has so far resisted reporting injuries to made-up body parts, will they change course to ensure they don't finish with better than a bottom-nine record? Or are they so sure they won't get usurped by both the 21st-place Atlanta Hawks and 20th-place Houston Rockets that they'll keep chugging along instead of resorting to extremes?

Granted, the exact placement inside the final standings isn't an end-all, be-all. Lottery luck can change everything so long as you're in the bottom 14. But as a rule of thumb, if you're looking to retain your top-10-protected pick, you'll want to close the year with one of the 10 worst records.

The Leaguewide Scoring Downtick

"What happened to the game I love?"

- Early 2000s enthusiasts prior to the All-Star break

— Lovers of 50-point detonations since the All-Star break

By now, you have probably heard that scoring across the NBA is down relative to the first two-thirds of the season. This shift has been covered extensively by Sravan Pannala on his personal blog, Tom Haberstroh over at The Finder, Dunc'd On Prime's Seth Partnow and The Ringer's Zach Kram. The evidence is vast and still mounting and supports a smattering of conclusions—namely that free-throw attempts and specific foul types are declining because the game is officiated differently.

Which raises the question: Will this continue?

ESPN's Zach Lowe recently had the NBA's Head of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars and the Senior Vice President of Referee Training and Development Monty McCutchen on an episode of The Lowe Post to discuss these happenings. And as Tom Ziller from Good Morning It's Basketball aptly noted, a lot of what was said amounts to the league at once admitting there's a deliberate emphasis on changing the way certain movements and actions are officiated while denying they specifically called for said emphasis.

Good times.

Assuming this new world order holds, how will your favorite teams and players be impacted? Especially as we head into the postseason?

The hell if I know.

We can talk about who is most struggling to adapt and speculate on who will be most affected come playoff time. (Pannala did an excellent job illustrating which names have seen the largest dips in free-throw attempts.) But a midseason about-face this stark, even unprecedented, demands more than anything else that we wait and see.

West Play-In Awkwardness, Implications and Memes

Seven teams are technically vying for or attempting to avoid falling into Western Conference play-in territory: The Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Houston "Never Say Die, Not Even Without Alperen Şengün" Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings.

Four of these squads will be treated as monumental failures if they dip or stay beneath the top six: Dallas, Golden State, Los Angeles and Phoenix. I get the inclination to loop the Warriors and Lakers into this mix. Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis and LeBron James remain All-NBA players. Failing to make the top six and potentially missing the playoffs altogether would be a gargantuan waste of top-end talent.

At the same time, neither Golden State nor Los Angeles ever profiled as postseason shoo-ins. Their non-star talent was always questionable, and both opted against any all-in propositions over the offseason and trade deadline. (Sorry, but flipping Jordan Poole for Chris Paul doesn't count as "all-in." It was a salary dump.)

Dallas' and Phoenix's place in this race is more off-putting.

The Mavs acquired Kyrie Irving last February and then re-doubled down at this past year's deadline, forking over a lion's share of their remaining first-round equity to bring in P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford and undo the Grant Williams sign-and-trade from the summer. The Suns, meanwhile, burned through all their best draft picks and swaps and swaps to the swaps to assemble a Big Three of Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant and the supporting cast you see now.

Indeed, you can talk yourself into both teams being better off by next season. But they built their current rosters in the image of right the hell now. Getting to the postseason through the play-in—or, again, missing the playoffs—will demand the kind of self-reflection that invariably culminates in more wholesale changes and, possibly, trade demands. (This all becomes moot if the Mavs and/or Suns make a deep push despite where they might finish in the standings.)

Similar issues apply to the Lakers and Warriors, albeit on a more predictable scale. Would missing the playoffs or suffering a ceremonial first-round exit prompt either front office to explore nuclear moves over the summer? What direction would those transactions lean: immediate or long term?

And let's not totally dismiss the other teams. If I had to guess, both New Orleans and Sacramento land in the top six. But what if they don't? What if the Kings go from feel-good darlings in 2022-23 to minimal progress-showers in 2023-24? What if the Pelicans, again, see their dark-horse status unmade by injuries and inconsistency? And, yeah, how wild would it be if the Rockets displace the Warriors or Lakers from the play-in picture entirely?

So, the Biggest Threat to the Boston Celtics in the East Is...

Worry about the Boston Celtics' (real but slightly exaggerated) crunch-time fits and bursts if you must. They remain the closest thing to a Finals inevitability in the NBA.

This speaks to the state of the Eastern Conference more than it implies that the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder or Minnesota Timberwolves are vastly inferior. There is a jumbled pecking order inside the Western Conference. In the East, there's the Celtics, a galactic gap and then everyone else.

Which team is most likely to erase the distance between Boston and the field? Defaulting to the Milwaukee Bucks is fine. Some of their most glaring defensive issues no longer seem as damning under head coach Doc Rivers. But they will run into matchup questions against the Celtics.

Most critically: Who does Giannis Antetokounmpo guard? Should he handle Kristaps Porziņģis so Brook Lopez isn't yanked away from the paint? What does that do to Giannis' roaming capabilities? And if they put Antetokounmpo elsewhere, does having Lopez on Porziņģis stamp out the former's primary defensive value?

Milwaukee is my answer despite these concerns.

Even with a fully healthy and on-point Joel Embiid, the Philadelphia 76ers don't have the perimeter-defense juice. That's triply true if De'Anthony Melton remains on the sidelines. The Cleveland Cavaliers are deeper than preseason expectations suggested and do a nice job incorporating more pace and three-point volume in certain lineups, but they don't have the sample necessary with their core units to imbue us with unflappable confidence.

The New York Knicks have plenty of bodies to toss at the Celtics' best arrangements. But this presumes OG Anunoby is close to 100 percent. Ditto for Julius Randle. And even then, Porziņģis is a uniquely tough cover for this team whether it's rolling out Isaiah Hartenstein or Mitchell Robinson at the 5.

Mentioning the Miami Heat would be a waste of time if we didn't have multiple instances of their obliterating conventional playoff wisdom. The Orlando Magic can definitely make Boston's offense uncomfortable (Jalen Suggs and measured doses of Jonathan Isaac ruin lives), but turnover and shooting concerns at the other end hold them back. The Indiana Pacers don't have the defenders necessary to hang here, and Tyrese Haliburton's protracted slump mixed with Bennedict Mathurin's absence annihilates their case even further.

Unless you know something about the Presidents of the Play-In (Atlanta and Chicago) that I don't, the answer here is Milwaukee. Until it's not. Which is possible. Because, beneath Boston, it's been that kind of season in the East.

Race for 1st out West

The Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder all remain in play for the Western Conference's best record. Who needs it more? And who will get it?

Answering the latter is genuinely confusing—in an entertaining-as-hell way. All three are within a couple of losses. They also play in the same division, which at least simplifies the tiebreaker mode of operations.

Oklahoma City won the season series over Denver but split its four games with Minnesota. The Timberwolves and Thunder have near-identical division and conference records, so that's something to monitor down the stretch.

Denver and Minnesota have so far split their two matchups. The Timberwolves have a decided edge in both the division and conference tiebreakers, but they play the Nuggets twice more (Mar. 29 and Apr. 10). Those games will be must-must-must-watch.

As for which team needs No. 1 more, well, that's in the eye of the beholder. Denver, the reigning champ and a mother effing machine when flipping its very real switch, probably needs it the least. But there's a ton of value in knowing every series runs through Ball Arena and its elevation.

Most will argue the super-young Thunder need No. 1 more than the other two. I kind of, sort of, already did. But while experience matters, it isn't everything. The Thunder have a top-tier offense and defense and the second most wins in the league against teams with a top-10 point differential. They've been telling us all year, at the top of their lungs, they're a threat to win it all now. Accept their 70-something-game sample as the reality that is.

Minnesota might be the answer. Its offense is prickly, particularly in crunch time. And who knows whether Karl-Anthony Towns will be ready for or look like himself during the playoffs. Ensuring they play at home, where they've dominated, until at least the NBA Finals would go a long way toward maximizing their chances in the face of KAT's mercurial outlook.

Then again, we must consider another variable: the opponent you pull if you finish in first. Could we see any 11th-hour shenanigans to set up potential first-round dates with New Orleans or Sacramento rather than chance early encounters with the Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers or Phoenix Suns?

I'd wager against this kind of gamesmanship taking place at the top. Dallas, Golden State, the Lakers and Phoenix have given scant few signs they're better than their records. Still, their places near the bottom of the postseason pecking order add another intriguing layer to the West's race for first.

Who Wins MVP?

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Dončić have airtight top-five MVP cases. And Jayson Tatum's "Best player on the best team" argument and, as it turns out, pull-up jumper are both alive and well. But this year's MVP race has become a two-player showdown between Nikola Jokić and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

This is neither the time nor the place to dig into the merits of each star's credentials. You can find eye-test functionals, on-off splits, catch-alls and anecdotal evidence to support either SGA or Big Honey.

For transparency's sake, Jokić is currently my pick. But frankly, we're in can't-go-wrong territory here. It will be more fascinating to see how the voting actually shakes out.

The most recent MVP straw poll from ESPN's Tim Bontemps had Jokić atop the field by a comfortable margin. Is he a near-certainty to bag the Michael Jordan Trophy and join Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), MJ himself (five), Bill Russell (five), Wilt Chamberlain (four), LeBron James (four), Larry Bird (three), Julius Erving (three), Magic Johnson (three) and Moses Malone (three) as the only players in league history with at least three MVPs?

On the flip side, is there a chance Jokić's entrenchment in this race works against him, inciting voter fatigue? Or will the selected media members simply gravitate toward the relatively new megastar on the block who has elevated an upstart organization to a top-tier contender in an incredibly short span?

And how much will the race for first place in the Western Conference impact the ballot? The Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder are the two most likely teams to grab that one-seed. Could the outcome of that overarching competition be the splitting-hairs difference-maker? Is there a chance Jokić or SGA overwhelmingly separates themselves from the other over the next few weeks, turning this into a much simpler decision?

Anything and everything feels like it's on the table—aside from someone other than these two taking home the Association's crowning individual honor.

Who Wins the Other Year-End Awards?

Defensive Player of the Year is all sewn up. It's going to Rudy Gobert. Chet Holmgren has tried his damnedest, but Rookie of the Year is going to the seven-and-a-half-foot alien in San Antonio.

After that, the catalog of non-MVP awards is shaping up to be an absolute bloodbath.

Coach of the Year has a bunch of different worthwhile options—like always. My gut says Oklahoma City Thunder head honcho Mark Daigneault wins it. But you can effortlessly make cases for (in no particular order): Chris Finch (Minnesota), Jamahl Mosley (Orlando), Joe Mazzulla (Boston), Ime Udoka (Houston), JB Bickerstaff (Cleveland), Michael Malone (Denver), and Tom Thibodeau (New York). Tyronn Lue (Los Angeles Clippers), Willie Green (New Orleans), Will Hardy (Utah) and, as usual, Erik Spoelstra (Miami) would also like a word.

Should we just start referring to Clutch Player of the Year as the "This is for DeMar DeRozan and only DeMar DeRozan" award? Or can this year's honor be snared by Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Jalen Brunson?

Sixth Man of the Year, which is not subject to the 65-game rule, feels like a four-player fiesta being attended by Bogdan Bogdanović, Malik Monk, Norman Powell and Naz Reid. But there's room for Jordan Clarkson, Isaiah Joe and, if he doesn't wind up starting too many games, Duncan Robinson to crash the party.

Executive of the Year isn't a headlining honor. But Brad Stevens (Boston), Leon Rose (New York), Koby Altman (Cleveland), Rafael Stone (Houston), Sam Presti (Oklahoma City), Daryl Morey (Philadelphia) and Kevin Pritchard (Indiana) all have reasonable arguments.

And finally, we have the spiciest non-MVP race: Most Improved Player. The list of candidates is extensive—so much so that I won't go through all of them here. (Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes and I went into the weeds on this during a recent episode of Hardwood Knocks if you have F.O.M.O.)

Scottie Barnes was my personal pick, but he remains out indefinitely with a fracture in his left hand and doesn't currently meet the 65-game criteria. Alperen Şengün remains eligible for the award despite appearing in fewer than 65 contests (so far). But if an ankle sprain keeps him out the rest of the year, will voters still view him as a top option? Jalen Johson might be the favorite to take this home if not for the games requirement. His latest ankle injury all but ensures he won't meet the games-played requirements..

Coby White's case has strengthened amid his floor-general breakout and injuries to Barnes, Johnson and Şengün. Tyrese Maxey's argument continues to write itself. Jalen Williams has hit a level of stardom that assuages any concerns about giving MIP to a second-year player.

Don't forget about Cam Thomas, assuming he doesn't miss more than two games the rest of the way. Or Deni Avdija. OK, OK, I'll stop here.

What Will POSITIONLESS All-NBA Teams Look Like?

All-NBA results are always fascinating, but this year's chase is laden with more intrigue than usual. Not only are the three teams now positionless, but this is the first season that incorporates the games-played minimum.

Coupled with some notable contract incentives and two historically great rookies, the race to lock up these 15 spots is teeming with down-the-stretch curiosity.

The games-played requirement has already bounced Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid, Kyrie Irving, Donovan Mitchell, Kristaps Porziņģis and Trae Young from the running. Will anyone else join them? Jamal Murray has just one appearance to spare. Devin Booker only has three. Tyrese Haliburton has four.

Speaking of which: Haliburton once seemed like a First Team lock. His post-injury slump has nuked that sentiment. Could it also cost him an All-NBA spot entirely and the chance to increase his five-year extension from $204.5 million (25 percent max) to $245.3 million (30 percent max)? Anthony Edwards is in the same boat. He's on a tear and a for-sure candidate. Will he nab one of these 15 slots and the additional $40-something million that comes with it?

Now that Haliburton has fallen off and Embiid and Mitchell are disqualified, how does the First Team shake out? Nikola Jokić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Dončić are certainties. Does Jayson Tatum officially have a chokehold on the final slot? Could it go to Kevin Durant? Or Kawhi Leonard?

What do the other 10 spots look like? Will Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis and/or LeBron James make it? Or will likely finishing outside the West's top eight derail their cases? Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama are perhaps slight reaches, but both have somewhat viable top-15 cases. Could we see a rookie make All-NBA for the first time since Tim Duncan in 1997-98—and just the 22nd time overall?

And finally, how does the positionless model impact the makeup of who's selected? Guards seem as if they'll make out like bandits. Could Jokić end up as the sole center on any of the three teams?

Will a Dark Horse Title Contender Emerge?

Title contention is for the most part a subjective concept. But there is a clear delineation between certified championship threats, supposed-to-be Finals hopefuls and teams that could potentially party crash a discussion to which they didn't previously belong.

Let's rule out the actual title contenders. Here's how my tiers currently shake out:

• Tier 1 (Conference Favorites): Denver Nuggets, Boston Celtics
• Tier 2 (They're Title Contenders, Hands Down): Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder
• Tier 3 (Probably Championship Threats): Los Angeles Clippers
• Tier 4 (If They're Healthy And Hit Already Established Peaks At The Right Time): Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns

There's also another tier that doesn't have as much to do with actual contention: Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers. This group is more like who's who of non-contenders that wouldn't shock anyone if they make a deep playoff push because they have entrenched megastars with plenty of postseason accolades.

So, with those 12 squads out of the way, who among the leftovers could come out left field to reach their respective conference finals and maybe, just maybe, crack the championship round?

The New York Knicks project as the reasonable bet if they're healthy. That's a big, fat, friggin' if. OG Anunoby's elbow and Julius Randle's shoulder might be the two biggest playoff x-factors in the entire NBA (non-Embiid's knee division).

Keep your eyes peeled for the New Orleans Pelicans. They have cobbled together an elite defense with an offense that's explored preposterously high pinnacles. Whether their style translates to the postseason is a matter of course. Brandon Ingram's left knee injury now looms, too.

Perhaps the Miami Heat should be assigned to the Mavs-Dubs-Lakers gaggle. But they leave people in a constant state of disbelief. Do they have the chops (and available bodies) to make yet another improbable playoff run?

I really want to choose the Sacramento Kings but can't quite get there. They are a faction of oddities. Will they hit free throws in the playoffs? What version of De'Aaron Fox do we get? Does Keegan Murray's defensive leap on the wing hold up against postseason offenses? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

Shout-out to the Orlando Magic here. Their offense doesn't seem ready to win at the highest level, but they're getting better at alleviating the pressure Paolo Banchero faces on-ball. Oh, and their defense is hellfire. They're not contending for a home-court-advantage spot by accident.

Forced to choose one dark horse per conference, I'm rolling the dice on the Knicks getting healthier and Pelicans' recent surge figuring out a way to sustain. What say you?

Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.

Unless otherwise noted, stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference, Stathead or Cleaning the Glass. Salary information via Spotrac. Draft-pick obligations via RealGM.