Matchups

John Wall and the Washington Wizards know they have precious little room for error if they are going to make the NBA playoffs, but a five-game winning streak has them thinking postseason going into the second half of a back-to-back with the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. Wall scored 27 points in the Wizards’ 117-102 victory Monday in Atlanta, moving Washington back to .500 and within 1 ½ games of the final Eastern Conference playoff spot.

The Cleveland Cavaliers continue to look like a title contender one game and an also-ran the next and are coming off one of their impressive performances. The Cavaliers will try to make it two in a row and show some consistency when they host the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday.

The Boston Celtics saw their grip on the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference slip away during a four-game slide but have bounced back with two straight wins to keep themselves in the race. One of those four losses came in Toronto, and the Celtics will try to get some revenge when they host the Raptors on Wednesday.

The Detroit Pistons are battling the Chicago Bulls for the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference and have won three straight to stay locked in a virtual tie for the final playoff spot. The Pistons will try to make it four straight on Wednesday when they host the Orlando Magic, who have been giving teams fighting for playoff position in the East an easy time during a four-game slide.

With their playoffs lives in the balance, the Chicago Bulls are taking full advantage of a homestand against some of the league's lesser teams. That four-game stretch at the United Center comes to an end Wednesday when the Bulls host the New York Knicks.

The race for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference heats up when the Utah Jazz continue a five-game road trip at the Houston Rockets on Wednesday. The Rockets dropped a 111-107 decision in Oklahoma City on Tuesday to sink into eighth place, a half-game behind Dallas and a half-game ahead of Utah, which is seeking its first playoff berth since 2012.

Two teams that have clinched losing records square off on Wednesday when the Sacramento Kings visit the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Kings have fallen apart with 12 losses in the last 15 games while the Timberwolves have dropped eight of their past 11 contests.

The San Antonio Spurs look to rebound from a rough road loss and extend their home-court winning streak to 45 games when they host the Miami Heat on Wednesday night. The Spurs have won all 35 games at the AT&T Center in 2015-16 and would pass the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls for the second-longest regular-season win streak over multiple campaigns with a victory.

The Philadelphia 76ers are still trying to get to double digits in victories and take another swing at it when they visit the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday. Philadelphia has failed on its first six attempts to get to 10 wins and has lost 19 of its last 20 games.

The Phoenix Suns will attempt to defeat Los Angeles at home for the 10th consecutive time when the Lakers visit Wednesday. Phoenix began the streak with a victory Feb. 19, 2012, and also has won 10 of the past 12 overall meetings with the Lakers.

Veteran forward Dirk Nowitzki put on a show on the front end of a back-to-back with Portland and looks to follow up with another strong game when the Dallas Mavericks visit the Trail Blazers on Tuesday. Nowitzki scored 40 points in Dallas' 132-120 home overtime victory on Sunday as the Mavericks moved within a half-game of Portland in the tightly packed Western Conference playoff race.

The Golden State Warriors are back home after a tough three-game road trip and still have the NBA’s single-season wins record in sight. The Warriors will try to draw a step closer and stay undefeated at home when they host the rival Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.