Three things to Know: Breaking down East, West playoff chase

Three Things To Know is NBC’s five-days-a-week wrap-up of the night before in the NBA. Check out NBCSports.com every weekday morning to catch up on what you missed the night before plus the rumors, drama, and dunks that make the NBA must-watch.

Let’s take a look at the standings:

• By winning 18-of-19 (after beating the Magic Tuesday night) while the Celtics have stumbled, the Bucks have given themselves a comfortable 2.5 lead to grab the one seed. Milwaukee will be tough to catch.

• That matters for the Bucks not just because it means home court throughout the East playoffs, but it means Boston and Philadelphia will have to go through each other to get to the East Finals. If the standings hold as is, Boston would get a tough Heat team with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo in the first round, then the winner of the 3-6 series — likely Philadelphia — in the second. The Celtics’ recent stumbles have made their road harder.

• The Knicks and Cavaliers seemed destined to be the 4-5 first-round matchup and the big question is who is the home team (the Cavaliers will not be easy to catch, but it’s possible.

• Can Brooklyn hold off Miami for the No. 6 seed? Probably, especially if the Heat keep shooting themselves in the foot with bad losses. Miami needs help, and the Nets have been 2-4 since the All-Star break and now head out on the road for five. Nothing is locked in but if the Nets can hang around .500 the Heat would need a very hot hand (11-5, 12-4) the rest of the way to catch them.

• After the two losses to the Heat in the last week, the Hawks need to focus not on climbing up to seventh or higher but on holding off the Raptors, who are half a game behind them in the standings, and the Wizards are just one game back. Seeds