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With the NBA's Western Conference continuing to dominate head-to-head matchups against the East (37-18 so far this season), it's worth checking on how teams stack up on that side of the overall standings. Not only is the West strong at the top, it boasts impressive depth for a second consecutive season. That means razor-thin margins could again separate the six teams that advance to the playoffs directly from some that miss the play-in tournament entirely. Nearly one month into the season, just a game in the standings separates those fates. All season long, we'll be keeping an eye on the West as teams battle for the postseason spots. Aside from the top two sides in the standings that have separated themselves (the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder) and the bottom four teams unlikely to make the playoffs, the differences are currently granular at best. As a result, the second tier of playoff contenders still features seven teams bunched up together. That group combines last season's other three playoff series winners (including the defending West champs, the Dallas Mavericks) with four up-and-comers off to strong starts. There's also an additional tier of teams more likely headed to the play-in, as well as one team that still seems unclear. Let's go through the tiers, with teams sorted alphabetically within them. Jump to a tier:
Current favorites
In the Playoff chase
Staring at the play-in
The one special case
Building for the future 
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