2012 Western Conference NBA Standings Update

The Oklahoma City Thunder are headed back to the NBA playoffs -- this much, we already know. Oklahoma City's seed in the Western Conference is still unknown, though, and it could either be No. 1 or No. 2, depending on what happens this week.

If the season ended on Saturday morning, the Thunder would be the No. 2 seed. Oklahoma City currently trails the San Antonio Spurs by one game in the loss column. The Spurs have four games remaining: two home games against Cleveland and Portland and two road games against Phoenix and Golden State.

Oklahoma City has three remaining games, a road game against the Lakers and a pair of home games -- one against the Sacramento Kings and one against the Denver Nuggets.

The bottom half of the Western Conference seeding is also unknown. Currently, the Dallas Mavericks are the No. 6 seed, the Denver Nuggets are the No. 7 seed and the Phoenix Suns are the No. 8 seed -- but only Dallas has clinched a playoff spot among those three teams. The Thunder could end up playing any of those three teams, or even the Utah Jazz, in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

For more on the Oklahoma City Thunder, be sure to head over to Welcome to Loud City and join the discussion.

Thunder Vs. Suns, Final Score: Oklahoma City Wins 109-97

Oklahoma City kept pace to try and re-capture the top overall spot in the Western Conference with a 109-97 win Wednesday in Arizona.The win gave the Thunder (45-17) a half-game's distance behind San Antonio. The loss put Phoenix at the No. 9 position in the Western Conference, outside the playoff picture.

Kevin Durant was mediocre (10-for-20 for 29 points) but James Harden was on fire against Phoenix, scoring 40 points with seven rebounds, three assists and four steals. Derek Fischer had two key plays - a buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter and a foul to start the fourth - that pushed a three-point OKC lead to eight, enough for the Thunder to build upon and never look back.

For more on the Oklahoma City Thunder, check out Welcome To Loud City. For Phoenix Suns news and info go to Bright Side Of The Sun, and for NBA news go to SB Nation's NBA page.

Thunder Vs. Suns: Game Preview, TV Info And More

The Thunder have struggled to finish strong, and are now fighting to keep their top seed in the NBA's Western Conference in this final week of the regular season.