PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks' race for the tenth seed and final play-in spot out West is going down to the wire.
Separated by just one game, the Suns trail Dallas in what's been a dramatically disappointing season for both organizations.
The Suns were unable to offload any of their tradable star players while the Mavericks' decision to send Luka Doncic packing is still sending shockwaves through the NBA world.
No matter how you slice it, both organizations will need a miracle run through the postseason to make amends for the poor regular season.
That can only happen with a ticket to the dance, and that's something only one of the two teams like can do.
ESPN's Basketball Power Index still has the Mavericks edging the Suns out for the last play-in spot.
More from Kevin Pelton:
"Being the last team in the play-in with a below-.500 record would still represent a tremendous disappointment for the Suns, but it beats missing the play-in entirely while sending the resulting lottery pick to Houston. Phoenix has been more competitive in March, beating the Clippers and Mavericks and losing in overtime at Denver and by two at Memphis.
"The challenge is the Suns play a gauntlet starting Friday, with 10 consecutive games against teams in the top six of their respective conferences. Phoenix can't avoid any missteps before then and may have to come up with a few upsets to catch Dallas. BPI projections still show the Mavericks slightly more likely to reach the play-in."
For what it's worth, the Suns do own the tie-breaker over the Mavericks, going 3-1 against Dallas over the course of the regular season.
Phoenix has 13 regular season games left with the toughest strength of schedule in the league, according to Tankathon while Dallas' ranks 15th.