As the regular season winds down, so do the chances for teams to make the playoffs. And, even if you watched teams like Atlanta, Golden State, and Cleveland secure playoff spots, there might be news that affects the other 27 teams in the league. Well, in the last week, there have been five big headlines, and some of them are going to impact the playoff race.

1. Utah Jazz is last losing team in Western Conference in playoff contention

Okay, this is not really news to the regular reader of these reports or a NBA fan. But, this will sure excite fans from the Beehive State.

The Jazz are the last team with a losing record to be in contention for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. In the Western Conference, there are only five teams with records under .500, and four of those have been eliminated from playoff contention. These teams include the Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Denver Nuggets.

The Jazz are currently 31-38, with 13 games left to play. They have been winning lately though, going 7-3. In addition, in the next 13 games, they will face the Timberwolves twice, Nuggets twice, Kings twice, and the Phoenix Suns. On the other hand, they will face the Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, and the Portland Trail Blazers (Portland twice). So, Utah will need a lot of luck to make the playoffs.

2. Jack Haley dead at 51

Even though Jack Haley was a reserve for most of his career, he was a positive locker room force on every team he played on during his nine year career. Unfortunately, though, Haley has recently passed.

On March 17, Haley peacefully died at the age of 51. According to the family, Haley’s death was caused by heart disease. An autopsy will soon be performed, but according to the Orange County, California, coroner, it appears as if Haley died of natural causes.

Haley played for four different teams in his career. These teams include the Chicago Bulls for two separate times,  New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, and San Antonio Spurs.

In the 1987 draft, the Bulls selected Haley with the 97th pick overall. Haley played at UCLA for three seasons. In his time there, Haley led the Bruins to a NIT championship in 1985.

Haley spent more of his time as a reserve. During his career, he only averaged 3.5 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.

Haley started his career in Chicago. After three other stops, he landed back in Chicago for the 1995-1996 season. The Bulls were 72-10 in that season and were led by Michael Jordan. However, Haley only played the last regular season, recording five points in seven minutes played. He did not make the playoff roster, but could boast that he was on the 95-96 Bulls championship squad, as they won the title a few weeks later.

After his NBA career ended, Haley worked as a broadcaster for Lakers game telecasts.

Haley is survived by his two sons, Jack Jr. and Jeff, his mother, Jeanette, his brother and sister, Tim and Sondra, and ex-wife, Stacey.

I send my condolences to the Haley family. This is a tough loss for the family and every NBA fan.

3. Durant out indefinitely after re-injuring foot; could miss rest of season

Kevin Durant has had a rough year. Due to breaking his foot in the preseason, he needed surgery, which put a screw in his foot. This caused Durant to miss much of the first part of the season. And, in February, he had surgery to replace the screw after experiencing discomfort. Now, the discomfort has returned, and this will force Durant to miss more of the season.

After experiencing new discomfort in his foot, Durant has been shut down for the time being and excluded from all basketball activity. If he does not get better, he could miss the rest of the season.

Durant is averaging 25.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game this season. The problem: he has only played 27 games out of the Thunder’s 68 games this season.

Thunder GM Sam Presti, in response to the news, said to Cliff Drunt from the Associated Press: “He’s not making the progress that we had hoped and anticipated him making. He still has some soreness in his foot, and the protocol that’s in place calls for him to be able to compete on the floor without that at this stage.”

Presti acknowledged that Durant could be shut down for the season to preserve Durant’s long-term health.

This is a huge blow to Oklahoma City, as they have lost a four-time scoring champion and the reigning NBA MVP winner. But, OKC still has more bad news to come.

4. Serge Ibaka out for four to six weeks with knee injury

The Thunder without Durant is a nightmare come true. But with Ibaka out as well, OKC’s playoff chances could be diminishing by the second.

Ibaka is out for four to six weeks after surgery in his right knee. The surgery got rid of damaged cartilage under the kneecap, which was causing discomfort and swelling. Ibaka experienced this pain in February, but continued playing until recently, when he missed the three games before his surgery.

Ibaka is expected to miss the rest of the regular season. He had surgery on the 17th, and four weeks from that is April 14. The playoffs start the 18th, so if Ibaka misses five or six weeks, the Thunder could even be without him in the playoffs.

Ibaka was a beast on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. He was averaging 14.3 points and 2.1 offensive rebounds per game. In addition, on the other side of the ball, per game, he had 5.7 defensive rebounds, .5 steals, and 2.4 assists.

This is another big loss for the Thunder. Hopefully, Russell Westbrook can single-handily carry the team into the playoffs.

5. Steve Nash retiring after 19 NBA seasons

Steve Nash was a force on any floor. Whether it was at the free-throw line or making an assist, Nash helped any team he played for. Well, he will not be playing anymore.

Nash announced his retirement on The Players’ Tribune, where he is a senior producer. He said: “I will likely never play basketball again. It’s bittersweet. I already miss the game deeply, but I’m also really excited to learn to do something else.”

Nash was great from all around. He was third in the league’s history in assists with 10,335 assists. This only trailed John Stockton and Jason Kidd. In addition, in NBA history, he is the best free-throw shooter with a 90.4% make percentage. Over his 19 year career, he averaged 14.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 8.5 assists per game.

He played his first two seasons with the Phoenix Suns, when he only started 11 games. Then, he transitioned to the Dallas Mavericks, where he starred alongside Dirk Nowitzki. His best season out of in Dallas was the 2000-2001 season, when the team got all the way to the Western Conference finals.

Nash then resigned with the Suns, and played with Phoenix for eight more seasons. He won the league MVP award in 2005 and 2006. Again, Nash led a team to the Western Conference finals, but could not help any team win the coveted NBA championship.

In 2012, the Suns traded Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers for four draft picks in the hopes that Nash could win a championship in LA with Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard. However, Nash only played 75 games in his first two seasons with the Lakers, and did not play this season with the Lakers. His downfall started after only his second game with the Lakers, when he broke a bone in his left leg. This year, Nash did not play due to a back injury.

Nash made the All-Star eight times in his career.

Nash was very important in the evolution of the game of basketball. He will be remembered for a long time by NBA fans.