Russell Westbrook scored a career-high 54 points for the Oklahoma City Thunder, but he was unable to help his side avoid a damaging 116-104 loss to the Indiana Pacers.
The point guard, who could miss Monday's game against the Portland Trail Blazers after picking up his 16th technical foul, had started the night with a 22-point opening quarter, but it was Indiana who closed the game on a 10-1 run to stop the Thunder from climbing into the eighth spot in the Western Conference.
Oklahoma's loss hands a big boost to the New Orleans Pelicans, who held onto the final playoff spot despite slipping to a 121-114 defeat to the Houston Rockets.
Anthony Davis starred again with 27 points, but James Harden contributed 30 points for the Rockets to lead his side to victory.
Jason Kidd tasted success against his former side as the Milwaukee Bucks clinched a playoff place by beating the Brooklyn Nets 96-73 at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
Ersan Ilyasova scored 21 points, but it was an impressive defensive display which made the difference for the Bucks, who will play in the post-season just a year after recording a franchise-worst 67 losses.
The Boston Celtics took full advantage of David Blatt's decision to rest his key men in a comfortable 117-78 triumph over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love and J.R. Smith all missed out for the Cavaliers, and the Celtics capitalised to move to the brink of reaching the playoffs.
The Atlanta Hawks also played without a number of their starters against the Washington Wizards, who used a fine display from John Wall to pick up a 108-99 win over the top seeds in the Eastern Conference.
Wall registered 24 points and nine assists on his return from a two-game rest to lead the Wizards to their 46th win of the season, which is their highest tally of victories since 1979.
The San Antonio Spurs moved into second spot in the Western Conference with a 107-91 win over the Phoenix Suns as the defending champions continued their fine form.
An 11th successive win hands them a half-game lead over the Memphis Grizzlies in the Southwest Division, and Tim Duncan stole the show once again with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond produced a dominant display to guide the Detroit Pistons to a 116-77 win over the Charlotte Hornets in the team's final home game of the season.
Monroe, who is expected to become a free agent in the summer, scored 17 points and Drummond added 15 points and 19 rebounds to clinch a comfortable victory.
Sacramento Kings head coach George Karl suffered disappointment on his return to the Pepsi Center as the Denver Nuggets earned a 122-111 victory.
Kenneth Faried scored a career-high 30 points and Wilson Chandler added 21 points and nine rebounds as Denver triumphed in their home finale.
The Dallas Mavericks completed a season sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers by continuing their preparations for the playoffs with a 120-106 win.
Seven players scored in double figures for the Mavericks, with Tyson Chandler leading the way with 20 points and nine rebounds.
NBA results: Brooklyn Nets 73-96 Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers 78-117 Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets 77-116 Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings 111-122 Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder 104-116 Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks 99-108 Washington Wizards, New Orleans Pelicans 114-121 Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns 91-107 San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks 120-106 Los Angeles Lakers
