Damian Lillard practiced fully but Giannis Antetokounmpo remained out of live drills Friday as the Milwaukee Bucks continued getting ready for Sunday's playoff opener against the Indiana Pacers.

Prior to Friday night, the week had not gone the way Brandon Ingram would have hoped. But he responded in a big way against Sacramento, scoring 24 points as New Orleans advanced out of the play-in tournament to claim the No. 8 seed in the West.

Brandon Ingram scored 24 points, Jonas Valanciunas added 19 points and 12 rebounds and the Zion Williamson-less Pelicans booked a spot in the NBA playoffs with a 105-98 victory over the Kings in a play-in game Friday night.

The Heat earned the Eastern Conference eighth spot again after beating the Chicago Bulls on Friday night and shift their focus to a first-round playoff series "dogfight" against the Celtics.

While DeMar DeRozan reiterated his desire to re-sign in Chicago, he also emphasized how much he wants to win, particularly at this stage of his career.

Tyler Herro was an assist shy of a triple-double and the Heat earned the last spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, running away from the Bulls 112-91 in a play-in tournament elimination game.