The Dallas Mavericks played the Houston Rockets Wednesday night in a game with major playoff implications as three teams (Dallas, Houston, Utah) battle for the last spot in the Western Conference.

The Mavericks were able to win 88-86 and hold on to their seventh seed for now, as they move two games ahead of the ninth place Rockets and just one game ahead of the Utah Jazz. But, according to ESPN, they are still somehow less likely to make the playoffs than the Rockets.

With just four games left, the Mavericks hold the 4th-hardest remaining schedule in the league and somehow have an 11% less chance of making the playoffs than the Rockets.

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At first this may come as a surprise. But when you hear the rest of the Mavericks schedule, you may start to question whether they have any chance of making the playoffs.

In their last four games, the Mavs will face four other playoff contenders in the West including the Memphis Grizzlies, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Utah Jazz, and the San Antonio Spurs.

The Rockets, on the other hand, will play the Phoenix Suns, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Sacramento Kings. In other words, four teams that make up four of the bottom five teams in the Western Conference.

Dallas controls its own destiny for now, but they're going to have to earn it.