With the All-Star festivities over, it’s time to get back to the serious business in the NBA.

Both conferences are tight at the top, and spaces in the play-in tournament – which provides the final four play-off qualifiers – are up for grabs, but who will take control of a season full of twists and turns?

As the drama unfolds, you’ll be able to watch selected games on the BBC – plus highlights and an end-of-season review show.

The next of those live games takes place this weekend, with Miami Heat travelling to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks (Saturday, 00:30 GMT).

Here we look at some of the key questions for the final stretch of the season.

Who will win the race to be top seed?

With home-court advantage usually delivering in the play-offs, the fight to grab the top seeding in the two conferences is intense.

In the East, just half a game separates table-toppers the Boston Celtics and nearest challengers the Milwaukee Bucks.

Both teams are stacked with talent – the Celtics boasting the one-two punch of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, plus 2017 rookie of the year and former Buck Malcolm Brogdon, while Milwaukee retain their title-winning big three from 2021 – Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton.

In the West, there is a little more breathing room for the Denver Nuggets, whose 41-18 record means they have a five-game advantage on the Memphis Grizzlies.

Behind them, the Sacramento Kings – something of a surprise package – are also in the running, three games behind the Grizzlies having won 32 games so far.

Things have been shaken up by trades, though, with the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns in particular adding some serious talent. The Mavericks have paired former Brooklyn Net Kyrie Irving with Luka Doncic, while Kevin Durant also left Brooklyn – heading west to the Suns.

Will LeBron James miss out on the play-offs again?

LeBron James may well go down as the greatest player in NBA history, especially now he is its all-time leading scorer, but the Los Angeles Lakers have been consistently inconsistent during his time there.

His first year as a Laker ended before the post-season, but in 2020 he led them to the championship. They exited at the first round of the play-offs a year later, then failed to even make them last season – something they are in danger of repeating this year.

The Lakers are 13th in the Western Conference and will need to put together a run of wins to even make the play-in tournament. When that was introduced in 2021, James said whoever came up with the idea should be “fired”, yet it now seems to be his best path into the post-season.

Who will be the MVP?

With so much talent in the league, competition is always fierce for the title of most valuable player (MVP) – awarded to the league’s best performer in the regular season.

Nikola Jokic is back in the hunt as he chases a third title on the spin – averaging 24.7 points, 11.5 rebounds and 10.1 assists per game for the Nuggets.

Antetokounmpo – another back-to-back winner – is also staking a claim, having posted 31.8 points and 12.2 rebounds per game.

Tatum, Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid and Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic are also among the contenders.

What about the teams struggling?

While a raft of teams are fighting for the play-offs and post-season supremacy, others will turn their attention to the future and start looking at the draft process.

Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets are among those having difficult seasons, but with a host of young talent, the right addition in the pre-season draft could propel them into play-off contention.

Whoever gets number one pick in the Draft Lottery is expected to snap up the 7ft 2in Victor Wembanyama, who plays in France and is seen as the sort of talent who can turn around a franchise’s fortunes.

How can you watch NBA on the BBC?

The match between Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum will be broadcast live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website & app in the UK.