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All posts by Andrew MorganWhat is the NBA Play-In Tournament? The NBA Play-In Tournament is a competition that features the seventh to tenth-placed teams in each conference. The aim is to determine the final four spots in the NBA playoffs (two per conference). It usually starts within days of the culmination of the NBA regular season.
There are eight matches, four for each conference, with a unique schedule. This season is only the second time it has taken place.
What Is The Play-In Tournament in NBA?
The 12 teams that finish in the top six of the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference go straight through to the NBA playoffs. Meanwhile, the teams placed seventh to tenth in the regular season standings enter the Play-In Tournament. This will determine who takes the final two playoff places in each conference. These two teams will be designated the seventh and final playoff seed in the NBA playoffs.
The NBA Board of Governors voted to approve the adoption of an NBA Play-In Tournament in July 2022. The first Play-In Tournament took place during the 2022-23 season.
This year, the play in games will start two days after the regular season ends. This means the Play-In Tournament will run from April 16 to 19. The NBA playoffs begin the day after.
The Play-In Tournament Rules
The rules of an NBA Play-In Tournament game are the same as any other regular season game. However, the play in tournament format is different from both the regular season and the playoffs as it uses the Page-McIntyre system. Here is how it works:
- The teams that finished seventh and eighth in their respective conferences compete in a single game. This decides who takes the seventh seed in the playoffs.
- The teams that finished ninth and tenth in their respective conference compete against each other in a single game too. The losing team gets knocked out, making this an elimination game.
- The winner of the ninth/tenth match plays against the loser of the seventh/eighth match to decide who takes the eighth seed place.
- This arrangement gives the teams that finished higher in the conference more chances of qualifying for the playoffs.
- All of the matches are played at the home of the higher-ranked team.
When Is the NBA Play-In Tournament?
The NBA Play-In Tournament usually takes place within days of the end of the regular season. After the regular season ends, the league takes a short break before the playoffs start. This break usually lasts for around a week. Before 2020, this gave the playoff teams a chance to rest and strategize before the start of the playoffs.
Nowadays, this period is taken up by the Play-In Tournament. The tournament adds eight more games to the schedule and provides another chance to sell television advertising space.
Seedings and Structure of the Play-In Tournament
The teams that finished seventh and eighth in their respective conferences face each other for a chance to earn the seventh-seed spot in the playoffs. The match is played on the home court of the seventh-placed team. Whoever wins this match earns that place in the playoffs and their play-in tournament is over.
The next day, the ninth and tenth-placed teams in the conferences play each other at the home court of the team that finished ninth. The loser of this match is out of the tournament and, therefore, out of playoff contention.
The winner of this match faces the loser of the match between the seventh and eighth-placed teams. This match will take place at the home court of the team that lost the first match of the Play-In Tournament. This is because they are the team that finished highest in the conference during the regular season.
The winner of that third match earns the final playoff spot. They will be the eighth seed spot. This means they will have to play a best-of-seven-game series against the winner of their conference within days of playing the two consecutive games required to qualify. This puts them at a significant disadvantage.
How Many Games Are in the NBA Play In Tournament
The NBA Play-In Tournament has eight games, four for each conference.
The NBA Playoffs and the Play-In Tournament
The playoffs have been through a few different iterations since the NBA was formed in 1946.
In general, they have involved 16 teams, the top eight from each conference, in a knockout tournament with one ultimate winner. There are four seeded rounds for each conference. This whittles the teams down until only one remains per conference. This team represents their conference in the NBA finals, with the winners being crowned NBA champions.
Nowadays, 12 spots, six from each conference, are given to the teams that finish in the top six of their conference. The other four slots available, two for each conference, are decided by the Play-In Tournament.
The idea of the Play-In Tournament is to ensure there is still competition and incentive to keep working hard toward the end of the regular season, even for a team that is placed in the middle of the conference.
Before the Play-In Tournament existed, if a team knew that it could not finish in the top eight, there was less incentive to compete. However, in theory, since 2020, the tenth-placed team could still become NBA champions.
Therefore, the Play-In Tournament gives a team that is placed somewhere in the realm of 11th-15th the motivation to keep trying.
2024 NBA Play-In Tournament and Playoffs Schedule
The NBA playoffs tend to start in mid to late April. Here is the full schedule of NBA playoff and NBA play-in tournament games for the 2023-24 season:
- March 1 – Playoff Eligibility Waiver Deadline
- April 14 – Regular Season Ends
- April 16-19 – NBA Play-In Tournament
- April 20 – NBA Playoffs start
- May 4-5 or May 6-7 – Conference Semifinals begin
- May 19-20 or May 21-22 – Conference Finals begin
- June 6 – Finals Game One
- June 9 – Finals Game Two
- June 12 – Finals Game Three
- June 14 – Finals Game Four
- June 17 – Finals Game Five (if required)
- June 20 – Finals Game Six (if required)
- June 23 – Finals Game Seven (if required)
Conclusion
The NBA Play-In Tournament introduces eight extra games to the NBA calendar. It brings an additional competitive edge to the end of the regular season. It is a mini-tournament of eight games, four in each conference. It involves eight teams, four from each conference, competing for the final two spots in their respective conference playoffs.
The tournament usually starts very soon after the end of the season and is completed in a matter of days. The winners become the seventh and eighth seeds in the playoffs.
NBA Play In Tournament FAQs
When does the NBA Play-In Tournament start?
How many games are played in the NBA Play-In Tournament?
What happens to the losers in the NBA Play-In Tournament?
How does home-court advantage work in the NBA Play-In Tournament?
