In-Season Tournament explainer and everything you need to know.
Seven games to start, seven games to finish.
In between, a whole lot of curiosity, questions and excitement for regular-season games in November and December that might have gotten overlooked in years past.
The inaugural In-Season Tournament begins with the seven games on Friday’s schedule. It wraps up with a Knockout Round for the tournament’s final seven games: quarterfinals in NBA cities Dec. 4-5, followed by semifinals (Dec. 7) and the championship game (Dec. 9) played at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The league is all-in on the concept, while most of the players and coaches when asked about it have been all ears. What the In-Season Tournament lacks in history and familiarity, it definitely makes up in novelty in Year 1.
Kevin Durant makes his picks for the NBA In-Season Tournament group stages!
Tournament games tip off this Friday on ESPN & the NBA App pic.twitter.com/sMyiUVqhzw
— NBA (@NBA) November 1, 2023
“I’m not totally sure [what it will add], I’m just open to it and excited about it,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “I remember five years ago when they started talking about the Play-In, everybody said, ‘That’s a horrible idea.’ Fast-forward, obviously we were a great beneficiary of that Play-In. I wish our team from [2016-17] would have had the Play-In.”
Last spring, the seventh-place Heat were within a few minutes of being eliminated by Chicago in their second Play-In game. Instead, they rallied and marched all the way through the East bracket to the Finals. In 2016-17, Miami at 41-41 lost a tiebreaker with the Bulls to finish ninth, missing the playoffs without any Play-In mechanism.
“So I think the league understands you have to continually evolve. And when it has to do with competition, and sparking even more competition … I’m all for it.”
In-Season Tournament basics
- All 30 teams were divided randomly into three groups per conference, playing each group rival once.
- Every franchise will host its games on specially painted and stickered new courts to heighten interest. Players will wear their teams’ City Edition uniforms.
- Qualifying games will be played on Tuesday and Friday nights from Nov. 3 through Nov. 28 (not including Election Day Nov. 7). Based on records within Group Play, three winners plus one wild-card team will advance to the quarterfinals, a.k.a., the Knockout Round. Tiebreakers will apply as needed.
- Teams that don’t reach the Knockout Round will play two freshly scheduled games Dec. 6 and Dec. 8. The four teams that lose in the quarterfinals will face each other on Dec. 8.
- All teams will play 82 regular-season games, with the two In-Season finalists logging an 83rd game that will not count in the standings.
» FAQ: In-Season Tournament
NBA DEBUTS IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT COURTS FOR ALL 30 TEAMS pic.twitter.com/OHmOA8LYGL
— NBA (@NBA) October 30, 2023
What is at stake?
There is a trophy, the NBA Cup, that could get a niftier name for future In-Season Tournaments. The competitive nature of players and coaches and a brighter spotlight on Tuesdays and Fridays figure to drive the action, perhaps beyond what might be the norm for non-tournament games early each season.
The promotional video, “The Heist,” makes it clear these are not ordinary games.
Bragging rights will be up for grabs, as will an In-Season Tournament MVP award and All-Tournament berths.
Intangibles such as building winning habits and locking in against fresh rivals are expected to be part of this, too.
Lastly, there is money to be made. The cash incentive reportedly is $500,000 per player on the title team, with payments ranging from $50,000 to $200,000 for teams that make it to the Knockout Round. Will that be enough to grab the attention of stars such as Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, Damian Lillard and others who already make more than a half million dollars per game?
Maybe so.
“I did learn that there’s a prize for the champion individually,” Lillard said this week. “And also learned that [end of the roster] two-way players get that prize as well. So as somebody who has built relationships with a lot of those guys over the course of my career, I would love that. To not only be able to win it but to say, ‘We looked out for our guys.’”
Schedule for Friday, Nov. 3
Cavaliers at Pacers (East Group A)
7 p.m. ET, League Pass
- Cavs lost to Pacers on Oct. 28 but are 2-0 on the road so far.
Knicks at Bucks (East Group B)
7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
- Both teams are coming off disappointing defeats.
Warriors at Thunder (West Group C)
8 p.m. ET, League Pass
- Warriors have won nine of last 10 in series but are 11-15 overall in OKC.
Nets at Bulls (East Group C)
8 p.m. ET, League Pass
- Bulls took three of four in 2022-23, incl. Nets’ most lopsided loss in Feb. (131-87).
Wizards at Heat (East Group B)
8 p.m. ET, League Pass
- Home team won each meeting last season and eight of past nine.
Grizzlies at Trail Blazers (West Group A)
10 p.m. ET, League Pass
- Memphis is NBA’s only team still in need of a victory.
Mavericks at Nuggets (West Group B)
10 p.m. ET, ESPN
- They’ll be staying up late in Serbia (Jokic) and Slovenia (Doncic).
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.
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