The NBA introduced the Play-In tournament in the 2020-21 season. The reactions since have been somewhat mixed, but mostly positive amongst fans. Allowing two more teams to have playoff hopes, along with some one-game eliminations, has certainly been an exciting addition to the end of the regular season.
What was an experimental addition to the NBA became a fixed format this season. Here is how the competition will work and what the Play-In tournament will look like for both the West and East Conferences of the NBA.
NBA Play-In Tournament schedule 2022-23 season
- EAST CONFERENCE
- Atlanta Hawks at Miami Heat: Tuesday April 11th: 7:30 pm ET – TNT
- Chicago Bulls at Toronto Raptors: Wednesday April 12th: 7:00 pm ET – ESPN
- WEST CONFERENCE
- Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers: Tuesday April 11th 10:00 pm ET – TNT
- Oklahoma Thunder at New Orleans Pelicans: Wednesday April 12th 9:30 pm ET – ESPN
NBA PLAY-IN GAMES 5 and 6
FINAL 1: East loser 7/8 at East winner 9/10, 7:30 p.m. ET – TNT
FINAL 2: West loser 7/8 at West winner 9/10, 9:30 p.m. ET – ESPN
How does the NBA Play-In Tournament work?
This NBA Play-In tournament consists of four Eastern Conference teams and four Western Conference franchises who didn’t manage to clinch direct playoff spots.
Only the top six teams per conference are now guaranteed an NBA playoff spot at the end of the regular season. Teams that ended with seeds 7 through 10 have their playoffs hopes completely at stake.
The Play-In Tournament has three games in each conference for a total of six games. In both conferences, the teams losing on April 11 will host the winning teams from April 12. The winning team of of this game will be the eighth seed in the NBA Playoffs for its conference. The losing team’s season will be over.