After rumors came out over a year ago about a potential NBA In-Season Tournament being announced, we have since gotten confirmation that the tournament is indeed real and we will all see it in action this November-December. Many of the rumors were unclear on what the games would look like, how teams would be matched up, and what the teams would be playing for. After a thorough review of league communications, we’re here to break it down:
First Off, What Is It?
The NBA In-Season Tournament is not an additional set of games added to the regular season (unless you make it to the championship game, that is), but instead is built into the usually scheduled regular season schedule. Teams will compete for a prize pool, as well as championship and All-Tournament Team honors (and even a chance to win Tournament MVP!)
How Does It Work?
The tournament is comprised of Group Play and Knockout Rounds, the latter of which culminates in a potential championship berth. Teams will compete in their assigned groups (6 groups of 5, 3 groups in each conference) and battle each other between November 3-28 to see if they advance further into the tournament. Teams are seeded by their W/L record of the previous year in their conference, and as such will host a wide range of talent being put on display. As mentioned, these games will be treated as regular season games, however, they are unique in that the regular season has been partially shaped to cater to this development.
Who Are The Groups?
| East Group A | East Group B | East Group C |
| Philadelphia 76ers | Milwaukee Bucks | Boston Celtics |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | New York Knicks | Brooklyn Nets |
| Atlanta Hawks | Miami Heat | Toronto Raptors |
| Indiana Pacers | Washington Wizards | Chicago Bulls |
| Detroit Pistons | Charlotte Hornets | Orlando Magic |
| West Group A | West Group B | West Group C |
| Memphis Grizzlies | Denver Nuggets | Sacramento Kings |
| Phoenix Suns | L.A. Clippers | Golden State Warriors |
| L.A. Lakers | New Orleans Pelicans | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| Utah Jazz | Dallas Mavericks | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| Portland Trail Blazers | Houston Rockets | San Antonio Spurs |
Group Play
Between November 3-28, every Tuesday and Friday will be host to designated Tournament Nights that will only be comprised of Group Play. For example, the 5 teams in the Eastern Conference Group A will only play each other on Tournament Nights to determine who moves on to a later round. Teams will play a total of 4 Group Play games, with two home games and two road games for each competing team.
Those that finish at the top of their group will be eligible to move on to the Knockout Rounds of the tournament, as well as two Wild Card teams. Those Wild Card teams will essentially be the highest “runner-up” from each conference and will bring the total of Knockout Round teams to 8. In the event that teams end up tied in either Group Play record or for consideration for a Wild Card selection, the NBA will use a series of tiebreakers to declare a winner. The tiebreakers are as follows:
- Head-to-head record in the Group Stage;
- Point differential in the Group Stage;
- Total points scored in the Group Stage;
- Regular season record from the 2022-23 NBA regular season; and
- Random drawing (in the scenario that two or more teams are still tied following the previous tiebreakers).
Knockout Rounds
Next up after Group Play will be the Knockout Rounds. Once the top 6 Group finishers and 2 Wild Card teams are selected, they will move on to the Knockout Rounds, which will take place between December 4-9 and includes both the semifinals and In-Season Tournament Championship. Teams that have advanced to the Knockout Rounds will play each other in single-elimination style games, which other than the championship game will count towards regular season wins and statistics (as mentioned earlier, the championship game will not be counted as a regular season game, and neither will the statistics recorded by players be counted as regular season stats.) Games outside the semifinal and championship will be hosted by the team with the better Group Play record, and the top team from each conference will host the wild card teams from their respective conference. If there is a tie for best in-conference, the same tie-breakers used for Group Play would be used.
For the 22 teams that did not qualify for this round, they will play two regular season games on non-tournament nights on December 6th and 8th. Teams will be matched up based on Group Play standings and will feature a majority of in-conference games as well as 2 non-conference games to compensate for the uneven amount of teams not participating in the Knockout Rounds. The teams that lose in the Quarterfinals will play on December 8th against the same conference team that also lost in the Quarterfinals (East loser plays other East loser, etc.)
Those that do make it past the Quarterfinals will play in the Semifinals and then the Championship game, which is hosted on December 7th and 9th, respectively. These two rounds will be hosted at a neutral site, with this year’s site being at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. There has not been word if this will be the permanent home for the Tournament, so we’ll stay tuned to learn more.
Winners of the Championship will be taking home some hardware, and all players will be made eligible for Tournament MVP and All-Tournament Team honors, which will be sure to expand some players’ hardware and accolade horde. Additionally, there will be a cash prize incentive, with Championship winners bringing in 500k a player, runner-up team bringing in 200k per player, semifinalists bringing in 100k per player, and quarterfinalists bringing in 50k a player.
So… What’s The Point?
The question of the day! This tournament is a culmination of the NBA’s long-held vision of bringing a European cup-style competition to the league. It will add an extra wrinkle to the regular season and will make the 82-game slog a little bit more interesting. The placement of the tournament in the first half of the season is a good selection, as it adds a bit of excitement before the All-Star Weekend and when the competition really takes it up a notch after the All-Star Break. We see this as an entertainment move by Adam Silver, who has greatly shown his hand in wanting to expand the NBA’s reach and ratings by consistently implementing changes that get people to tune in (Hello, once-lamented and now-celebrated Play-In Tournament).
If it ups competition and suspense and gets more people to watch regular-season basketball to appreciate its beauty, we’re all in on this being one of the most exciting additions in some time.
Image from NBA.com
Header image from Marca.com
Spencer Wood 
