NBA Play-In Tournament Explained: How Seeds 7 Through 10 Battle In
Ten teams per conference still have a shot when the regular season ends. Here is how the NBA Play-In decides the last playoff spots.
Before the Play-In Tournament, NBA teams that finished ninth or 10th had little to play for late in the season. Now, the final week often decides a lot. The Play-In decides the 7th and 8th playoff seeds in each conference.
Who Qualifies
In each conference:
- Seeds 1 to 6 go straight to the playoffs.
- Seeds 7 to 10 enter the Play-In.
How the Games Work
- 7 vs. 8: The winner earns the 7th seed.
- 9 vs. 10: The loser is eliminated.
- Loser of 7 vs. 8 hosts winner of 9 vs. 10: The winner earns the 8th seed.
The 7th and 8th place teams get two chances to win one game. The 9th and 10th place teams must win twice.
Home Court
The higher seed hosts each Play-In game, so finishing 7th instead of 8th, or 9th instead of 10th, matters.
What Comes Next
The 7th seed faces the No. 2 seed in the first round, and the 8th seed faces the No. 1 seed. Play-In teams often arrive tired, but they also arrive battle tested.
Background from Wikipedia
NBA play-in tournament
The NBA play-in tournament is the annual preliminary National Basketball Association (NBA) postseason tournament. It determines the final two playoff seeds in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference and is played immediately prior to the NBA playoffs, which is the main tournament of the postseason and regarded by the league as separate from the play-in tournament. Teams finishing the regular season in positions 7 through 10 in the standings for each conference compete to determine the number 7 and 8 seeds in each conference's bracket tournament.
Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Frequently Asked Questions
How many teams are in the NBA Play-In Tournament?
Eight teams: the teams that finish 7th through 10th in each conference.
Can the 10th seed make the NBA playoffs?
Yes. The 10th seed must win two road games in the Play-In, first against the 9th seed and then against the loser of the 7 vs. 8 game, to earn the 8th seed.
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