How Are The NBA Playoffs Going To Work?

It’s been a long and winding road to the NBA playoffs this year, but now that we’re finally here, how are they actually going to work?

Introduction

The NBA playoffs are about to start, and there are some big changes this year. First and foremost, the playoffs have been expanded to include 22 teams instead of the usual 16. That’s because the regular season was cut short due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so the league needed to find a way to include more teams in the postseason.

Here’s how it’s going to work: The playoff field will be made up of the top six seeds from each conference, plus four “play-in” teams from each conference. The play-in teams will be the seventh and eighth seeds from each conference, with the seventh seed facing off against the eighth seed in a one-game playoff. The winner of that game will earn the seventh seed in the playoffs, while the loser will get another chance to make the playoffs by facing off against the ninth seed in a second one-game playoff.

The winner of that second play-in game will be the eighth and final seed in each conference’s playoffs. So basically, there will be two extra playoff games played before the first round of the playoffs even begins.

The expanded playoffs mean that there will be more basketball to watch than ever before, and it also means that any team can make a run at winning a championship. So even if your team didn’t have a great regular season, there’s still hope for them in 2020!

The NBA’s plan

The NBA has released their plan for the 2020 NBA playoffs. The playoffs will begin on August 17th and will end no later than October 13th. The first round will be best-of-seven series, the second round will be best-of-seven series, the conference finals will be best-of-seven series, and the Finals will be best-of-seven series.

Seeding

The NBA has decided to seed all teams in the playoffs, regardless of conference affiliation. The announcement was made on June 3rd, 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This means that the 16 best teams in the league will be ranked according to their record, regardless of whether they play in the Eastern or Western Conference. The team with the best record will be seeded first, and so on.

The decision was made in order to ensure that the best teams have the best chance of winning the NBA Championship, regardless of conference affiliation.

It is unclear how this will affect rivalries between teams in different conferences, but it is sure to add an extra layer of excitement to an already thrilling playoff format.

Format

The NBA playoffs will soon be upon us, and there is a lot unknown about how they will function. The league has released some information about the format, but many things are still up in the air. Here is what we know so far:

There will be eight regular season games for each team.
The playoffs will then begin with four best-of-seven series in the first round.
The second round will also be four best-of-seven series.
The Conference Finals will be best-of-seven series.
The NBA Finals will be a best-of-seven series.

Seeding for the playoffs will be based on each team’s record in the eight regular season games. It is unclear how ties will be broken at this time. The higher seed will have home court advantage in every series except for the NBA Finals, which will not have home court advantage.

We do not know the start date or location of the playoffs at this time, but it is expected that they will start in late July and early August.

Location

The NBA has not yet decided on a single location for the playoffs, but they are considering using the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, as a possible site. The resort has multiple basketball courts that could be used for games, and it also has several hotels that could be used to house teams and staff. There are also several other potential sites that are being considered.

The implications

As the regular season comes to an end, the NBA playoffs are set to begin. This year, there are a few changes to how the playoffs will work. The biggest change is that there will be two play-in tournaments for the seventh and eighth seeds in each conference. This means that more teams will have a chance to make it to the playoffs. However, it also means that the playoffs will be longer than usual.

For the players

The NBA has not released the details of the plan yet, but it is clear that the playoffs will look very different this year. For one thing, there will be no home court advantage. All games will be played at a neutral site in Orlando, Florida. This means that the team with the better record will not have the advantage of playing in front of their home crowd.

In addition, the playoffs will be single-elimination rather than the best-of-seven series that is typically used. This means that each game will be even more important, as one loss will mean the end of a team’s season. The NBA has not said how many teams will make it to the playoffs, but it is likely that there will be fewer than usual.

This presents a unique challenge for teams and players. Usually, teams that are down 0-2 in a best-of-seven series have some time to regroup and make adjustments before facing elimination. But in a single-elimination format, they would need to win four straight games against better teams to advance.

Players will also need to be in top shape as they will likely be asked to play more minutes than usual. In a best-of-seven series, players can take days off between games to rest and recover. But in a single-elimination format, they would need to play every other day at most.

The NBA playoffs are typically one of the most exciting times of the year for basketball fans. But this year, they will be even more exciting as we wait to see how this new format plays out.

For the fans

The NBA has been on hiatus since March 11th due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.
Recently, the NBA has proposed a plan to restart the season in late July at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Obviously, this is great news for fans of the NBA, as we will finally get to see some basketball action again. However, there are some concerns about how this will affect the playoffs.

According to ESPN, if the regular season does resume, each team will play eight games to finish out the regular season.
Based on their current records, this would mean that the Milwaukee Bucks would be the number one seed in the Eastern Conference, and the Los Angeles Lakers would be the number one seed in the Western Conference.
However, there is a possibility that not all teams will choose to participate in the restart of the season.
For example, if a team has already been eliminated from playoff contention, they may choose not to participate in order to save money and prevent injuries to their players.
In addition, some players may choose to sit out due to concerns about contracting the virus.
It is also possible that players who do contract the virus will not be able to play.
All of these factors could potentially lead to an uneven playing field in the playoffs.

It is still unclear how exactly the playoffs will work if the season does restart.
ESPN reports that one option being considered is having all thirty teams play in a tournament-style format in which only sixteen teams would make it to the actual playoffs.
This would obviously be very different from what we are used to seeing in terms of playoff format, but it could be interesting nonetheless. Another option being considered is simply expanding the current playoff field from sixteen teams to twenty or twenty-four teams.
This would give more teams a chance to compete for a championship and would make for an interesting and unique playoff race.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the NBA playoffs are going to look a lot different this year. With the bubble format and the play-in tournament, it should be an exciting and competitive postseason.