NBA Rumors: Owners favor play-in tournament, jumping straight to playoffs
As the NBA inches closer to a potential resumption of the 2019-20 season, there are plenty of potential options to how the season will look like with it returns that still on the table.
However, according to a recent report, NBA owners reportedly favor making a return that includes jumping straight to the playoffs (bypassing the final few games of the regular season for all teams), along with a play-in tournament to determine the final few playoff seeds in each conference.
"[via The Ringer]"
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"Half of the league’s general managers voted to go straight to the playoffs and cancel the rest of the regular season, sources said. Just over half of the league voted to reseed the playoffs 1 to 16 without factoring in conference affiliation.…About 75 percent of teams voted in favor of a play-in tournament, sources said, while 25 percent of teams voted in favor of the group stage."
NBA isn’t ready for World Cup-style innovation
It’s no surprise that NBA owners would favor a playoff-plus play-in tournament-style to determine the last couple of playoff spots in each conference as opposed to a World Cup-style group stage play to determine playoff teams.
The group stage format always seemed like a pipe dream for innovative fans, perhaps the same ones that are hoping the NBA abolishes conferences altogether and is not something that the NBA and its owners are ready for.
Maybe it’s an idea that could eventually make its way to the NBA, but despite my excitement surrounding a possible change, this isn’t one that makes sense for the current situation.
The play-in tournament makes the most sense and would seem like the fairest. The question, of course, now revolves around how many teams they’re going to allow in said tournament. Will the owners decide to let four, five, or even six from each conference to determine the final two playoff spots in each conference? It’s not an easy decision to make, and perhaps it’s different depending on how the standings are currently set.
There are so many options still on the table, but you’d have to think that the NBA and the owners will want to come to a decision sooner rather than later so they can continue to put together protocol as the league inches closer to a return.