4 bold predictions heading into the NBA Play-In Tournament
Four bold predictions for the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Less than a week away from the official start 2023 NBA Playoffs, it’s the NBA Play-In Tournament that will get the postseason started. The Play-In Tournament, which features four teams in each conference battling out for the final two playoff spots, will begin Tuesday, April 11, and conclude Friday, April 14. Once the final two seeds are decided, the playoffs will begin Saturday, April 15.
The NBA Play-In Tournament will give us a nice warmup to what we could possibly expect once the playoffs begin. And the fact that it’s a one-game sample makes it all the more entertaining. Teams in a win-or-go-home environment is not something that is common in the NBA, but the Play-In Tournament does a great job of that.
The official schedule for the NBA Play-In Tournament
In the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, and Chicago Bulls are the four teams that will be battling it out of the final two playoff spots. In the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Oklahoma City Thunder will be fighting for their 7th and 8th spots.
Heading into this week’s NBA Play-In Tournament, here is the official schedule:
- Game 1 – (8) Atlanta Hawks vs. Miami Heat (7) – Tuesday, April 11 @ 7:30 p.m. ET
- Game 2 – (8) Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Los Angeles Lakers (7) – Tuesday, April 11 @ 10:00 p.m. ET
- Game 3 – (10) Chicago Bulls vs. Toronto Rapotrs (9) – Wednesday, April 12 @ 7:00 p.m. ET
- Game 4 – (10) Okahoma City Thunder vs. New Orleans Pelicans (9) – Wednesday, April 12 @ 9:30 p.m. ET
- Game 5 – (winner of Game 3) vs. (loser of Game 1) – Friday, April 14 @ 7/7:30 p.m. ET
- Game 6 – (winner of Game 4) vs. (loser of Game 2) – Friday, April 14 @ 9:30/10:00 p.m. ET
In anticipation of the start of the NBA Play-Tournament, we make four bold predictions.