Guide for NBA's In-Season Tournament: How does it work?
NBA's In-Season Tournament officially begins Friday. This is the first year the NBA is doing the tournament, and all 30 NBA teams will participate. This tournament will be of much discussion this fall, and here is a guide to how the tournament works as well as other key information.
How does NBA's In-Season Tournament work?
NBA's In-Season Tournament contains two different stages: The first stage being Group Play and the second being the Knockout Rounds. As far as Group Play goes, all 30 teams have been divided into six groups of five teams (three groups per conference). These groups were crafted based off of the teams' regular season records in the 2022-23 season.
Each team will play one game against each opposing team in their group (four games total) on "Tournament Nights" that will take place on Tuesdays and Fridays through Nov. 28, (with the exception of Nov. 7, due to Election Day). Every team will play two games at home and two games on the road. These initial games are part of the regular season schedule. After that, the Knockout Rounds begin.
What group of the NBA's In-Season Tournament are the Phoenix Suns in?
The Phoenix Suns are part of the 'West Group A.' They are in that group alongside the L.A. Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers.
When is the Phoenix Suns' first NBA In-Season Tournament game?
The Phoenix Suns play their first NBA In-Season Tournament game on Nov. 10, at Footprint Center vs. the Lakers.
What are the Knockout Rounds in NBA's In-Season Tournament?
The team in each group with the best record during the group play games, as well as two wild card teams will advance to the Knockout Rounds of NBA's In-Season Tournament. The wild card teams will be one team from each conference that posts the best Group Play record from among the second-place teams in their group. The Knockout Rounds are single-elimination games over a three-round bracket of the eight teams that advanced.
The first round (Quarterfinals) of the Knockout Rounds will be played on Dec. 4 and Dec. 5. The four teams that advance to the Semifinals will be playing at neutral sites on Dec. 7. The Championship will be played at a neutral site as well on Dec. 9.
Do In-Season Tournament wins/losses count towards regular season records?
Every single game played in the NBA's In-Season Tournament will count towards the teams' regular season records that determine their standing for the NBA Postseason and NBA Play-In Tournaments, except for the Championship game. Every team will continue playing regular season games after the In-Season Tournament until every team has played 82 games.
Why is the NBA doing the In-Season Tournament?
The NBA has historically had a tougher time generating television ratings before Christmas Day, and therefore the league wants to generate more interest in the regular season early. Note how the tournament schedule is completed before Christmas Day. The NBA is expecting fans to have sparked interest in this tournament due to it being something more to play and compete for during the year than just the championship at the end of the postseason.
The NBA In-Season Tournament champions will earn $500,000 for each player on the team. Other incentives are still awarded for the other teams who make the Quarterfinals and Semifinals (in the form of $50,000 per player up to $200,000 per player). This is to draw incentive from the players to participate and compete to the fullest during the tournament during the load management era.
Are the courts played on during the NBA's In-Season Tournament different?
Different court designs will be implemented during every game of the NBA's In-Season Tournament. Each court will be one solid color, and a different colored-stripe will run through the middle of the courts. The courts will contain logos that nod to the tournament both at mid-court and in each key near the baskets.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NBA's In-Season Tournament: How does it work and why is it happening?
