More Details on Potential NBA In-Season Tournament Emerge

This concept reportedly could occur as early as the 2023-24 season.

The NBA Board of Governors met Tuesday and reportedly discussed new details about the in-season tournament that’s long been bandied about in league circles. 

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the tournament would include all 30 teams, with eight teams qualifying for a single elimination format to crown the winner. The semifinals would reportedly be at a neutral location, and it could come as soon as the 2023-24 season. 

NBA commissioner Adam Silver commented in February about the success of the play-in tournament, which has seemingly paved the way for the possibility of an in-season tournament. The first iteration of the play-in tournament was created during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic when the league was in its Orlando bubble in 2020 as a way to give some teams a chance at qualifying for the playoffs with a reduced regular season schedule. 

Silver said in February, per The Athletic, that “in some ways, the players have been more receptive to the possibility of an in-season tournament, because the Play-In has been a bit more successful.”

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported in December 2021 that momentum had started to grow again for an in-season tournament. He wrote at the time that “the sides have discussed a purse of $1 million per player for the winning team, and the players could see more financial and competitive incentives before an agreement on the format.”

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