The NBA and NBPA reportedly have come to an agreement to continue the new play-in tournament for the 2021-22 season.
The play-in tournament started in the Orlando bubble when the eighth seed, ninth seed and 10th seed in the Western Conference faced off to see who would claim the eighth spot.
For the 2020-21 season, the NBA revamped it to include the seventh seed in both conferences.
The seventh and eighth seed faced off to finalize the seventh seed. The ninth seed and 10th seed played to compete against the loser of the seventh-eighth seed match for the eighth seed.
This year, the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors competed in the seventh-eighth seed game in the West and drew high ratings on ESPN.
Though it’s difficult to predict who will be in the play-in tournament next season — the Lakers and Warriors ended up there only because of injuries — it provided an incentive for teams to push for a playoff spot rather than purposefully tank for a better draft pick.
The momentum the play-in tournament gained this season will likely persist next season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
The NBA and the Players Association have agreed to extend the play-in tournament format through the 2021-2022 season, sources tell ESPN. The league’s Board of Governors will make it official in a formal vote soon.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 16, 2021
The last step is to have the board of governors certify the agreement, which should happen in a meeting slated for sometime in August.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently said he expected the tournament to continue for next season, and it appears the league will make it happen soon.
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