Play‑In tips off Tuesday
The NBA Play‑In Tournament is set to tip off Tuesday with an opening slate that includes Heat vs. Hornets and Trail Blazers vs. Suns. (usatoday.com) USA Today also notes the play‑in field is officially locked and the tournament begins in two days, turning seeding talk into immediate matchups. (usatoday.com)
The National Basketball Association Play-In Tournament starts Tuesday, April 14, with Miami at Charlotte and Portland at Phoenix opening the race for the final playoff seeds. (nba.com) The Eastern Conference opener is Hornets vs. Heat at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time, and the loser is out of the postseason. The Western Conference game follows at 10 p.m. Eastern time with Suns vs. Trail Blazers, and the winner takes the No. 7 seed. (cbssports.com) The other two play-in games are Wednesday, April 15: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Orlando Magic at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time for the East’s No. 7 seed, and Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors at 10 p.m. Eastern time, with the loser eliminated. Both games are scheduled for Prime. (cbssports.com) The format gives the No. 7 and No. 8 teams two chances to qualify. The 7-8 winner becomes the No. 7 seed, while the 7-8 loser hosts the 9-10 winner on Friday, April 17, for the No. 8 seed. (nba.com) That setup turns Tuesday into two very different nights. Charlotte and Miami are in a one-game elimination matchup, while Phoenix and Portland are playing directly for a playoff berth with a safety net for the loser. (cbssports.com) All 20 postseason seeds were locked when the regular season ended Sunday, April 12. Four first-round series are already set, and four more spots will be filled through the play-in by Friday night. (cbssports.com) The teams waiting on those results are already known. In the East, the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics will face the eventual No. 8 and No. 7 seeds, while in the West the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs are waiting on the play-in winners. (cbssports.com) The play-in is now in its sixth year after the league and the National Basketball Players Association approved the format in June 2020. The National Basketball Association says the event was designed to keep more teams in contention deeper into the regular season. (cbssports.com) By Saturday, April 18, the bracket will be complete and the first round will begin. Tuesday is the first cut: two teams move closer to the playoffs, and two others move to the edge. (nba.com)
