NBA Play-In 2023: schedule, pairs and format / News - Basketnews.com

NBA Play-In Tournament 2023: key dates, bracket, format, teams, and pairs. The tournament will begin on April 11 and go until April 15. Play-In participants: Heat, Hawks, Raptors, Bulls, Lakers, Minnesota, NOP, and OKC.

Credit: AP - Scanpix, USA TODAY Sports Credit AP - Scanpix, USA TODAY Sports

With the 2022-23 NBA regular season in the books, it's time to decide which two teams of each conference will earn a spot in the NBA Playoffs.

Minnesota Timberwolves / Schedule

San Antonio Spurs Minnesota Timberwolves131-151 Minnesota Timberwolves New Orleans Pelicans113-108 Los Angeles Lakers Minnesota Timberwolves108-102 Minnesota Timberwolves Oklahoma City Thunder120-95

Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, and Chicago Bulls will give it a try in the Eastern Conference, while West Play-In participants include the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, and Oklahoma City Thunder.

The NBA Play-In Tournament 2023 begins on April 11 and ends on April 14.

The NBA Playoffs 2023 will follow shortly. It starts on April 15 and goes until June 18 at the latest.

Play-In Format

At the conclusion of the regular season but before the first round of the playoffs, the team with the 7th seed in each conference will host the team with the 8th seed in a Play-In Game. The winner of this game in each conference will earn the No. 7 seed.

The team with the 9th seed in each conference will host the team with the 10th seed. The loser of the Seven-Eight Game will host the winner of the Nine-Ten Game in a Play-In Game, and the winner of that game in each conference will earn the No. 8 seed.

In other words, the 7th and 8th seeds are guaranteed to qualify for the playoffs if they win their first game, while the 9th and 10th seeds must win both of their games to qualify.

Pairs

Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament:

Miami Heat (7) 105-116 Atlanta Hawks (8) Toronto Raptors (9) 105-109 Chicago Bulls (10) Miami Heat (7) 102-91 Chicago Bulls (10)

Western Conference Play-In Tournament:

Los Angeles Lakers (7) 108-102 Minnesota Timberwolves (8) New Orleans Pelicans (9) 118-123 Oklahoma City Thunder (10) Minnesota Timberwolves (8) 120-95 Oklahoma City Thunder (10)

Key Dates

April 11: Play-In Game 1 Miami vs. Atlanta > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs April 11: Play-In Game 2 Lakers vs. Timberwolves > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs April 12: Play-In Game 3 Chicago vs. Toronto > Winner plays the loser of the East 7/8 game April 12: Play-In Game 4 Pelicans vs. Thunder > Winner plays the loser of the West 7/8 game April 14: Play-In Game 5 East Loser 7/8 vs. East Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs April 14: Play-In Game 6 West Loser 7/8 vs. West Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs April 15: NBA Playoffs 2023 begin Thank you for being with us! Subscribe to BN+ and browse ad-free.