• 2023 Play-In Tournament: April 11-14
• 2023 Playoffs Start: April 15
For the 2022-23 NBA season, the Play-In Tournament will take place April 11-14, 2023, between the last day of the regular season on April 9 and the start of the playoffs on April 15, and it will include the teams with the seventh-highest through the tenth-highest winning percentages in each conference.
Q: When is the 2023 Play-In Tournament?
The Play-In Tournament will begin Tuesday, April 11 and conclude Friday, April 14. The teams with the seventh-highest and eighth-highest winning percentages in each conference will each have two opportunities to win one game to earn a playoff spot. The teams with the ninth-highest and tenth-highest winning percentages in each conference will each have to win two consecutive games to earn a playoff spot.
Q: What is the Play-In Schedule?
The 2023 Play-In Tournament schedule is as follows:
APRIL 11
> GAME 1: EAST 7 VS. EAST 8
Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
> GAME 2: WEST 7 VS. WEST 8
Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
APRIL 12
> GAME 3: EAST 9 VS. EAST 10
Winner plays loser of East 7/8 game
> GAME 4: WEST 9 VS. WEST 10
Winner plays loser of West 7/8 game
APRIL 14
> GAME 5: EAST LOSER 7/8 VS. EAST WINNER 9/10
Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
> GAME 6: WEST LOSER 7/8 VS. WEST WINNER 9/10
Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
Q: How will the Play-In Tournament be structured?
At the conclusion of the regular season but before the first round of the playoffs, the team with the 7th-highest winning percentage in each conference will host the team with the 8th-highest winning percentage in a Play-In Game (the “Seven-Eight Game”). The winner of the Seven-Eight Game in each conference will earn the No. 7 seed.
The team with the 9th-highest winning percentage in each conference will host the team with the 10th-highest winning percentage in the “Nine-Ten Game”. 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.
Q: What happens to the winners of the Play-In Tournament?
The winners of the Play-In tournament will receive the 7th and 8th-seeded positions in each conference. Following the Play-In Tournament, the NBA playoffs will commence with the traditional 16-team, best-of-seven series structure.
Q: When Do The Playoffs Start?
The NBA playoffs will start on Saturday, April 15, 2023.
