In the next season of the National Basketball Association, teams will have a fiercer fight for the last two places in the playoffs than usual, the new match format was revealed by the NBA on Tuesday.
There will be 72 games in the NBA regular season next season, which is ten less than usual. This will allow the playoffs to close in July, allowing players to participate in the Tokyo Olympics.
The NBA revealed that the biggest changes are expected for the teams, which will take the seventh to tenth place in their conferences, respectively, as the playoffs approach.
Earlier, after the end of the regular championship, the eight best teams of each conference reached the playoffs, but next season a mini-tournament is still expected before the “play-off”. A similar format was implemented in Orlando after the season was suspended for more than three months.
The new format requires the winner of the seventh place in each conference to meet the team in the eighth position of their conference. The winner of this match will win seventh place in the conference, but the loser will have to meet the team that previously won the duel between the ninth and tenth position units.
After this match, the eighth of both conferences will also be determined, who will continue the season in the playoffs.
The NBA reports that next season’s game schedule will be published in installments. The calendar for the first months will be known when the clubs start their training camps.
The calendar for the second half of the season could be published after half of the scheduled games have taken place.
It has already been reported that the NBA 2020/2021 season will begin on December 22, but the first test matches are scheduled for December 11.
The final phase of last season took place at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando. The last match of the season took place on October 11, when the Los Angeles Lakers secured a 4-2 victory over the Miami Heat in the final series.
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