As the Lakers continue their free fall in the Western Conference standing boasting a 2-8 record in their last 10 games LeBron James finally speaks out against the play-in tournament. The Lakers currently stand as the 7th seed and are 1.5 behind the 6 seeded Portland Trailblazers.
So, what is the play-in tournament anyways?
When the season concludes, the 7th and 8th seeded teams will play each other. Whoever wins that matchup is given the 7th spot and will face the 2nd seed in a regular playoff series. The loser of the 7/8 game will then play the winner of 9th and 10th seed game. Whoever wins that matchup will own the 8th seed and subsequently play a playoff series against the 1st seed.
On the surface level, it seems unfortunate that a season of hard work can be erased in only 2 games. It feels like a cheap way to end the season for a team that fought hard to make the top 8 seeds when that is all you’ve ever needed to do to make the playoffs before last year.
Let’s look at the play-in tournament from another perspective. Take a look at the standings for example:
Let’s start in the East. In regular circumstances, the Pacer and Bulls would likely be packing up their bags and getting ready to conclude their season. You could argue that these teams might start to lose on purpose in the hopes of getting more ping pong balls come lottery night.
The same could be said for the Western Conference. Even the Kings are putting their best effort with 5 games remaining this season which is something no one would remotely think is possible coming into this year. The Warriors Pelicans game was the prime time game just a week ago when the Warriors were the 9th seed and the Pelicans were the 11th seed. That is a true testament to the successful effect of this new playoff setup.
The system is not perfect. I personally believe that the 7th seed is punished way too much in this scenario. If you look at both the Eastern and Western Conference, there is a noticeable difference in talent when it comes to the Celtics and Lakers compared to those seeded below them.
If I could have it my way, the 7th seed is secured immediately. The 9th and 10th seed would play in a single elimination game. The winner of that contest would play a mini 2 games series with the 8th seed. All the 8th seed would have to do is win one of the 2 games meaning the winner of 9/10 would have to win 2 games in a row to take that spot. This system properly rewards the 8th seed for their positioning and puts them in a massively advantageous situation. My proposed play-in tournament also keeps the lower seeded teams just as engaged at the end of the season as they are now.
So, should you be in favor of the play-in game as its constructed now? The answer to that question is yes. For so many years, the conversation around the regular season is that it doesn’t matter. This injects a lot of excitement at the end of the season and pressures middle seeded teams to stay above the 7th seed and gives life to 11th seeds in the both conferences.
Additionally, 8th seeds are traditionally boring. It has not been exciting since the Grizzlies upset over the 1st seeded Spurs back in 2011. This play-in tournament gives the 8 seed a little extra juice entering the playoffs and perhaps the momentum to make the first round more interesting.
What are your thoughts on the play-in tournament this year? Let me know in the comments down below.
