2023 In-Season Tournament Championship Game – Indiana Pacers v Los Angeles Lakers
The In-Season Tournament will return next season, but it won’t look the same.
“People are tired of hearing the word ‘tweak,’ so we’ll come up with another synonym for that,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said — then he talked about possible tweaks to the system for next season. The league has been clear from the start this process would evolve and change (much like the format of the All-Star Game).
Let’s break down the changes on the table.
• Should there be an incentive for the organizations that win the tournament? This has been the most discussed thing in league circles. The Lakers players and coaches got some extra cash in their pockets (and a trip to Vegas during the season), but what did the fans and organization get outside of watching the team win?
There has been talk of possibly guaranteeing a play-in spot at least for the winner (hypothetically, the Lakers in this scenario could finish no worse than the No. 7 or 8 seed). However, the idea of messing with the playoff seeding from the regular season has generally not set well around the league. The idea of giving the winner an extra draft pick — hypothetically the 31st pick in the draft or something — didn’t sit well with players and agents. “Hey, play hard in these games and we’ll reward the team with a way to replace you” is not a strong motivator.
Other ideas have been floated, such as adding one win to the champion’s total or giving them the ultimate tiebreaker for any playoff seeding. One way or another, expect the league to add something to the prize pool next season for the organization and fans to get behind.
• Those courts that burned the rods and cones in your eyes will be back in some form. Accept it.
“I’m a big advocate of the colorful courts,” Silver said. “Obviously, we want it make sure the players have confidence in them and the type of paint used isn’t more slippery. I think we dealt with those issues, incidentally, but want to make sure they are not a distraction.”
Players thought some of the courts were slippery and that has to be the No. 1 priority…
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