Several teams have asked the NBA to consider changes to qualifying for the Nos. 9 and 10 seeds, per Marc Stein of the Stein Line.
Namely, per Stein, teams would like to see the Nos. 9 and 10 seeds have to finish the regular season within a certain distance of the No. 8 seed in order to take part in play-in games.
As of now, the final record of the two lower seeds in the play-in tournament doesn’t matter. They are in regardless.
The nine and 10 seeds in each conference square off in one game, and the winner meets the loser of the game between the seven and eight seeds.
This season, the No. 8 seed in each conference failed to qualify for the playoffs, as the Cavaliers (East) and Clippers (West) each lost both of their play-in games.
Out West, the ninth-seeded Pelicans finished 36-46, or six games worse than the Clippers. And at 34-48, the 10th-seeded Spurs finished eight games behind LA.
It is unclear if the league intends to make any changes to the format for next season, though commissioner Adam Silver and the competition committee have generally been open to such dialogue.
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