NBA in-season tournament: How it works, why it’s happening, schedule, and more

The NBA in-season tournament is happening throughout Nov. Here’s how it works.

The NBA is debuting an in-season tournament for the first time in league history during the 2023-2024 season. The in-season tournament is built into the regular season schedule, and consists of two stages: group play and the knockout rounds. Group play will happen every Tuesday and Friday during Nov. Eight teams will advance to the knockout rounds and face-off in a bracket format until a champion is crowned on Dec. 9.

Teams are split up into three different groups in each conference to begin the tournament. The top team from each group advances to the knockout stage. That team with the best record in group play that doesn’t win the group in each conference will also advance as the “wild card” team. The semifinals and finals will be hosted in Las Vegas.

Teams will wear their City Edition uniforms and play on custom courts during in-season tournament games. If you aren’t totally up to speed on how all of this works yet, don’t worry: even NBA players are confused. Here’s what you need to know about the NBA in-season tournament this season.

NBA in-season tournament format, groups, and schedule

The NBA placed every Eastern Conference team into three groups, and every Western Conference team in three groups. The teams will play everyone in their group once. Each team will play two home games and two away games in group play. The team that finishes with the best record in group play will advance to the knockout rounds.

The group play rounds will take place every Tuesday and Friday during Nov.

Here are the groups for the NBA in-season tournament.

West Group A: Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers.

West Group B: Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets.

West Group C: Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs.

East Group A: Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons

East Group B: Milwaukee Bucks, New Yorks Knicks, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets

East Group C: Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic

The tie-breakers for group play are as follows:

1. Head-to-head record in the Group Stage
2. Point differential in the Group Stage
3. Total points scored in the Group Stage

When is the NBA in-season tournament happening?

The group play rounds will take place every Tuesday and Friday during Nov.

The quarterfinals will take place on Monday Dec. 4 and Tuesday Dec. 5. The semifinals will happen on Thursday, Dec. 7. The finals happen on Dec. 9.

The semifinals and finals will be hosted in Las Vegas.

Does the NBA in-season tournament count in regular season standings?

Every game in the in-season tournament will count in the regular-season standings except for the championship game, per NBA.com.

What are the NBA in-season tournament prizes?

The NBA is handing out cash to players for success in the in-season tournament. For the team that wins the tournament, each player will receive $500K. For the runner-up, each player will receive $200K. Players on teams that reach the semifinals will receive $100K each, while players on teams that reach the quarterfinals will receive $50K each.

The league will also hand out its In-Season Tournament MVP award and make the All-Tournament Team.