Photo Courtesy: Dominic Ceraldi
By DaVince “Dino” Wright
How Does the NBA Play-in Work?
The tournament involves the teams ranked seventh though tenth in each conference. The games will determine the seventh and eighth seeds for the final two playoff teams in each conference bracket. Any stats recorded during the play-in games do not count toward a player or team’s regular season and/or postseason record.
How Many Games are in the Play-in Tournament?
There’s the two-round, three game format in each conference: Top six teams in each conference at the end of the regular season qualify for the first round of the playoffs while the teams in 7th through 10th place enter the play-in tournament from Tuesday through Friday for the two final playoff spots. The winner between the 7th and 8th seed game will be the 7th seed while the loser in that game will be play the winner of the 9th and 10th seed. The last game will be between the loser of the 8th seed playing the winner between the 9th and 10th seed. The winner between these two teams will be the 8th seed in the playoffs.
NBA Play-In Match up
Tuesday, April 15th
No. 8 Atlanta Hawks vs No. 7 Orlando Magic (6:30 p.m. CT, TNT/truTV/Max)
No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies vs No. 7 Golden State Warrior (9:00 p.m. CT, TNT/truTV/Max)
Wednesday, April 16th
No. 10 Miami Heat vs No. 9 Chicago Bulls (6:30 p.m. CT, ESPN)
No. 10 Dallas Mavericks vs No. 9 Sacramento Kings (9:00 p.m. CT, ESPN)
The Preview
No. 8 Atlanta Hawks vs No. 7 Orlando Magic
4/15 – Tuesday – 6:30 p.m. – TV: TNT/truTV/Max
Taking a birds eye view of this game, one would think that the Hawks are the better team. Don’t let the eye test fool you. The Magic are a young team that has plenty of fire power and they’re solid on the defensive end. This will be my toss-up game. Player match up: Hawks Tre Young vs Magic Franz Wagner. ESPN has the Magic with a 66.2% chance of winning this one. I’m taking Orlando by 12. The Magic is the better team right now. Final Score: Magic 124 – Hawks 112
No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies vs No. 7 Golden State Warriors
4/15 – Tuesday – 9:00 p.m. – TV: TNT/truTV/Max
Golden State’s experience will be the thing that will tip the scales in this game. Golden State became a better team with the addidtion of Jimmy Butler III from Miami. He will be the x-factor. The Grizzlies are talented but need a clear cut leader (veteran) to get them over the hump. Player match up: Warriors Steph Curry vs Grizzlies Ja Morant. ESPN has the Warriors with a 70.1% chance and I’m riding with them. The Warriors have earned their championship pedigree. Final Score: Warriors 120 – Grizzlies 104
No. 10 Miami Heat vs No. 9 Chicago Bulls
4/16 – Wednesday – 6:30 p.m. – TV: ESPN
The Bulls are a scrappy team that has the talent but has no veteran experience to take them through the playoffs. Miami on the other hand has championship talent and a coach that can make in-game adjustments. This game will come down to how well the Heat defense plays in the 3rd and 4th quarter. Player match up: Heat Tyler Herro vs Bulls Coby White. ESPN has the Bulls with a 63% chance of winning at home. I’m taking the Heat by 7. Final Score: Bulls 119 – Heat 126
No. 10 Dallas Mavericks vs No. 9 Sacramento Kings
4/16 – Wednesday – 9:00 p.m. – TV: ESPN
For the year that the Mavericks had… all of the injuries, the Luka Trade and management moves, I’m not surprised that Dallas is in this situation. To me, this shows that the Mavericks organization is solid. The Kings can pull it off at home because of the injuries that Dallas is suffering right now. Dallas has 5 players listed as out: Dereck Lively II, Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, Anthony Davis and Brandon Williams. Sacramento has two players listed as out with a bench that’s solid in an 9-man rotation. Player matchup: Mavericks Anthony Davis vs Kings DeMar DeRozan. ESPN has the Kings with a 66.6% chance of winning at home and moving on to the next game. I’m taking Dallas by 10! I believe in the Mavs. ‘Nuff said. Final Score: Kings 110 – Mavericks 120
