Will Teams Buy Into the In-Season Tournament?
Photo Credit: Dan Devine via The Ringer
The NBA has perpetually attempted to enhance the level of competitiveness throughout the league. The recently implemented play-in games, although somewhat controversial, provide teams with more opportunities to battle for playoff spots. Adam Silver and the rest of the league have decided to build off this idea by creating a new tradition in the NBA: an in-season tournament.
The tournament will begin on November 3, concluding with a championship game on December 9. All 30 teams will split up into three groups per conference. These groups will drawn randomly according to last season’s regular season records. Teams will play each team in their group once for a total of four games. The top eight teams will advance to single-elimination playoff games until two teams remain to compete for the In-Season Tournament Cup. Besides the championship game, all games will count toward teams’ regular season records.
So, what is the incentive for teams to truly compete in this tournament? Obviously, teams will be competing for the NBA Cup. Additionally, there will be distinguished league honors presented after the tournament. One player will be granted the Most Valuable Player award, as well as one team the All-Tournament team. Moreover, a prize pool will be allocated to the players on the teams that advance to the single-elimination playoff games. For example, each player on these teams will receive $50,000. This prize money will increase as a team advances further.
My question is whether or not teams will take the tournament seriously. I am in favor of these games counting towards regular season games so that their importance is not diminished. My ambivalence towards the individual player prize pool stems from the fact that irrelevant bench players can potentially win money for contributing nothing at all. However, my primary concern and recommendation is that there still needs to be more incentives. Perhaps the top X number of teams should be granted special privileges, such as a higher seed in the real playoffs, to add more weight to the tournament. The NBA Cup may be perceived as a meaningless accolade. Who cares about the NBA Cup when teams are competing for the real prize in an NBA Championship? I worry that some teams will consider resting their best players during the tournament, essentially using it as another all-star break.
Although I have concerns about the tournament, I admire the league for implementing the idea. It will surely appeal to fans by providing more exciting games and competition throughout the regular season. Which team do you think will win the inaugural NBA Tournament League Cup?
