Full NBA Play-In Tournament schedule, time, dates, channels & more
By Will Eudy
All 30 NBA teams were in action Sunday afternoon with a multitude of playoff implications on the line. Now that the dust has settled and the regular season is over, we know where the Los Angeles Lakers' fate lies, along with the other 19 teams taking part in the postseason.
Of course, not all 20 teams will actually make it to the playoffs. Two more teams from each conference will be eliminated this week in the Play-In tournament. As a reminder, the seven and eight seeds from the West and the East will be pitted against one another in a single-elimination format, along with the nine and ten seeds.
The winner of the seven-eight matchup will earn the seven seed for the playoffs, and the loser of the nine-ten matchup is eliminated. The only remaining contest at that point will be between the loser of the seven-eight matchup and the winner of the nine-ten matchup, the winner of which earns the eight seed for the playoffs.
With that in mind, these are the matchups we will see in the Play-In tournament this week.
NBA Play-In tournament matchups, dates, times
Western Conference
- No. 7 New Orleans Pelicans vs. No. 8 Los Angeles Lakers - Tuesday, April 16, 7:30 PM ET, TNT
- No. 9 Sacramento Kings vs. No. 10 Golden State Warriors - Tuesday, April 16, 10:00 PM ET, TNT
- Eighth Seed Game: Loser of 7 vs. 8 vs. Winner of 9 vs. 10 - Friday, April 19, Time TBD, TNT
The Lakers will be playing on the road against the Pelicans for the right to earn the seven seed and a matchup with the defending champion Denver Nuggets. The loser of that matchup will then play the winner of Kings versus Warriors, with the winner there claiming the eight seed.
Eastern Conference
- No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers vs. No. 8 Miami Heat - Wednesday, April 17, 7:00 PM ET, ESPN
- No. 9 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 10 Atlanta Hawks - Wednesday, April 17, 9:30 PM ET, ESPN
- Eighth Seed Game: Loser of 7 vs. 8 vs. Winner of 9 vs. 10 - Friday, April 19, Time TBD, ESPN
Former teammates in Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler will go at it when the 76ers and Heat face off, with the winner advancing to play the New York Knicks. The loser will then need to knock off the winner of the Bulls-Hawks matchup, for the right to face the 64-win juggernaut and top overall seed Boston Celtics.