The NBA’s postseason kicks off Tuesday night with the Play-In Tournament
• 1 min read
With the NBA’s 2023-24 regular season set to conclude Sunday, we know all 20 of the postseason participants, but many seeds are yet to be determined. That includes the No. 1 seed in the West, which is headed for a photo finish as the Thunder, Timberwolves and Nuggets are locked in a three-way tie with one game remaining.
When the dust settles after Sunday’s regular-season finale, the Play-In Tournament will begin on Tuesday, April 16, and run through Friday, April 19. A reminder on how the play-in tournament works: No. 7 will play No. 8 in each conference, and No. 9 will play No. 10. The winner of the 7-8 game gets the No. 7 seed, while the loser will face the winner of the 9-10 game for the No. 8 seed.
Once the play-in tourney has determined the bottom two seeds in each conference, the playoffs will begin on Sunday, April 20, and what a championship chase this figures to be. The Celtics and Nuggets are the odds-on favorites, but reasonable people can and will disagree as to how significant of favorites they really are. After that, it’s anyone’s guess. This has the makings of a wild ride, and we’ve got you covered with all viewing and scheduling information.
NBA fans will have to wait until more is known to see the full first-round schedule, but we do know some postseason dates. All NBA playoff games airing on ABC, ESPN and NBA TV will be streaming on fubo (try for free).
Play-In Tournament schedule
Tuesday, April 16
- Two games will be played on Tuesday. Typically, it would be No. 7 vs. No. 8 in both conferences. However, if the 76ers claim the East’s No. 7 seed, they will not be able to host their first Play-In game until Wednesday because of a scheduling conflict with the NHL’s Flyers. If the 76ers are the East’s No. 7 seed, Tuesday’s schedule will feature the West No. 7 vs. the West No. 8 and the West No. 9 vs. the West No. 10. The Eastern Conference games would then happen on Wednesday.
Wednesday, April 17
- Wednesday’s schedule will be determined on Sunday.
Friday, April 19
- East No. 7/8 vs. East No. 9/10, Time TBD
- West No. 7/8 vs. West No. 9/10, Time TBD
2024 NBA playoff dates
- April 20-21: Start of first round
- May 4-7: Start of second round
- May 19-22: Start of Conference Finals
- June 6: NBA Finals Game 1
- June 23: NBA Finals Game 7 (if necessary)
