Back in the day, the rule for reaching the NBA playoffs was simple: once the regular season wrapped up, the top 8 teams by conference record went through. But that created a problem — once a team’s playoff position outside the very edge of the 8-9 cutoff was basically decided, the rest of its games turned into dead rubbers, both sides resting starters and playing bench units, and the quality of basketball dropped off a cliff. That’s why, starting in the 2020-21 season, the league added a Play-In Tournament after the regular season, where the No. 7 through No. 10 seeds in each conference fight it out for the final two playoff spots (the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds). Suddenly a lot of teams couldn’t afford to coast through the stretch run — teams sitting at No. 5 or No. 6 had to keep winning to stay clear of the play-in zone, while teams around No. 10 through No. 12 had real incentive to fight for every last game just to get a shot at qualifying. Late-season basketball got a lot more watchable, fans responded well, and the rule has stuck around ever since.

Round 1: 7 vs. 8, 9 vs. 10

Two games are played at the same time in the first round:

  • No. 7 hosts No. 8: the winner locks in the No. 7 playoff seed outright; the loser gets one more chance (see below)
  • No. 9 hosts No. 10: the winner advances to the final play-in game; the loser is eliminated, no second chance

Round 2 (the final): loser of 7-vs-8 hosts winner of 9-vs-10

The team that lost the 7-vs-8 game hosts the winner of the 9-vs-10 game, and the winner of that game takes the final playoff spot — the No. 8 seed.

In other words, whichever of the No. 7 or No. 8 seed loses game one still gets one shot at revival — win either of their two games and you’re in. The No. 9 and No. 10 seeds, on the other hand, only get one life each: lose the 9-vs-10 game and the season is over. Home court in every game goes to the higher seed.

This rule has genuinely decided teams’ fates

Since it started in 2020-21, the Play-In Tournament has proven its worth — beyond making the stretch run more watchable, it’s produced no shortage of its own legendary moments. In 2022-23, the Miami Heat lost their first play-in game to the Hawks, then barely scraped into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed by beating the Bulls — and then eliminated the No. 1-seed Milwaukee Bucks, who had finished the regular season with a far better record, 4-1 in the first round. In 2024-25, the Heat went even further: the first-ever No. 10 seed to fight through the play-in and reach the playoffs, with Tyler Herro dropping 30 points in the deciding game. Nobody’s ridden the play-in all the way to a championship yet — but maybe one day. It’s hard not to call this one of the genuinely good changes the NBA has made in recent years.

Why the asymmetry is designed this way

The logic here is pretty intuitive: a team that earned a better regular-season record should get some real advantage for it — otherwise, what was the point of grinding out all those extra wins? Giving the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds two shots, both with home court against the lower seeds, is a fair way to reflect that gap. A No. 9 or No. 10 seed fighting for a playoff spot, on the other hand, has to prove it actually belongs there, so it’s fair that the bar is set higher.

If you’re a longtime fan just getting back into the league, don’t write off a team sitting between No. 9 and No. 10 in the standings as “not making the playoffs” — until both play-in rounds are done, anyone in that range still has a shot. And if a No. 10 seed actually fights all the way through, that’s exactly the underdog story worth watching.