The National Basketball Association on Saturday unveiled the format and groups for its in-season tournament set to debut next season.
The new annual competition will tip off on November 3 with group play and run through December 9 with the championship game.
All 30 NBA teams will participate in the group stage, with each team being placed in three groups of five teams within both the Eastern and Western conferences. All teams were randomly drawn into their groups based on win-loss records from the 2022-23 regular season, according to the NBA.
Eastern Conference:
Western Conference:
Each team will play four games during the group stage, which include two home games and two away games, the league said. All games will be exclusively played on Tuesdays and Thursdays between November 3-28. No games will be played on November 7 due to Election Day.
The team with the best record in each group and two wild-card teams will then advance to the knockout stage. The wild cards will include the team in each conference that finished with the best record in group play, but second within its group.
The knockout stage will be single elimination, hosted by the teams with the best record in group play on December 4-5.
The semifinals and championship game will be held on December 7 and December 9 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. All games will count toward regular season standings except the championship game.
Teams that advance to the knockout stage and beyond will be allocated a prize pool.
The league will name an MVP after the conclusion of the tournament along with an all-tournament team. Selections “will be based on the players’ performance in both Group Play and the Knockout Rounds,” according to the NBA.