As the 26-27 school year approaches its finish, the NBA regular season comes to an end as well. The NBA playoffs are an annual postseason tournament that determines the league champion. It is regarded as one of the largest and most prestigious basketball events. The playoffs officially began on April 18 after the end of this year’s regular season on April 14. The 2026 postseason is the 80th edition in the NBA’s history.
Format of the playoffs:
During the NBA regular season, which starts in October, each team plays 82 games. The 30 teams are divided into the Eastern and Western Conferences, each with 15 teams ranked by their win percentage throughout the season. After the regular season ends, the top 6 teams in each division automatically qualify for the playoffs, which are seeded by ranking. The 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th-seeded teams are entered into the play-in tournament. In the play-in tournament, in both conferences, the 7th-seeded team plays the 8th, and the 9th plays the 10th. The winners of the 7th/8th game secure a spot in the playoffs as the 7th seed. The winner of the 9th/10th game plays the loser of the 7th/8th game, and the winner secures the last playoff spot, the 8th seed. The losers of the 9th/10th games are immediately eliminated. This results in 8 teams in each conference, 16 teams in total, competing in the playoffs.
During the playoffs, each team plays its opponent in a 7-game series. The first team to win 4 games of a series advances; the other team is eliminated from the playoffs. This divides the tournament into 4 stages: First Round, Conference Semifinals, Conference Finals, and NBA Finals. According to Will Embo in the Olympics News, “Each series is determined by seeding, with the No. 1 seed facing the No. 8 seed, No. 2 playing No. 7, and so on.” The team with the higher seeding has the home-court advantage, as explained by ESPN, “All series are played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format, with the team with the better record hosting Games 1, 2, 5, and 7.” This format means the team with the better record always plays more home games than its opponent if the series were to go to 7 games.
This Year’s Regular Season and Play-In tournament:
During the regular season this year, the West finished with defending champions Oklahoma City Thunder, ending in first with 64 wins and 18 losses. Trailing closely behind were the San Antonio Spurs with 62 wins and 20 losses. The 4 other teams that secure playoff spots are the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The 4 teams that played in the West play-in tournament were the Portland Trail Blazers, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers, and Golden State Warriors. The Trailblazers defeated the Suns on April 14, 114-110. Their star player, Deni Avdija, scored 41 points, helping them secure the 7th seed. Then, the Warriors won the next day against the Clippers, 126-121. The Suns played the Warriors on April 17 to determine the final playoff spot. In that game, the Suns performed exceptionally well with Jalen Green scoring 36 points and Devin Booker scoring 20. The game ended with the Suns winning 111-96, thus eliminating the Warriors.
In the East, the Detroit Pistons finished the regular season first with 60 wins and 22 losses. The Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, and Cleveland Cavaliers, with 56 wins, 26 losses, 53 wins, 29 losses, and 52 wins, 30 losses each. The other 2 teams securing the 5th and 6th are the Toronto Raptors and the Atlanta Hawks. The play features the Philadelphia 76ers defeating the Orlando Magic with 109-97, securing the 7th seed. The Charlotte Hornets beat the Miami Heat but lost to the Orlando Magic 121-90, allowing Orlando to advance and clinch the last playoff spot.
Playoff:
One of the most anticipated winners of this year’s NBA championship is the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. As mentioned previously, the Thunder have the best regular-season record this year. They are led by the famous young star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, considered one of the best rising stars, who contributed greatly to the Thunder’s success last year. He averages 34.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 8.0 assists per game in the playoffs so far.
Another team with high odds of winning is the Boston Celtics. They’ve been playing great, ranking 1st in the league on points per game. With the return of their star player, Jason Tatum, from injury, they are now one of the strongest competitors. According to Daniel Fisher, a longtime sports article writer for the NESN sports news, “Boston set a franchise record for a single playoff game by making 24 3-pointers, breaking its previous postseason record of 22 3-pointers made three different times.”
So far, the 1st round of the playoffs has been heated and fierce. The Detroit-Orlando game, the Boston-Philadelphia game, and the Cleveland-Toronto game have all gone into game 7. Detroit, Philadelphia, and Cleveland were the respective winners of these 3 series. The Thunder swept the Suns with a 4-0 series and is the fastest team to finish the first round. San Antonio also advanced against Portland 4-1, and New York beat Atlanta 4-2. Minnesota has just advanced against Denver with a 4-2 win. Los Angeles also finished 4-2 against Houston.
As the games unfold and the excitement grows, the NBA postseason has continued to prove itself one of the most influential sporting events in the world. The NBA playoffs are the ultimate arena for professional basketball players to prove their skills and test their greatness. It is what inspires countless players to play basketball. This year’s playoff will uphold the legacy and continue to elevate basketball.
