The 2025 NBA Play-In Tournament kicks off on Tuesday night (April 16). Two teams from each conference will qualify for the playoffs.
Here you can find all the information about the NBA Play-In 2025: schedule, dates, format, and favorites. Who will make it to the NBA Playoffs 2025?
Eastern Conference NBA Play-In 2025: Schedule & Dates
Western Conference NBA Play-In 2025: Schedule & Dates
Which teams will be in the NBA Play-In Tournament 2025?
Four teams per conference, for a total of eight teams, will compete in the NBA Play-In Tournament, which was introduced in 2020, before the official start of the playoffs for the last four remaining spots in the 2025 NBA Playoffs – two for the Eastern Conference and two for the Western Conference.
The eight teams are those ranked 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th at the end of the regular season.
The Eastern Conference Play-In participants
- 7. Orlando Magic (Record: 41-41)
- 8. Atlanta Hawks (Record: 40-42)
- 9. Chicago Bulls (Record: 39-43)
- 10. Miami Heat (Record: 37-45)
The Western Conference play-in participants
- 7. Golden State Warriors (Record: 48-34)
- 8. Memphis Grizzlies (Record: 48-34)
- 9. Sacramento Kings (Record: 39-43)
- 10. Dallas Mavericks (Record 40-42)
This is the format for the 2025 NBA Play-In Tournament
The format for the 2025 NBA Play-In Tournament consists of three games per conference:
1. First, the seventh and eighth-placed teams in the regular season standings face each other. The number 7 has home advantage in this game. The winner of this so-called “Seven-Eight Game” qualifies for the playoffs and is seeded 7.
2. In the “Nine-Ten Game,” the tenth-place team visits the ninth-place team from the regular season.
3. The winner of this game must face the loser of the “Seven-Eight Game” in the final Play-In Game. This game decides the last playoff spot. The winner of this game is the number 8 seed in the respective conference.
The seventh and eighth-placed teams have a slight advantage in the 2025 NBA Play-In mode. They only need one win to make the playoffs, while the ninth and tenth-placed teams in the regular season must win two games to make the playoffs.
The favorites: Who will make the NBA Playoffs in 2025?
The favorites for the NBA Play-In 2025 are naturally the teams that finished higher in the regular season standings.
In the Eastern Conference, the Orlando Magic, with Franz and Moritz Wagner, are considered the top contenders for a playoff spot, finishing 7th overall. The second Eastern team to make the playoffs should be the Chicago Bulls, who are having a very strong final season.
In the Western Conference, the Golden State Warriors are seen as the favorites. In Sacramento Kings vs. Dallas Mavericks, the form on the day is likely to be the deciding factor. However, whoever wins here will then have to prevail against the Warriors or the Grizzlies.
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Who is broadcasting the NBA Play-In games?
The NBA basketball live TV schedule is already available for the entire season on the sports streaming service DAZN. The broadcast of the Play-In Tournament for the last two tickets to the 2025 NBA Playoffs will also be live on DAZN.
DAZN will broadcast all six games of the 2025 NBA Play-In live via stream.
The DAZN team consists of commentators Martin Kern, Simon Sterzer, Martin Gräfe, Sebastian Ulrich, Freddie Schulz, Christoph Stadtler, Flo Pertsch, and Jakob Lobach, as well as expert André “Dré” Voigt.
