Opinion: NBA Play in tournament: Yes or no?

The 2025 NBA Playoffs began with the Play-In Tournament, a new format that started in 2020 and became fully adopted by the NBA in 2022.

The addition, much like the regular-season NBA Cup, has received positive and negative feedback from fans.

What do we at CommRadio think? Our analysts Bryan Portney and Nate Johns share their opinion.

Bryan: Yea

The NBA Play-In Tournament has been a much-needed addition in the league for years.

For teams on the bubble trying to get into the coveted 16-team postseason field, this tournament format gives them a great opportunity to show why they deserve to be in.

It’s not as though the Play-In has been useless, as the 2022-23 Lakers made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals before being swept by the Nuggets.

Another example of post-tournament success comes from the 2022-23 Heat, who made it to the NBA Finals, a feat no other Play-In team has done, ultimately falling to the Nuggets in five games.

There have been many memorable moments from the Play-In ingrained into the minds of basketball fans forever, such as Klay Thompson going 0-for-10 on field goal shots and 0-for-6 on three-pointers in the No. 9 vs. No. 10 game between the Warriors and the Kings last season.

Another fan favorite was the 2022 No. 7 vs. No. 8 game, when the Timberwolves defeated the Clippers 109 to 104.

Patrick Beverly and the Minnesota players celebrated as if they won the NBA Finals and has had its legacy cemented as a meme on the internet for years to come.

Nate: Nay

In the NBA 16 of the 30 teams already make the playoffs. They earn their spot by playing well enough in an 82 game regular season.

Why is the NBA rewarding teams that were unable to string together enough wins to finish in the top half of the conference standings?

It punishes teams that deserve to be in the playoffs by forcing them to play extra games before the playoffs.

It has also led to injuries that disproportionately affected certain teams.

Zion Williamson got injured in a play-in game against the Lakers last season and missed the Pelicans subsequent playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Had the play-in not existed, Williamson would have played in that series which would have given the Pelicans more of a chance.

It also unfairly adds to Williamson’s reputation as an injury prone player because he played in a game that should not have been played.

Paul George also caught Covid and was forced to miss a Clippers play-in game that ultimately cost them their season.

The biggest problem with the play-in is that it rewards mediocre teams and subjects fans to having to watch them.

The play-in started in 2022, and since then, only two teams that participated in the play-in have gone on to win a first round series.

The two teams in question were 7 and 8 seeds that would have gone on to the playoffs without the needless extra game. As for the 9 and 10 seeds, none of them have ever gone on to make the playoffs.

The play-in continues to be a pointless exercise that serves the purpose of springing ratings at the expense of the actual product.

Bryan Portney is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email bep5295@psu.edu.

Nate Johns is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jzn5275@psu.edu.