The NBA playoffs is a four-round, best-of-seven elimination tournament that determines the league champion. Six teams from each conference (East and West) automatically qualify based on regular season record. Teams ranked 7th to 10th in each conference compete in the play-in tournament to determine the final two playoff spots per conference.
1946: Start of the NBA Playoffs
The NBA playoffs officially began in the 1946-1947 season, marking the start of the league's postseason competition.
1947: No playoff byes in early NBA
In the early years of the NBA, there were no byes for division champions in the playoffs. All six teams participating in the 1947 playoffs played their first tournament games on April 2nd, 1947.
1947: First BAA Playoffs and Championship
The first BAA playoffs took place in 1947. The Philadelphia Warriors won the championship, which the NBA recognizes as its first championship. The format involved a best-of-seven series for both the division champions and a best-of-three series for the runners-up.
1948: Limited playoff byes in 1948
In 1948, only the two Eastern Conference runners-up had a few days of idle time because of a three-way tie in the Western Conference that needed to be broken. All other teams began the playoffs without any byes.
1948: Second BAA Playoffs
The Baltimore Bullets won the 1948 BAA championship, defeating the Eastern champion Philadelphia Warriors. Similar to the previous year, the tournament format included a best-of-seven series for division champions and a best-of-three series for runners-up.
1949: Third BAA Playoffs and Format Change
The 1949 BAA playoffs marked a significant change in format. Eastern and Western teams were matched exclusively within their respective divisions, ensuring an Eastern and Western playoff champion to compete in the final. The number of playoff teams per division increased from three to four.
1949: Formation of the NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) was formed in 1949 through the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL). The NBA recognizes the three BAA seasons as part of its history.
1950: First NBA Championship under the NBA Name
The Minneapolis Lakers won the first NBA championship under the NBA name in 1950. They achieved this by first defeating Anderson from the West in a best-of-three series and then defeating the Syracuse Nationals in a best-of-seven series.
1951: Division Finals Format Change
The NBA changed the division finals to a best-of-five playoff format in 1951.
1953: Reduction in Playoff Teams
In 1953, due to the league having only nine members, the NBA reduced the number of playoff teams from eight to six.
1954: Unique Round Robin Format
Uniquely in NBA history, the 1954 playoffs implemented a three-team round robin format for the three playoff teams within each division.
1955: Introduction of playoff byes
From 1955 to 1966 and then again from 1975 to 1983, higher-seeded playoff teams in the NBA were given byes, meaning they did not have to play in the first round of the playoffs.
1955: First-Place Team Idle Format Begins
From 1955, the first-place team in each division was granted a bye, while the two runners-up competed in a best-of-three series.
1958: Division Finals Expansion
In 1958, the NBA expanded the division finals to a best-of-seven format.
1961: Combination of Byes and Best-of-Five Series
From 1961 to 1966, the NBA playoffs used a format where the top-seeded teams in each division received byes, while the second and third seeded teams played best-of-five series in the initial round. In 1961, these byes provided five to seven extra days of rest for the top teams.
1961: Division Semifinals Expansion
The division semifinals were expanded to a best-of-five format in 1961.
1966: Extended Byes for Top Teams
By 1966, the NBA playoff schedule was adjusted to give even more rest to the top teams. The byes for first-round participants were extended to 11 and 8 days, meaning these teams had over a week of rest before starting their playoff run.
1966: First-Place Team Idle Format
From 1955 to 1966, the first-place team in each division was granted a bye, while the two runners-up competed in a best-of-three series.
1966: Expansion to Eight Playoff Teams and Three-Round Knockout
With the league expanding to ten teams in the 1966-67 season, the NBA increased the playoff field to eight teams, resulting in a three-round knockout (8-team bracket).
1968: Introduction of Best-of-Seven Series
From 1968 to 1970, the NBA playoffs shifted to a best-of-seven series format, meaning the first team to win four games would advance to the next round.
1970: End of the Best-of-Seven Series Format (1968-1970)
1970 marked the end of the three-year period where the NBA playoffs used a best-of-seven series format.
1975: Reintroduction of playoff byes
Playoff byes for higher-seeded teams were reintroduced in 1975 and lasted until 1983. This meant these teams got a break before entering the playoffs.
1975: Addition of Fifth Playoff Team and First Round
In 1975, the NBA added a fifth playoff team to each division, necessitating an additional first round of best-of-three series.
1977: Addition of Sixth Playoff Team and First Round
In 1977, the NBA added a sixth playoff team to each division, resulting in an additional first round of best-of-three series.
1983: Last First-Round Byes for Seeded Teams
The 1983 NBA playoffs were the last to feature first-round byes for seeded teams. The first-round best-of-three series began on April 19th and 20th, with the second-round best-of-seven series starting on April 27th. This provided the seeded teams with five to eight days of rest.
1984: Expansion to 16-Team Playoff Format
The NBA expanded the playoff format to include 16 teams and four rounds in 1984. The first-round series were expanded to a best-of-five format.
2003: First Round Expansion to Best-of-Seven
In 2003, the NBA changed the first round of the playoffs to a best-of-seven series format.
2004: Guaranteed Top Seeds for Division Champions
Prior to 2004, when the NBA had two conferences with two divisions each, the division champions were guaranteed the top two seeds. This prevented the top two teams in a conference from facing each other before the conference finals, assuming they both reached that stage.
2004: NBA Realignment and Guaranteed Playoff Seeds
The NBA realigned its divisions in 2004, with the addition of the Charlotte Bobcats as the league's 30th franchise. Each conference was divided into three divisions of five teams, and the winner of each division was guaranteed a top-three playoff seed.
2005: Playoff Seed Adjustment for Division Winners
Following the 2005-06 season, the NBA adjusted the playoff seeding rules. While division winners were still guaranteed playoff berths, they were now guaranteed a top-four seed, instead of a top-three seed, based on their win-loss records.
2005: Expansion of Playoff Rosters
Prior to the 2005-2006 NBA season, playoff rosters were limited to 12 players. However, starting in 2005, the NBA expanded playoff rosters to allow teams to carry up to 15 players. They could designate two players as inactive for each game. Players were eligible for the playoff roster as long as they had played at least one regular season game for the team and had not been on another NBA team's roster after March 1st.
2005: Criticism of Playoff Format Due to Early Matchup of Top Teams
The NBA realigned into three divisions per conference, guaranteeing top-three seeds to division winners. This format led to the possibility of the top two teams in a conference meeting in the conference semifinals. The situation materialized in 2005 when the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks, the top two teams in the Western Conference, met in the conference semifinals, drawing criticism for the format.
2005: Controversial Playoff Format
The playoff format implemented in 2005, which guaranteed division winners top-three seeds, sparked controversy and would be revised before the 2006-07 season.
August 2006: Rule Change for Playoff Seeding
In August 2006, the NBA announced a rule change to address the playoff format controversy. Starting from the 2006-07 season, the top four seeds in each conference would be determined by their win-loss records. This change ensured that the top two teams in each conference would not meet before the conference finals.
2006: Controversial Playoff Format
The playoff format implemented in 2006, which guaranteed division winners top-three seeds, sparked controversy and would be revised before the 2006-07 season.
October 23, 2013: NBA Finals Format Change
On October 23, 2013, NBA team owners voted to change the NBA Finals format from 2-3-2 to 2-2-1-1-1.
2014: New Playoff Format Implemented
In 2014, the NBA implemented the 2-2-1-1-1 format for all playoff rounds, granting home-court advantage to the higher seed for games 1, 2, 5, and 7. This format replaced the previous 2-3-2 format used in the NBA Finals.
2016: Tiebreaker Rule Adjustment
In 2016, the NBA adjusted its tiebreaker rules. Division leaders were prioritized for higher seeding, regardless of other criteria, in scenarios involving three or more teams. For two-team ties, this rule applied only if both teams had the same head-to-head record, changing the previous rule.
2020: Introduction of the Play-In Tournament
The NBA introduced a play-in tournament format for the 2020 playoffs. In this format, if the ninth-place team in a conference finished within four games of the eighth-place team, they would compete in a best-of-two series to determine the final playoff spot. This format was only used in the Western Conference in 2020 because the Memphis Grizzlies finished within a half-game of the Portland Trail Blazers. The Trail Blazers, needing only one win as the higher seed, won the first game and eliminated the Grizzlies.
2021: Expansion of the Play-In Tournament
In 2021, the NBA expanded the play-in tournament to include the seventh through tenth-place teams in each conference. The top six teams in each conference automatically qualified for the playoffs. The seventh and eighth-place teams had two chances to win one game and qualify, while the ninth and tenth place teams needed to win two consecutive games to advance.
2022: NBA Playoffs Redefined
In 2022, the NBA officially distinguished the NBA playoffs as a separate entity from the NBA Finals. The playoffs were confirmed as a four-round, best-of-seven series, differentiating the qualification criteria for the playoffs and the postseason.
2022: Accuracy of the All-Time NBA Playoffs Table
The all-time NBA playoffs table, which tracks the overall record of all teams that have participated in the playoffs since 1946, was last updated at the end of the 2022 NBA playoffs.
2023: Play-In Tournament Becomes Permanent
The NBA announced that the play-in tournament would become a permanent part of the postseason starting in 2023. This cemented the tournament's place in the league and made it a regular part of the playoff process.
2024: Current Status of NBA Playoffs
As of the 2024 NBA playoffs, the information provided reflects the current rules and format of the playoffs.