History of NBA playoffs in Timeline

The NBA playoffs is an annual tournament that determines the NBA champion. It consists of a four-round, best-of-seven series format, following the regular season and the NBA play-in tournament. The top six teams from each conference automatically qualify for the playoffs based on their regular-season record. Teams ranked seventh through tenth in each conference participate in a play-in tournament to secure the final two playoff spots. This structure ensures that the highest-performing teams from the regular season have a direct path to the playoffs, while also giving lower-ranked teams a chance to compete for a championship.

1946: All-Time NBA Playoffs

The all-time NBA playoffs table is an overall record of all match results of every team that has played in playoffs since the 1946–47 season.

1947: 1947 Postseason

In 1947, all six participants played their first tournament games on April 2.

1947: Philadelphia Warriors Win BAA Championship

In 1947, the Philadelphia Warriors won the runners-up bracket and beat the Western champion Chicago Stags to win the BAA championship.

1948: Baltimore Wins BAA Championship

In 1948, Baltimore won the runners-up bracket and beat Eastern champion Philadelphia to win the BAA championship.

1948: 1948 Postseason

In 1948, the two Eastern runners-up were idle for a few days only because there was a three-way Western tie to break.

1949: BAA Tournament Structure Change

In 1949, the BAA tournament matched Eastern teams exclusively and Western teams exclusively, generating Eastern and Western playoff champions to meet in the final. The number of playoff teams increased to four from each Division, with two rounds of best-of-three series played, followed by a best-of-seven championship.

1949: Establishment of the NBA

In 1949, the National Basketball Association was established by the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League.

1950: Minneapolis Lakers Win NBA Championship

In 1950, the Minneapolis Lakers became the first league champion under the NBA name by defeating Anderson from the West and then the Syracuse Nationals.

1951: Division Finals Change

In 1951, the division finals became a best-of-five playoff.

1953: Division Finals Change

In 1953, the division finals remained a best-of-five playoff.

1954: Round Robin in Playoffs

In 1954, round robins were uniquely played in NBA history among the three playoff teams in each division.

1954: NBA Postseason Field Reduction

In 1954, the NBA cut its postseason tournament field from eight teams to six.

1955: First-Place Team Idle in Playoffs

From 1955 to 1966, the first-place team in each division was idle while its two runners-up faced each other in a best-of-three series.

1955: First-round Byes

There were no byes, or idle time, for the division champions—as there would be for higher-seeded playoff teams 1955–66 and 1975–83.

1958: Division Finals Expanded

In 1958, Division finals were expanded to best-of-seven.

1961: Division Semifinals Expanded

In 1961, division semifinals were expanded to best-of-five.

1961: 1961 Tournaments

The 1961 tournaments alone combined initial byes for the top seeded teams in each division with best-of-five initial series for second and third seeded teams in both divisions.The 1961 byes provided five and seven extra days idle for the first-place teams.

1966: 1966 Tournaments

By 1966 the schedule provided more rest for the first-round participants with byes of 11 and eight extra days idle.

1966: First-Place Team Idle in Playoffs

From 1955 to 1966, the first-place team in each division was idle while its two runners-up faced each other in a best-of-three series.

1966: Eight Teams Admitted to Tournament

In 1966, with ten league members again, eight teams were admitted to the tournament, providing a simple three-round knockout (8-team bracket).

1968: Best-of-7 Series

In 1968 the Best-of-7 series were in effect.

1970: Best-of-7 Series

In 1970 the Best-of-7 series were in effect.

1975: Fifth Team Added to Each Division

In 1975, a fifth team was added to each Division, necessitating an additional first round of best-of-three series.

1975: First-round Byes

There were no byes, or idle time, for the division champions—as there would be for higher-seeded playoff teams 1955–66 and 1975–83.

1977: Sixth Team Added to Each Division

In 1977, a sixth team was added to each Division, necessitating an additional first round of best-of-three series.

1983: First-Round Byes

The 1983 tournament is the latest to incorporate first-round byes for seeded teams. Counting from Tuesday the byes provided five to eight extra days idle.

1984: Tournament Expanded to 16 Teams

In 1984, the tournament expanded to its present 16-team, four-round knockout, and the first-round series was expanded to a best-of-five.

2003: First Round Changed to Best-of-Seven

In 2003, the first round was changed to also be best-of-seven.

2004: NBA Division Realignment

Beginning with the 2004 season, with the addition of the Charlotte Bobcats, the NBA realigned its divisions. Each conference would have three divisions of five teams each, and the winner of each division was guaranteed a top-three playoff seed.

2004: Seeding Rules Prior to Division Realignment

Prior to 2004, when the NBA was aligned into two conferences with two divisions each, the division champions were guaranteed the top two seeds, and the best non-division winner was seeded third even if they had a better record than a lower-ranked division winner.

2005: Division Winners Guaranteed Top Four Seed

After the 2005-06 season, division winners still receive automatic playoff berths, but are guaranteed a top-four seed.

2005: Potential Semifinal Matchup of Top Two Teams

In 2005, the division runner-up could do no better than the fourth seed meaning that the top two teams in the conference would face each other in the conference semifinals, instead of the conference finals.

2005: Changes to Playoff Rosters

Prior to the 2005–06 season, playoff rosters were limited to 12 players who were named before the playoffs began.

2005: Controversy over Playoff Format

The playoff format in place for the 2005 and 2006 NBA playoffs created controversy and would be changed prior to the 2006–07 NBA season.

August 2006: NBA Announces Rules Change for Seeding

In August 2006, the NBA announced that, beginning in the 2006–07 season, the top four seeds in each conference would be seeded according to their win–loss totals to ensure the top two teams cannot meet until the conference finals.

2006: Controversy over Playoff Format

The playoff format in place for the 2005 and 2006 NBA playoffs created controversy and would be changed prior to the 2006–07 NBA season.

October 23, 2013: NBA Finals Format Change

On October 23, 2013, NBA team owners unanimously voted to change the format of the NBA Finals from the 2–3–2 format.

2014: Implementation of 2-2-1-1-1 Playoff Series Format

In 2014, the NBA implemented the 2–2–1–1–1 format for all playoff series, where the team with home-court advantage hosts games 1, 2, 5, and 7, while their opponent hosts games 3, 4, and 6, with games 5, 6 and 7 being played if needed.

2016: Tiebreaker Rule Change

Prior to 2016, a tiebreaker rule was used for two-team ties if they had the same head-to-head record.

2020: Introduction of Play-in Format

In 2020, the NBA introduced a play-in format where the ninth-place team would compete against the eighth-place team if they finished within four games of each other. The format was used only in the Western Conference, with the Trail Blazers eliminating the Grizzlies.

2021: Play-in Tournament Format

In 2021, the top six teams advanced to the playoffs, while seventh- through tenth-placed teams qualified for a play-in tournament. The seventh- and eighth-place teams got up to two chances to win one game to qualify, while the ninth- and tenth-place teams needed to win two consecutive games.

2022: NBA Playoff Format Clarification

In 2022, the NBA clarified that the playoffs would remain a four-round, best-of-seven tournament, including the Finals. The qualification criteria for the playoffs and postseason are no longer identical.