Last week during a Spurs game, the NBA commissioner, Adam Silver announced a possible change in the playoff format. The playoff scenario has been a bit lackluster mainly because the Western Conference is a powerhouse compared to the inferior Eastern Conference.
“I’m fascinated with the notion of a play-in tournament.” Adam Silver on Playoff format.
I like the idea of changing the format of the playoffs, but Silver has to be careful of what changes he makes and how many. If he were to follow through with the rumored playoff format change, it would ruin the sole purpose of having two conferences. The one thing I like about this new playoff setup is that it would allow the teams with a higher winning percentage into the playoffs and keep out teams with a losing record. This would allow a team with a winning record to make the playoffs more entertaining. At the same time you also wouldn’t have the late season teams fighting for that 8th seed between conferences, such as The New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks or The Memphis Grizzlies and Phoenix Suns. You’d still have teams battling to seal in the last spots which would still make for interesting playoff games. This would allow for a level playing field because in previous seasons The Western Conference games have been more entertaining than the Eastern Conference Games. It almost seems as though the Eastern Conference for the past two years has been waiting for the Indians Pacers and Miami Heat Eastern Conference Finals match up. Which rightfully so was the most entertaining matchup for that conference in quite some time.
My only concern is there would be no point in keeping the conferences split up, when essentially you could take the 16 best teams and have them battle it out. It doesn’t look as though Adam Silver will make any changes for the 2014-2015 season. I do however think he’s trying to throw the idea out there to see what sort of feedback he will receive. This could cause possible changes for the 2015-2016 playoff format. One thing is certain, in Adam Silver’s short tenure as NBA commissioner he has some creative ideas and isn’t afraid to share some of them.
