NBA Playoffs
First implemented in 1984, the NBA Playoffs’ current format involves 16 teams competing in four rounds. The first round was best-of-five until 2003 when it became a best-of-seven matchup. Since the 2016 playoffs, the top six teams in the Eastern and Western Conferences qualify according to their win-loss records.
The coronavirus pandemic changed how teams qualify for the NBA Playoffs as the league managed two shortened seasons. Now, the play-in tournament grants two teams with playoff seeds No. 7 and No. 8 employing a four-team, three-game format.
- Number of participating teams: 16
- Rounds: four
- Format: best of seven games
- Most NBA Playoff appearances: Los Angeles Lakers (63)
- Least NBA Playoff appearances: New Orleans Pelicans (7)
- Longest NBA Playoff drought: Sacramento Kings (last appearance: 2005-06)
- Longest active NBA Playoff appearance streak: Portland Trail Blazers (8 consecutive playoffs since 2013-14)
- Longest NBA Playoff streak ever: San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers (22 consecutive seasons)
Featured articles:
NBA Playoffs: How Does the NBA Play-In Tournament Work?
The Most Significant NBA Playoff Injuries of All Time
Larry Bird Cried Foul in the 1998 NBA Playoffs and Drew a Brutal Response From Phil Jackson
Visit NBA.com‘s NBA Playoffs section.
Read the latest articles about the NBA Playoffs:
Since the beginning of 2023-24, the Boston Celtics’ offense has been the NBA’s kingmaker. Boston led the league in offensive rating last regular season, finished third during the 2024 playoffs en route to a title and were third this past regular season. Over this prolonged span, few teams have proven capable of slowing the Celtics’ […]
Tyrese Haliburton is snatching victory from the jaws of defeat time and time again for the Indiana Pacers with his clutch play this season. It’s a hardly fathomable statistic. Haliburton is now 10-of-11 on shots to either tie or take the lead in the final two minutes of games this season, including the playoffs. Jalen […]
After acquiring Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges this past offseason, the New York Knicks seemed primed to compete for an NBA title in 2025. For most of the season, though, that didn’t appear to be in the cards. Yes, they finished with a respectable 51-31 record, but they accumulated it by slaying lesser teams rather […]
A miraculous Denver Nuggets comeback, fueled by late-game shenanigans and a clutch Aaron Gordon triple, kicked the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder into a 1-0 hole in the Western Conference Semifinals. Oklahoma City can clean up plenty of little things, namely focusing more on both ends, avoiding silly fouls in the backcourt and making open jumpers. […]
With the first round behind us and the 16-team pool dwindled down to eight, we can turn our focus to the second round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs. The Golden State Warriors were the last team of the bunch to advance to the conference semifinals. While they ultimately survived the relentless Houston Rockets, their next […]
After losing Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals to the Indiana Pacers, the knee-jerk reaction if you’re d with the Cleveland Cavaliers may be panic. This is Cleveland’s first loss of the postseason, so we have no precedent for how it will respond to the adversity. Also, as the No. 1 seed hosting the […]
In the closing minutes of Oklahoma City’s Game 4 matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies, Jalen Williams brought the ball across the timeline. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander attempted to screen for Williams, but Williams found himself isolated against Scotty Pippen Jr. Williams calmly blew by Pippen, accessed the middle of the floor and nailed a floater to extend […]
This is everything the New York Knicks planned for this summer. When they traded for Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns, they did so with one thing in mind: toppling the Boston Celtics. That didn’t go well in the regular season. The Knicks, very famously, didn’t win a single game against the top-three teams in the […]
Now that the dust has settled on the first round and only eight teams remain, we can focus on the second round. And we have a treat on our hands in the Western Conference Semifinals, as the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder will face off against the fourth-seeded Denver Nuggets. The young Thunder are well-rested after […]
Both the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers took care of business in their first-round series. After the Cavs swept the Miami Heat and the Pacers toppled the Milwaukee Bucks in five games, each team will have a bit more game-planning and matchup stress to consider for their second-round bout. A regular-season buzzsaw in Cleveland […]
