NBA Playoffs Format
From Hoopedia
The NBA Playoffs begin in late April, with eight teams in each conference qualifying. Each conference’s top three seeds for are determined by taking the winners of the conference's three divisions and ranking them by regular season record. The remaining five seeds are determined by taking the five teams with the next-best records from among the non-division winning teams in the conference. However, division champions do not necessarily have home-court advantage in the playoffs. Although the playoff brackets are not reseeded, home-court advantage is based strictly on regular-season record, regardless of whether or not a team won its division.
Since the first seed plays the eighth seed, the second seed plays the seventh seed, the third seed plays the sixth seed, and the fourth seed plays the fifth seed in the playoffs, having a higher seed generally means you will be facing a weaker team. The team in each series with the better record has home court advantage. This means that, for example, if the team who receives the six seed has a better record than the team with the three seed (seeded thus by virtue of a divisional championship), the six seed would have home court advantage, even though the other team has a higher seed. Therefore, the team with the best regular season record in the league is guaranteed home court advantage in every series it plays.
Each team plays a rival in a best-of-seven series, with the first team to win four games advancing into the second round, while the other is eliminated from the playoffs. In the next round, the successful team plays against another advancing team of the same conference. Thus, all but one team in each conference are eliminated from the playoffs. The playoff bracket in each conference uses a traditional design, with the winner of the series matching the first and eighth seeded teams playing the winner of the series matching the fourth and fifth seeded teams, and the winner of the series matching the second and seventh seeded teams playing the winner of the series matching the third and sixth seeded teams.
In every round except the Finals, the best of seven series follows a 2-2-1-1-1 pattern, meaning that one team will have home court in games 1, 2, 5, and 7, while the other plays at home in games 3, 4, and 6. For the Finals, the series follows a 2-3-2 pattern, meaning that one team will have home court in games 1, 2, 6, and 7, while the other plays at home in games 3-5.
The NBA Finals, a best-of-seven series between the victors of both conferences, is held annually in June. The victor wins the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy. Each player and major contributor, including coaches and the general manager, on the winning team receive a championship ring. In addition, the league awards an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award, which nearly always goes to a member of the winning team, though not by rule. There has been only one exception to date: Jerry West won the award in 1969 (the award's first season) even though his Los Angeles Lakers did not win the championship.
