Could the 2020 NBA playoffs tip off in August?
Stadium's Shams Charania reported Monday the tentative dates for each round of this season's playoffs, beginning with the possibility of a play-in tournament for the No. 8 seed in one or both conferences Aug. 16 and 17.
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The NBA playoffs typically last around two months, depending on the length of the NBA Finals. The 2020 playoffs, based on the timeline Charania laid out above, would last a similar amount of time. One positive for the players regarding the 2020 playoff schedule is they won't have to travel far for each game and series because all of the postseason teams will be in one central location in Florida.
It's important to note the league has not officially announced any 2020 playoff dates.
When the league announced its 22-team season return plan last week, it only gave a tentative date of July 31 for the resumption of the regular season. The league also noted that, if the season resumes July 31, the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery would be rescheduled for Aug. 25, and the 2020 NBA Draft would be rescheduled for Oct. 15.
Each of the 22 teams that participate in the 2019-20 season restart will play eight regular season games to determine seeding for the playoffs. There also could be a play-in tournament in either conference if the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds are within four or fewer games of each other when the regular season is finished.