Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers has shared his two cents worth with regards to how he thinks the NBA could resume the current season.
According to Rivers, he likes the idea of holding a play-in tournament to determine the final few seeds in each conference.
“The one I like the best is 7, 8, 9 and 10 [seeds] have a playoff to get into playoffs,” explained Doc Rivers on Cedric Maxwell’s CLNS podcast, via Justin Quinn of USA TODAY Sports. “And while they’re playing, [seeds] one through 16 can train. So we get to do all the practices, [and] 7, 8, 9, 10 [seeds] get to play.
“Now, the advantage they have is in the first round. You’ve got to play teams that have been playing games where you haven’t played, but they haven’t had as much practice,” he added. Doc Rivers
Doc Rivers does make some sense here. After all, there are a number of teams out in the Western Conference that would like a chance to fight for a playoff spot. The Portland Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans, and Sacramento Kings are all just three and a half games behind the eighth-placed Memphis Grizzlies. The San Antonio Spurs are just four games out.
The race isn't nearly as close in the Eastern Conference, where a play-in tournament seems kind of pointless. While the No. 7 Brooklyn Nets (30-34) and No. 8 Orlando Magic (30-35) are tight, the ninth-place Washington Wizards are 5.5 games back of the Magic. The Charlotte Hornets are seven games back.
As Doc Rivers pointed out, this type of format would result in an unfair advantage for some teams. But in truth, there is probably no way the league will be able to resume the season with a completely level playing field for all teams. At this point, we just need to make do with whatever we are given.
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