Inseason Tournament Thread

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The winner gets an extra draft pick positioned at the beginning of the second round.
 
I just think the in season tournament needs a greater/extra incentive.
Some other random ideas:
  • Winning team gets to have someone participate in every event at all-star weekend.
  • Winning team gets a single unlimited-value trade exception.
  • Winning team gets to amnesty a contract.
  • Winning team gets to replace their last names on jerseys with any nickname or other message they want, anytime they want, for the rest of the season.
  • Winning team gets an extra share of the luxury tax revenue dispersal, even if they're a taxpaying team (half goes to team, half goes to players).
  • Winning team gets moved up in the draft 1/3 closer to #1 than their original pick slot, and any pick obligations for that year are pushed out to the next offseason (Stepien-be-damned).
I dunno...not a whole lot of things (outside of money) that are likely to motivate the players.
 
Some other random ideas:
  • Winning team gets to have someone participate in every event at all-star weekend.
  • Winning team gets a single unlimited-value trade exception.
  • Winning team gets to amnesty a contract.
  • Winning team gets to replace their last names on jerseys with any nickname or other message they want, anytime they want, for the rest of the season.
  • Winning team gets an extra share of the luxury tax revenue dispersal, even if they're a taxpaying team (half goes to team, half goes to players).
  • Winning team gets moved up in the draft 1/3 closer to #1 than their original pick slot, and any pick obligations for that year are pushed out to the next offseason (Stepien-be-damned).
I dunno...not a whole lot of things (outside of money) that are likely to motivate the players.
I still think it should be some sort of playoff incentive and yes money. The incentive has to make sense for players and then fans will indirectly appreciate it. Eventually bump the salary bonus up to a couple million per player.
 
Why would players care?
Oh I thought we were talking about incentivizing the teams and their fan base. The players will and do care because of the money and the extra chance to compete in games that will have historical meaning in just a few seasons. I've already explained that the first time a team wins both the in season tourney and the Finals they will be a different kind of champion, a higher level champion. That should be motivation for every team that has championship aspirations and that number is likely larger at this time of the season than it is when the play-ins start.

Detractors of this just don't make sense to me. It's a chance for competitors to compete for something at a time when it usually feels like they're just not. It's a chance to win a title, not as prestigious as NBA Finals Champion but still a title that teams can win over the rest of the league. They can do it all by only playing one more game and getting extra money that has real life implications for teammates on the end of the bench. The team that wins this will be celebrating harder than they do when they win the conference finals, just watch.
 
I still think it should be some sort of playoff incentive and yes money. The incentive has to make sense for players and then fans will indirectly appreciate it. Eventually bump the salary bonus up to a couple million per player.
The extra luxury-tax share suggestion would help with that...even better if it was simply all for the players rather than the half-and-half split I suggested at first.

Would an additional home game in any postseason series in which the in-season tourney winner participates be too much of a prize?
 
The winner gets an extra draft pick positioned at the beginning of the second round.
The players don’t want picks since those guys will take minutes from them. As for fan incentive, what is the fan incentive for winning in June?
 
The players don’t want picks since those guys will take minutes from them. As for fan incentive, what is the fan incentive for winning in June?
Just stop. They are nothing more than regular season games that don’t mean anything more. I doubt it sticks around longer than a few seasons.
 
The extra luxury-tax share suggestion would help with that...even better if it was simply all for the players rather than the half-and-half split I suggested at first.

Would an additional home game in any postseason series in which the in-season tourney winner participates be too much of a prize?
Yes that's too much - really because it's unfair to the other team that only gets 2 or 3 home games. Wouldn't seem like a fair series to have 5 home games vs 2 away.

Still think HCA for the winner and playoff berth for finale loser is good. That only bumps a team down 1 spot, so 4th to 5th seed.... 6th to 7th seed... etc. Doesn't impact anything further than seeding.

Or maybe just playoff spot for winner and playin for runner up. It's a real incentive that makes the IST matter more.... But not so much to be silly or take away from the rest of the season. Don't see any legit contender happy to coast the rest of the year on the 6th seed where they likely have to win 4 road playoff series. If a team wins the IST fans will want to see them in the playoffs regardless of regular season record.
 
Just stop. They are nothing more than regular season games that don’t mean anything more. I doubt it sticks around longer than a few seasons.
To you maybe. To others, no.

Didn't you say all these same type of comments about the playin?
 
Yes that's too much - really because it's unfair to the other team that only gets 2 or 3 home games. Wouldn't seem like a fair series to have 5 home games vs 2 away.

Still think HCA for the winner and playoff berth for finale loser is good. That only bumps a team down 1 spot, so 4th to 5th seed.... 6th to 7th seed... etc. Doesn't impact anything further than seeding.

Or maybe just playoff spot for winner and playin for runner up. It's a real incentive that makes the IST matter more.... But not so much to be silly or take away from the rest of the season. Don't see any legit contender happy to coast the rest of the year on the 6th seed where they likely have to win 4 road playoff series. If a team wins the IST fans will want to see them in the playoffs regardless of regular season record.
I think all of this is bad. Things in April should not be determined by a single elimination tournament in November/December. The incentive for winning should be winning itself.
 
Some other random ideas:
  • Winning team gets to have someone participate in every event at all-star weekend.
  • Winning team gets a single unlimited-value trade exception.
  • Winning team gets to amnesty a contract.
  • Winning team gets to replace their last names on jerseys with any nickname or other message they want, anytime they want, for the rest of the season.
  • Winning team gets an extra share of the luxury tax revenue dispersal, even if they're a taxpaying team (half goes to team, half goes to players).
  • Winning team gets moved up in the draft 1/3 closer to #1 than their original pick slot, and any pick obligations for that year are pushed out to the next offseason (Stepien-be-damned).
I dunno...not a whole lot of things (outside of money) that are likely to motivate the players.
I love all of these, but only one…sort of, rewards the players.

Think

extra shares of something
No back to backs the following year
More national tv games
More money
Etc

the team could also benefit with all the great ideas you stated as well
 
In season tournament winner incentive other than cash ideas

Guaranteed tie-breaker?
Guaranteed play-in?
Guaranteed HCA?
Some combo of above
 
In season tournament winner incentive other than cash ideas

Guaranteed tie-breaker?
Guaranteed play-in?
Guaranteed HCA?
Some combo of above
I like the idea that it's both a guaranteed tie breaker for playoff seeding and HCA throughout the playoffs regardless of record.
 
In season tournament winner incentive other than cash ideas

Guaranteed tie-breaker?
Guaranteed play-in?
Guaranteed HCA?
Some combo of above
I like the guaranteed play-in idea. For teams that are clearly making the playoffs though the NBA would have to offer something else for those teams I would think? How about the challenge flag idea? 1 extra each half. I think guaranteed HCA idea might be a little much.
 
I like the idea that it's both a guaranteed tie breaker for playoff seeding and HCA throughout the playoffs regardless of record.

I think HCA in the playoffs (as a one-time consumable like I mention below) and a guaranteed play-in berth would be perfect; the tie-breaker is reduced in utility if you get HCA anyway. These two prizes would make the tournament hyper-competitive not just for the elite teams but for the borderline teams too.

(from my other post: Maybe the HCA would be a one-time consumable (not usable in the finals)? Like, you find out you won't have HCA after the first round. You keep the HCA in your pocket for round 2 and win anyway, then use it for the conference finals to get that extra push into the finals? Adds strategy and risk/reward to the meta-game for the coaching staff.)
 
I like the guaranteed play-in idea. For teams that are clearly making the playoffs though the NBA would have to offer something else for those teams I would think? How about the challenge flag idea? 1 extra each half. I think guaranteed HCA idea might be a little much.

Maybe the HCA would be a one-time consumable (not usable in the finals)? Like, you find out you won't have HCA after the first round. You keep the HCA in your pocket for round 2 and win anyway, then use it for the conference finals to get that extra push into the finals? Adds strategy and risk/reward to the meta-game for the coaching staff.
 
I think HCA in the playoffs (as a one-time consumable like I mention below) and a guaranteed play-in berth would be perfect; the tie-breaker is reduced in utility if you get HCA anyway. These two prizes would make the tournament hyper-competitive not just for the elite teams but for the borderline teams too.

(from my other post: Maybe the HCA would be a one-time consumable (not usable in the finals)? Like, you find out you won't have HCA after the first round. You keep the HCA in your pocket for round 2 and win anyway, then use it for the conference finals to get that extra push into the finals? Adds strategy and risk/reward to the meta-game for the coaching staff.)

If you are good enough to win the tournament then you are going to be in the playoffs anyway so a guaranteed play in birth won't mean much. A guaranteed play in berth will also screw over another team who put in the hard work to get there, or will encourage teams to tank end of season instead of going for the play in if a team is already guaranteed their spot anyway.
 
If you are good enough to win the tournament then you are going to be in the playoffs anyway so a guaranteed play in birth won't mean much.

Not if you're good at the beginning and lose someone midseason, causing you to drop in the standings. This is a way of saying "yeah, but you did achieve this thing so yeah, have that play in berth." It's an insurance policy.

A guaranteed play in berth will also screw over another team who put in the hard work to get there, or will encourage teams to tank end of season instead of going for the play in if a team is already guaranteed their spot anyway.

I thought it was obvious that, if you didn't need it, you wouldn't take it from someone else, but apparently I overestimated my ability to be coherent, or you just think I'm an idiot. Whatever.

No, to be clear, if you're ranked high enough at the end of the season that you don't need it, you don't take it from someone else. Jesus.
 
Incentive for IST shouldn’t be any different than incentive for NBA Finals. You just play for the honor of winning it.
 
Really like 95% of the IST and think it'll be a big hit long term.

But they need to get rid of the point differential tie breaker. Multiple teams were trying to run up the score last night and that's just not how NBA basketball should be played.

Tie breaker should be H2H tourney, H2H regular season, regular season record, common opponent regular season record, etc.
 
I think all of this is bad. Things in April should not be determined by a single elimination tournament in November/December. The incentive for winning should be winning itself.
I just don't see giving a 6th or 10th seed to be a huge April hand out. That's not giving out a #1 seed or such. Yes it could bump a team to 7th or 11th, but those teams will know that's the case the whole season.

Currently playoff seeds are already determined by games back to October as regular season record is used so I see this change just being an extension of that.
 

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