No North American pro sports league has tried to approach the idea of championships and recognition than the NBA. The 82-game regular season was seen as drudgery, particularly in the early going, so the league came out with the Emirates NBA Cup. This takes place in the fall each year, shortly after the start of the regular season. Most of the games also count in the regular season standings, except for the knockout rounds. This reflects a similar move in international pro soccer leagues, where first-division teams also take part in national and international tournaments. However, in those soccer leagues, those outside competitions are not part of their domestic first-division league standings. Even with the playoffs, though, the NBA has tried in recent years to make the end of the regular season more exciting for more teams (and prevent as many teams as possible from “tanking” down the stretch). This push against perceived intentional losing to optimize draft position has been going on for 40 years now – in 1985, the league instituted a draft lottery, open to the teams that don’t make the playoffs, instead of simply awarding the top draft choice to the team with the worst regular-season record and moving downward from there in the draft order. The push for a more exciting finish to the regular season actually opens the door to 20 of the 30 teams to vie for the title after the end of the regular season.
Let’s look at the current NBA playoff format and learn how do the NBA Playoffs work, plus we get to discuss potential sports betting opportunities and the teams we like to get into the playoffs.
How Do the NBA Playoffs Work? Let XBet Show You the Ropes
What is the Playoff Format?
Each conference has 15 teams, and at the end of the regular season, the top six teams in each conference are guaranteed slots in the postseason, seeded 1 through 6 in their conference bracket.
The next four teams (7th through 10th place) in each conference go into a play-in tournament. The 7th place team hosts the 8th place team, and the winner gets the 7-seed. The 9th place team hosts the 10th place team, and the loser is eliminated. The winner visits the 7-vs-8 winner, and the winner of that game gets the 8-seed, with the loser eliminated.
Once the eight seeds are set in each conference, then bracket play begins. Each round features a best-of-seven format, with the higher seed hosting four of the games. The conference champions square off in the NBA Finals.
Let’s look at a quick example. In the Eastern Conference today, here are the top 10 teams in order: Cleveland, Boston, New York, Indiana, Milwaukee, Detroit, Orlando, Atlanta, Miami and Chicago. The first six teams would automatically take the top six seeds. Orlando would host Atlanta, and the winner would have the seventh seed. Miami would host Chicago for the right to face the Orlando-Atlanta loser on the road for the eighth seed.
What wagers can you make right now for the playoffs?
There are several futures wagers you can make right now ahead of the NBA playoffs. One of them is to pick the eventual champion. Depending on the sportsbook, the favorite right now is either the Oklahoma City Thunder or the Boston Celtics. You can also wager on the winner of each conference and the winner of each division. Division titles are given out at the end of the regular season and have no bearing on playoff seeding, but those can be fun to track.
There also a number of end-of-season awards that you can place wagers on. The NBA Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Sixth Man of the Year. You can also still find some books that still take action on win totals for the 2024-25 regular season.
Who will Make the Playoffs?
Western Conference
Oklahoma City (44-10) finally got Chet Holmgren back from a fractured pelvis, and now the Thunder have a “Twin Towers” lineup featuring him and fellow 7-footer Isaiah Hartenstein. In their first two games together, the Thunder were +25 over 31 minutes with both of them on the floor – even though Holmgren showed a lot of offensive rust in those games. His rim defense is fresh, though – he blocked 9 shots over those two contests. In the playoffs.
Denver (36-19) has an eight-game winning streak going even with Peyton Watson and Russell Westbrook on the shelf due to injuries. They didn’t do any trades at the deadline, showing they believe in this roster to give Nikola Jokic the help he needs to make a deep playoff run. Jokic and Westbrook have a developing game chemistry, and Michael Porter Jr has a three-game streak with 30 or more points. Christian Braun has a 15-game streak with double figures in points. In the playoffs.
Memphis (36-18) has won five out of six, although they showed a lack of composure in their only loss in that stretch – a setback against Oklahoma City. They couldn’t get offensive boards in that game – and so they took 24 fewer shots than the Thunder did. Ja Morant ame back to the lineup on February 3 and has played four games in a row. They need him to be hot as they continue a road swing that will end in Cleveland on FEbruary 23. In the playoffs.
The Lakers (32-20) are definitely on the rise after fleecing Dallas for Luka Doncic. He does have a minutes restriction after a six-week absence with a calf strain (and his conditioning problems that were well documented in Dallas). Doncic plans to train throughout the All-Star break, and if the Lakers can get strong inside play, the pairing of Doncic and LeBron makes this team a smart value pick to win the title, or at least the conference. In the playoffs.
Houston (34-21) has popped out of a six-game losing streak; they started their turnaround by opening a homestand with a defensive showcase against Toronto, holding the Raptors to just 87 points. Fred VanVleet and Alperen Sengun are on the shelf for now, so the injuries are adding up. In the playoffs.
Minnesota (31-25) saw Anthony Edwards put together a three-game streak with at least 40 points. However, they lost to Cleveland on Monday despite getting 44 out of the Ant Man. They lost to Milwaukee on Wednesday but bounced back the next night, taking down Oklahoma City at home. This is a dangerous team at times, but they will have a hard time winning a seven-game series against some of the top teams in the West. In the playoffs.
The Clippers (31-23) made some offensive moves at the trade deadline, including the addition of Bogdan Bogdanovic to add some crucial outside shooting. They also got Ben Simmons, an underrated ball handler who can run point with the second group while also adding length and size on defense and on the boards. Patty Mills and Drew Eubanks are interesting veterans to add some experience on the bench. I’m not sure these are enough to keep the Clips in the top six, though. In the play-in.
Dallas (30-26) sold its fans on how bringing Anthony Davis to town in exchange for Luka would transform the team’s culture and defensive mindset. He was dominating his debut until he went down with a non-contact adductor injury that has him on the shelf for weeks. Big men Daniel Gafford (knee), Dereck Lively II (stress fracture) and Dwight Powell (hip) are all out, and so two-way player Kessler Edwards has been manning the paint. This led to a ridiculous overtime loss to Sacramento, but the team bounced back with wins over Golden State and Miami. Max Christie came over in the trade with the Lakers, though, and the 3-and-D swingman has put up 17.0 points and 5.3 boards per game, shooting 51.2% overall and 57.9% from beyond the arc. In the play-in.
Golden State (28-27) has a 2-1 record since trading for Jimmy Butler, but they’re still just 16-24 since that 12-3 start to the season. Butler has worked on pick-and-rolls with Stephen Curry, and he has also built communication with Draymond Green. Butler can finish games, create shots, get foul calls, defend and distribute the balls. Those are all skills that the Warriors needed. How long do the Warriors have before Jimmy Butler’s penchant for drama reappears, though? How long will Green’s mindset hold? In the play-in.
Sacramento (28-27) has reunited Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, who were also in the same backcourt in Chicago. DeRozan knocked down the game-tying shot at the end of regulation in Dallas and also had the game-winner in overtime. That made 11 go-ahead shots in the last five seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime over the last 15 seasons. The only player with more is Stephen Curry (12). They split a pair of games down in New Orleans going into the All-Star break. In the play-in.
Notable Teams out of the Playoffs: Phoenix, San Antonio
Eastern Conference
Cleveland (44-10) got De’Andre Hunter from Atlanta before the trade deadline. Despite foul trouble limiting him to just 23 minutes in his debut, he put up 12 points. He also helped the Cavs beat Minnesota to get to 25 home wins, a number that leads the league. Holding that lead before the All-Star break would give them home-court advantage throughout the playoffs so long as they hang onto that top seed. In the playoffs.
Boston (39-16) is waiting for Jrue Holiday to come back from his right shoulder impingement. At the trade deadline, the Celtics didn’t do a whole lot because they see their roster as solid enough to win another title. However, if any other injuries creep up, they could suffer from some lack of depth down the stretch. In the playoffs.
New York (36-18) had won seven of their last 10 before they took a beating from Boston on Saturday. They did bounce back with a win over Atlanta, but losing to the Celtics by 27 in a game that was viewed as a test had to be disappointing. Mitchell Robinson and O.G. Anunoby are still not quite ready to take the floor, but when they do, the Knicks should be even more dangerous. In the playoffs.
Indiana (30-23) has enjoyed the acquisition of Pascal Siakam at last year’s trade deadline. He has shot a career-best 41.1% from behind the arc this year while putting up 20.7 points and 7.4 boards per game. Since January, the Pacers have been trending upward; if they can stay healthy, this is a system that is rolling. In the playoffs.
Milwaukee (29-24) has played the last six games without Giannis Antetokounmpo, but they’ve gone 3-3 in those games, including a 103-101 win in Minnesota that saw late heroics from Brook Lopez. Damian Lillard will represent the Bucks at the All-Star Game, as his scoring has helped the Bucks stay afloat as well. In the playoffs.
Detroit (29-26) has its first All-Star since 2019 in Cade Cunningham. Being in the Eastern Conference is definitely helping the Pistons’ chances of hanging onto a top-six slot and qualifying automatically for the conference quarterfinals. In the playoffs.
Miami (25-28) now has Andrew Wiggins in the rotation, but it didn’t help in losses to Boston, Oklahoma City and Dallas. Not even Tyler Herro’s 40-point night in Dallas could get the Heat to a win. Wiggins can shoot and defend, and he’s durable. But is it going to be enough to keep the Heat afloat? In the play-in.
Orlando (27-29) have played 11 games since getting Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero back from injury. They’ve won just three times, though. Those two players were working at a high level at the start of the season. They do have the fifth-easiest schedule left after the All-Star break. But can they move up? In the play-in.
Atlanta (26-29) had a three-game winning streak end in New York. However, their defense has started to show up, climbing from 21st to 11th in the NBA since December 2. In the play-in.
Chicago (22-33) is excited by rookie Matas Buzelis, who has moved to the starting lineup after the trade of Zach LaVine. In his first two starts, he played 29 minutes per game and put up 18.0 points and 3.7 boards per game, shooting 67% from the floor. Things are tough out of the break, though, with trips to New York and Philadelphia sandwiched around a home date with Phoenix. In the play-in.
Notable Teams out of the Playoffs: Brooklyn, Philadelphia
Looking at the Eastern Conference Standings, the @MiamiHEAT currently in the NBA Play-In Tournament and would play the @ChicagoBulls. Realizing that if we lose, we would have no second chance as the loser of the 9/10 seed is definitely eliminated from the playoffs. https://t.co/sJZ7ycfodT
— Miguel L. Sanchez (@SanchezML94) February 14, 2025
NBA Playoffs
Love betting NBA? | Xbet Sportsbook offers up to date NBA lines
^ Top