Love it or hate it, the NBA's newly implemented play-in tournament, which includes six games across the next four nights, has incentivized teams to win and created appointment television drama before the traditional playoffs officially begin.
And because of these key accomplishments, former NBA player and current New Orleans Pelicans television analyst Antonio Daniels hopes the league sticks to this innovative playoff format for years to come.
"I love every aspect of the play-in games. You know why? Because you're getting guys to be engaged for longer," Daniels told the Tiki and Tierney show on Tuesday. "In my 13-year career, I made the playoffs in 11 of those 13 seasons. Two years, I know what it's like to be sitting at home, making offseason vacation plans two or three weeks before the season's over. I know what that's like. I've seen guys do it, I've also been in that position. But what you're forcing guys to do now, you're giving them hope.
"You're giving them something to play for, as opposed to guys basically saying with two or three weeks to go in the season, 'We don't have a chance mathematically to get to [the No. 8 seed], so what are we playing for? What are doing this for?' So, you see guys kind of hang it up. 'Alright, I'm going to go out, I'm injured for the rest of the year.' You start worrying about the offseason. What you saw is meaningful games happening in the NBA... That's why I like it. It gives hope, and it gives guys an opportunity to play meaningful basketball and stay engaged for longer."
Prior to the play-in tournament's inception, the top eight seeds in each conference would make the playoffs when the regular season ended. This year, only the top six seeds in both the East and West were guaranteed a ticket to the postseason, and the Nos. 7-10 seeds qualified for the play-in tournament to determine the final two playoff spots. Full details on the NBA's new playoff structure can be found here.
The first two play-in games will take place on Tuesday night, with the East's No. 9 seed Indiana Pacers hosting the No. 10 seed Charlotte Hornets (6:30 p.m. ET tip) and the No. 7 seed Boston Celtics hosting the No. 8 seed Washington Wizards (9 p.m. ET). On Wednesday night, the West's No. 9 seed Memphis Grizzlies will oppose the No. 10 seed San Antonio Spurs (7:30 p.m. ET) and the No. 7 seed Los Angeles Lakers will face the No. 8 seed Golden State Warriors (10 p.m. ET).
If the Lakers repeat as NBA champions this summer, they would become the league's first seventh seed or lower to ever win the title.
The entire NBA conversation between Daniels and Tiki and Tierney can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the Tiki and Tierney Show on Twitter @TikiAndTierney and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.