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Roundtable: Should the NBA reseed the playoffs?

Roundtable: Should the NBA reseed the playoffs?

The first weekend of the 2021-22 NBA regular season is here, as everybody has now hit the floor in meaningful action to start things off.

A common argument always surfaces when discussing ways to improve the league's postseason picture. Too often we're hearing that the season doesn't truly matter, and coaching decisions to manage players and their bodies (rightfully so) kind of back that claim. But what if every game did matter, and divisions and conferences were strictly for scheduling purposes?

In our latest Roundtable, we asked our BasketballNews.com writers the following question:

Should the NBA reseed the playoffs?

Alex Kennedy: Yes, this seems like a no-brainer since it would lead to better matchups. However, I’m not sure if it’ll ever happen since a number of NBA executives have reportedly pushed back against this idea, blaming travel concerns and the fact that it would diminish existing rivalries. Still, I hope we see the NBA adopt this change at some point in the near future.

Nekias Duncan: I think it's a cool idea, but I understand the hesitation with some of the travel weirdness that could pop up with some of the matchups. I'm fine with keeping things as is.

Spencer Davies: I'm usually more of a traditionalist, but I'm actually open to this idea. Geography shouldn't determine why you don't make the field of 16 postseason teams (well, with the play-in tournament that's probably expanded to a larger number, but you get the point). If travel is really that much of a concern, just take the strategy from baseball to make the quarterfinal rounds a best-of-five instead of seven. The difficulty would probably be adjusting to different time zones and such, where the league would have to think hard about amount of days in between. But hey, it can be done.

Ethan Fuller: No! I don't know if this is a hot take, but this is an unnecessary change that carries considerable risk with marginal payoff. The postseason always creates its own fantastic matchups; reseeding in an effort to pit the best teams together in the Finals isn't a perfect strategy. The travel aspect is much more important. If fans want to see the best players play at their best, travel and injury risk should be limited, which means the West stays in the West and the East stays in the East.

Moke Hamilton: I’ve gone back and forth on this one. My final answer would be based on how the reseeding is done. If it’s as simple as taking the top 16 teams irrespective of conference and cross-matching them, I don’t think I’d be in favor of that. The doomsday scenario there would be the Miami Heat and Portland Trail Blazers (or Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers, for example) drawing each other in the first round. Although it’s not likely, employing a system like that could have unintended consequences, especially when New Orleans and Houston or New York and Brooklyn could end up drawing one another in the first round. Perhaps it would be less of an issue if the league went to a 2-3-2 format for all rounds, but there are serious cons to that as well. The simplest answer at this point is to leave things the way they are, as the most obvious ways to reseed seem to have more cons than pros.

Jannelle Moore: I think the NBA should absolutely reseed the playoffs and do away with East and West matchups. Doing this will create new rivalries. The intensity of competition will be elevated, and it's a more organic way to create more interest in the league compared to midseason gimmicks.

Evan Sidery: As of right now, no, I don't think so. Finally, the Eastern Conference looks well-balanced and competitive this season. I've always loved the traditional East and West format, and the play-in tournament is a nice little wrinkle to it as well.

Blake Hairston: I still prefer separating the playoffs by conference. I think that structure still holds onto the idea of having rivalries because of how often one team sees another. Also, I've been a fan of the play-in format so far since it keeps the teams in the 7-to-12 range fighting until the final days of the season. But... have I dreamed of a "March Madness" type of NBA Playoffs? Yes. Hear me out: All 30 teams in, single elimination until you get to the Sweet 16 to spice it up, then go back to the 7-game series structure from there.

Alexander Cohen: It may difficult to pull off with travel, but it's hard to argue that the 16 best teams in the league should not compete for a championship. A setup with the No. 1 seed playing the No. 16, the No. 2 seed playing the No. 15 and so on would be much less arbitrary than the current play-in design. It would prevent ever having an outcome like 2014, where the Suns missed the playoffs with 48 wins as the 38-win Hawks made it, from happening again.

Mark Gunnels: I know this is a popular discussion every year, but I don’t think they should mess with what’s working.

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