Playoffs - too long???

[kwajo]

Between posters calling for shorter regular seasons and now calling for shorter playoffs, I wonder if most of this board even likes basketball.

Less basketball, more transactions. 2K in real life.

This is definitely the mentality of too many fans these days, they want the drama of trades and signings more than they want to enjoy basketball being played.

[Saints14]

I think they should make the first round best of 5 again, other than that it's fine. My real complaint is the late start times and skipping weekends...twice during the finals games have been scheduled on Thursday and Sunday skipping over Friday and Saturday, while playing the games late on Sunday night. Only one of the 7 games on a Friday or Saturday. Just really annoying how these leagues will screw over east coasters who have to work the next day

[Nate505]

Between posters calling for shorter regular seasons and now calling for shorter playoffs, I wonder if most of this board even likes basketball.

More isn't always better.

For a regular season, there are two methods to make it interesting:

1) A very small amount of playoff spots. Back in the day baseball had like four spots, so even though the regular season was 162 games, the regular season really mattered given only 4/28 or whatever teams would make the playoffs.

2) A small amount of games. US football is a prime example of that, but to me the best one is the World Cup. 50% of World Cup teams (well it used to be this way...I'm not even exactly sure how the format works next year) make the knockout stage. Yet the group stage is highly meaningful given there's literally just three games to be played.

Basketball and hockey are like the worst of both worlds. Massively long seasons and more than 50% of the teams make the playoffs.

[Saints14]

Between posters calling for shorter regular seasons and now calling for shorter playoffs, I wonder if most of this board even likes basketball.

More isn't always better.

For a regular season, there are two methods to make it interesting:

1) A very small amount of playoff spots. Back in the day baseball had like four spots, so even though the regular season was 162 games, the regular season really mattered given only 4/28 or whatever teams would make the playoffs.

2) A small amount of games. US football is a prime example of that, but to me the best one is the World Cup. 50% of World Cup teams (well it used to be this way...I'm not even exactly sure how the format works next year) make the knockout stage. Yet the group stage is highly meaningful given there's literally just three games to be played.

Basketball and hockey are like the worst of both worlds. Massively long seasons and more than 50% of the teams make the playoffs.

I'll also add that you don't need 82 games to determine who the best regular season teams are, in fact it's more the opposite, where the last month of the season is fools gold when the teams at the top are resting their starters and the teams at the bottom are calling up random G league players

[ChumboChappati]

Simple question. Do you think the NBA drags the playoffs on for too long? Or are you OK with these games taking as long as they Do?

Personally, I think this is going on for WAY too long. Without a dog in the fight, I lost interest in the playoffs a while ago. I just happened to see that there is a game on tonight, and it reminded me that the playoffs were still on-going. It honestly feels like these playoffs should have ended almost a month ago, and yet here we are with at least 2 more games to go, and we are half way through June.

I know I might just be speaking for myself, but does anyone else share this opinion that the NBA is trying to milk these things for so much longer than they should be?

Definitely too long; lost a lot of my interest because of it; also does not help that both teams in finals are pretty mediocre.

[chilluminati]

The finals just takes too long with 2 day breaks. Do they really need two day breaks?

[dhsilv2]

I think they should make the first round best of 5 again, other than that it's fine. My real complaint is the late start times and skipping weekends...twice during the finals games have been scheduled on Thursday and Sunday skipping over Friday and Saturday, while playing the games late on Sunday night. Only one of the 7 games on a Friday or Saturday. Just really annoying how these leagues will screw over east coasters who have to work the next day

This unlike the rest I can get behind. I haven't liked the way they stretch and the days they pick. Beyond that no real issues.

[Slacktard]

Need to make some real changes to how spread out this thing is. I know they believe they're doing it for TV ratings, but I think the big gaps and how drawn out it is just caused interest to wane.

[Slacktard]

The finals just takes too long with 2 day breaks. Do they really need two day breaks?

They had shorter breaks when they using **** propeller planes.

They also had some back to backs which obviously is not going to happen... but even going back to the 1990s it wasn't as ridiculous as it is now.

The 1994 NBA finals went 7 games and it took 14 days. This NBA finals is taking 3 days longer. Did it accomplish anything? Has it made the product better? Has it made the interest higher?

The NBA avoids certain days now as well. That 1994 NBA finals had a Friday night game. OJ Simpson's car chase happened during it.

[miamiheat319]

Don't decrease number of games, just less time in between playoff/finals games

[Ssj16]

So basically whenever my team's season ends, I don't care anymore. In other news, water is wet.

Exactly. I don't get this sentiment if you are a true basketball fan, which I would assume someone would be on this forum. Especially because you don't need to watch the games.

I think the season is too long in general because of the injuries and the key players who sit out games. Guess what, I don't watch regular season games that I are a waste of time.

I don't see how shortening the playoffs improves the quality of play however, especially when players would have less time to rest between travel in the finals.

[Doctor MJ]

Simple question. Do you think the NBA drags the playoffs on for too long? Or are you OK with these games taking as long as they Do?

Personally, I think this is going on for WAY too long. Without a dog in the fight, I lost interest in the playoffs a while ago. I just happened to see that there is a game on tonight, and it reminded me that the playoffs were still on-going. It honestly feels like these playoffs should have ended almost a month ago, and yet here we are with at least 2 more games to go, and we are half way through June.

I know I might just be speaking for myself, but does anyone else share this opinion that the NBA is trying to milk these things for so much longer than they should be?

I agree that the playoffs are too long, though I wouldn't actually say "way too long". What I'd like to see at the very least is the 1st round go back down to Best of 5. I think doing the same for the 2nd round (CSF) would really work too. It's only when you get to the Conference Finals that there's really media space to hype up deep playoff series.

Of course, I'd be looking to chop the regular season much more than the playoffs. My plan would look something like this:

- Expand NBA to 32 teams and never expand again. Further NBA expansion strategy should focus on co-owning overseas leagues and then perhaps creating the equivalent of a Club World Cup for a World Championship.

- 2 Conferences, 2 Divisions in each conference, 8 teams per division. Division record champion (not overall record) guaranteed a top 2 conference seed. Other than that Conference seedings determined by conference record, with overall record determining HCA in the Finals. This would be taking advantage of the need to re-organized the league so that more meaning can be placed on the regular season races and rivalries. In service of this, I'd be looking to have the teams play more of their Division games later in the season, which would give the possibility of a team that figures it out mid-season (like the current Pacers) a chance to leap up the seeds by taking the Division title.

- Play 7 teams in your division 4 times, play the 8 teams in other conference division 2 times, play the 16 teams in the other conference once, for a 60 game regular season. (Not dead set on any of these numbers, but however the league re-structures when it inevitably goes to 32, my preference would be to think about what the minimum number of games is possible to still have a) a league where everyone still plays each other each season, and b) in optimizing for geography provides hope for building back some regular season meaning.

- I'd continue experimenting with the NBA Cup and the like. I might actually look to replace the all-star weekend with the Cup as I actually think they serve a similar purpose and there's no hope for the actual all-star game. The other activities associated with the all-star weekend can get folded into the Cup.

[AdamSSSlither]

joshyjess...you know why you think playoffs are too long?...cause your not a real bball fan. its that simple.

if it was up to me there would be no offseason.

[Joshyjess]

joshyjess...you know why you think playoffs are too long?...cause your not a real bball fan. its that simple.

if it was up to me there would be no offseason.

That does seem to be the opinion of some people here. Oh well, so be it.

[joeschmo]

Are playoffs still going on?

[TheChaser]

I think overall the length is fine but it's the Finals that take too long. I don't think we need multiple 2 day breaks between games, personally.

This.

[YogurtProducer]

Go back to 2-3-2 finals format. It made the NBA unique and it reduced travel. That way we don't need so many breaks in between games in the finals.

That’s horrible. A 5 game series means the higher seed played more road games.

Just a horrible idea for fans, owners, players.

[HDMAVS760CA]

In a way, it be too long. The play in & the adding of the best of 7 in the 1st round

[M2J]

The playoffs are our reward for the too long regular season.... Why would fans not want the best basketball by the best players in the world for 2 months?

[ropjhk]

Go back to 2-3-2 finals format. It made the NBA unique and it reduced travel. That way we don't need so many breaks in between games in the finals.

That’s horrible. A 5 game series means the higher seed played more road games.

Just a horrible idea for fans, owners, players.

Higher seed only plays more road games if the series is 5 games. If the higher seed is going to lose in 5 games then why should we think the end result could have been any different under a 2-2-2-1 format.

2-3-2 makes for a more interesting series.