The first-ever NBA In-Season Tournament is here!

Get live updates on games, standings and a simple explanation of how it works:

Quick explainer

When it comes to the In-Season Tournament, you only need to know these two terms: Group Play and Knockout Rounds.

• Group Play: All 30 teams have been randomly split into six groups. Each team will play one game against the opponents in its group from Nov. 3-28. These games are played on “Tournament Nights” and count towards each team’s 82-game schedule. Each team will play a total of four Group Play games.
• Knockout Rounds: Eight teams advance to this stage: the six teams with the best standing from their Group Play games and two “wild cards” (the team from each conference with the best record in Group Play games but finished second in its group). This stage is single-elimination: Quarterfinals > Semifinals > Championship.

Need more clarification? Go deeper.

Friday’s games

Group Play games will take place on seven different nights in November. Every NBA game played on these dates will count towards the In-Season Tournament’s Group Play stage:

• Friday, Nov. 3
• Friday, Nov. 10
• Tuesday, Nov. 14
• Friday, Nov. 17
• Tuesday, Nov. 21
• Friday, Nov. 24
• Tuesday, Nov. 28

Here is the slate for Friday, Nov. 3:

• East A: Cavaliers vs. Pacers (7 ET, NBA League Pass)
• East B: Knicks vs. Bucks (7:30 ET, ESPN)
• West C: Warriors vs. Thunder (8 ET, NBA League Pass)
• East C: Nets vs. Bulls (8 ET, NBA League Pass)
• East B: Wizards vs. Heat (8 ET, NBA League Pass)
• West A: Grizzlies vs. Trail Blazers (10 ET, NBA League Pass)
• West B: Mavericks vs. Nuggets (10 ET, ESPN)

In-Season Tournament Standings

Below are the six groups for the In-Season Tournament and where teams currently stand. Again, the winner of each group advances to the Knockout Round, along with two wild card teams.

Standings will be updated on Tuesday and Friday nights after games are complete. 

East Group A

76ers: 0-0
Cavs: 0-0
Hawks: 0-0
Pacers: 0-0
Pistons 0-0

East Group B

Bucks: 0-0
Knicks: 0-0
Heat: 0-0
Wizards: 0-0
Hornets: 0-0

East Group C

Celtics: 0-0
Magic: 0-0
Bulls: 0-0
Raptors: 0-0
Nets: 0-0

West Group A

Grizzlies: 0-0
Suns: 0-0
Lakers: 0-0
Jazz: 0-0
Trail Blazers: 0-0

West Group B

Nuggets: 0-0
Clippers: 0-0
Pelicans: 0-0
Mavericks: 0-0
Rockets: 0-0

West Group C

Kings: 0-0
Warriors: 0-0
Timberwolves: 0-0
Thunder: 0-0
Spurs: 0-0

One thing to note: In the event two or more teams are tied within a group, the tie among the teams will be broken according to the following tiebreakers (in sequential order):

• Head-to-head record in the Group Stage
• Point differential in the Group Stage
• Total points scored in the Group Stage
• Regular season record from the 2022-23 NBA regular season
• Random drawing (in the scenario that two or more teams are still tied following the previous tiebreakers).

In-Season Tournament Stat Leaders

Who will make the first-ever All-Tournament Team? Stay up to date on the top performers from the In-Season Tournament games so far.

Friday’s scoring leaders
1. Damian Lillard: 35 points
2. Stephen Curry: 32 points
3. Luka Doncic: 31 points
4. De’Aaron Fox: 29 points
5. Devin Booker: 27 points

When does the Knockout Round start?

The knockout round will begin on Dec. 4 and feature eight teams.

The final four teams will travel to Las Vegas, where a champion will be crowned on Dec. 9.

^^ After Nov. 17, every team will have played at least one In-Season Tournament Game (majority will have played two). This could be a good time to change the subhead above to the one below and have a graphic updated after games on Nov. 17, Nov. 21 and Nov. 24.

If the Knockout Round started today

The knockout round will begin on Dec. 4 and feature eight teams. If this stage of the tournament began today, the matchups would be as follows:

• Lakers vs. Nuggets
• Warriors vs. Suns
• Bucks vs. Celtics
• 76ers vs. Heat

The final four teams will travel to Las Vegas, where a champion will be crowned on Dec. 9.

Full Group Play Schedule 

All times are Eastern Standard Time. You can find a team-by-team view of the schedule here.