NBA Play-In Tournament 2026: Schedule, matchups, how it works

The 2026 NBA Play-In Tournament begins Tuesday, and will feature the teams that finished 7 through 10 in the East and West standings, with a chance to earn the final two playoff spots in each conference on the line. Let's break it down:

Play-In Tournament schedule (all games on Prime)

Tuesday

• East team TBD vs. East team TBD: 7:30 p.m. ET
• West 8th place (Clippers or Trail Blazers) vs. Phoenix Suns 10 p.m. ET

The winners advance to the playoffs as the No. 7 seeds; the losers will play again on Friday.

Wednesday

• East team TBD vs. East team TBD: 7:30 p.m. ET
• Golden State Warriors vs. West 9th place (Clippers or Trail Blazers)

The winners will play again Friday for a shot at the No. 8 seeds; the losers will be eliminated.

Friday

• East team TBD vs. East team TBD 7:30 p.m. ET
• West team TBD vs. West Team TBD 10 p.m. ET

The winners advance to the playoffs as the No. 8 seeds; the losers will be eliminated.

How the play-in tournament works

The current format of the play-in tournament was introduced during the 2020-21 season. Teams that finish 7 through 10 in the standings will participate in a two-round tournament for a shot at the playoffs as the seventh and eighth seeds.

From the NBA:

Each conference’s No. 7 team in the standings will host the No. 8 team. The winners secure the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. The losers will get another chance to earn a playoff spot.

Each conference’s No. 9 team in the standings will host the No. 10 team. The winners will advance to the final stage of the Play-In Tournament. The losers are eliminated.

The losers of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 matchups will host the winners of the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchups. The winners secure the No. 8 seed in the NBA playoffs for its conference. The losing teams are eliminated.

The 2026 NBA Playoffs begin April 18.