NBA exploring possibility of midseason tournament

NBA commissioner Adam Silver has spoken extensively in recent years about finding ways to boost ratings and fan interest. One way the league may try to do that is with a tournament that takes place in the middle of the regular season.

NBA executives are pleased with the success of this year’s play-in tournament and are planning to further explore the idea of a midseason tournament, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Sunday.

The previous proposals for a midseason tournament called for the event to incorporate a European soccer-style tournament into the NBA’s regular schedule. The tournament would be single-elimination and feature eight teams. Players would be incentivized with a $1 million payout per player to the winning team.

One of the main concerns is that star players who don’t need the money would prefer having a break in the middle of the season over being a part of the tournament. Teams in big markets also want assurances that they would not lose revenue if the midseason tournament shortened the regular season to 78 games.

The NBA feels the play-in tournament was a success, though some players have expressed opposition to it. We’re guessing players will be skeptical of a midseason tournament also — even if there is bonus money at stake.