Yesterday, Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic sounded off on the NBA’s play-in tournament, claiming that it just wasn’t fair and he didn’t see the point in potentially missing the postseason after losing two games in a row:
“I don’t understand the idea of a play-in. You play 72 games to get into the playoffs, then maybe you lose two in a row and you’re out of the playoffs. So I don’t see the point of that,” Doncic said, as per ESPN’s Tim McMahon.
"I don't understand the play-in. You play 72 games to get in the playoffs, then maybe you lose two in a row and you're out of the playoffs. I don't see the point of that."
Luka Doncic on the NBA's current playoff format. #MFFL pic.twitter.com/SNkm7aeGDy
— FanDuel Sports Network Southwest (@FanDuelSN_SW) April 13, 2021
Today, Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban backed up Doncic’s statement, claiming that there’s just not enough time to play that many games because of this season’s tight and shortened schedule:
“In a regular season of 82 games where we aren’t playing 30-plus games in 6 weeks, then it might have been OK. But the compression of so many games into so few days makes this an enormous mistake. If we had gone 1 to 16, with the top 12 in, it still would have been rough, but there would have been more separation between play-in and the top 12. This is a season where we have to rest high-usage players. We have no choice. And that can and will have consequences,” Cuban told ESPN.
Cuban also said that this will also prevent teams from resting their stars ahead of the playoffs, meaning that it’ll also put the players’ health at risk:
“The worst part of this approach is that it doubles the stress of the compressed schedule. Rather than playing for a playoff spot and being able to rest players as the standings become clearer, teams have to approach every game as a playoff game to either get into or stay in the top 6 since the consequences, as Luka said, are enormous. So players are playing more games and more minutes in fewer days,” he added.
Doncic and Cuban have a valid point right there. It’s not fair to clinch a playoff spot and then lose it because of a tough stretch. What if a player gets hurt and can’t play in the play-in tournament? This would be beneficial for the teams that didn’t have the best record.
Right now, the Mavericks are in a play-in scenario as they hold the 7th spot, so they better make a late push to avoid that situation.