According to Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News, the league is considering changing the playoff format to 16 teams instead of eight per conference.
"Commish Adam Silver just told Spurs broadcasters NBA 'might move' on playoff format to go to top 16 teams, instead of eight per conference," Monroe writes.
This could pay off huge for the overall competition of the NBA Playoffs.
It's very noticeable that the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers have an easier route to get to the Finals than a team like the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder do. Heck, some even consider the Western Conference Finals the true NBA Finals.
If the playoff format were to happen, this is what the seeding would look like as of right now:
- San Antonio Spurs
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Miami Heat
- Indiana Pacers
- Houston Rockets
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Golden State Warriors
- Dallas Mavericks
- Chicago Bulls
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Phoenix Suns
- Toronto Raptors
- Brooklyn Nets
- Washington Wizards
- Charlotte Bobcats
Now that looks a hell of a lot better than what the standings do now.
The only major question is how the league will be able to organize this format to make it as a fair as possible.