Some News from the NBA Board of Governors Meeting

Posted on by Nafiz Labib

This Tuesday, the NBA Board of Governors had their annual meeting in Las Vegas to discuss about various important matters regarding the structure of the NBA and its future. Here is some striking news that came out of that meeting:

Permanent Play-In Tournament

With the popularity that the NBA playoffs’ play-in tournament demonstrated along with the extra sense of competition it fostered, it makes perfect sense that the board voted to permanently keep this on the league’s schedule without having to do a yearly vote. The play-in tournament only guarantees the top 6 seeds from both conferences a spot in the playoffs, allowing the 7th-10th to compete and provide a smaller tournament within the playoffs for viewers to enjoy.

Increased Penalty for “Transition Take” Foul

While this has been in question for a while now, the board finally agreed to penalize transition take fouls more, which is where a defending player fouls in order to stop the other team’s fastbreak opportunity.

The penalty used to be a common personal foul on the offending player, with a side out as well. However, now the offensive team is awarded a free throw, and they still retain possession, alongside the defensive player picking up a common personal foul. The extra penalties will not be applied during the last 2 minutes of the 4th quarter or the last 2 minutes of any overtime period, allowing teams to take fouls in order to stop the shot clock and use it to try and gain the advantage.

For full details and clarifications regarding the rule, view here:

In-Season Tournament Concept

The board discussed a few more details to a new concept to be added to the league schedule called the In-Season Tournament. It would have all 30 teams competing during the regular season schedule, with the top 8 teams entering single elimination rounds, and then have four teams remaining. While more details are yet to be discussed about having such a tournament, if it were to be implemented, it would first be in place during the 2023-2024 NBA season.

Robert Sarver Investigation Coming to a Close

According to NBA commissioner Adam Silver,

 “I’m not prepared to talk about what the conclusion might be, only to say that we are at the sort of last stage of the investigation.”

Robert Sarver, the Phoenix Suns’ team owner, has been under investigation since November 2021 due to allegations of racism and misogyny against him, leading to a “toxic” work environment. When asked why the investigation has taken so long, Silver said that they were looking into an almost 18-year period since Sarver first acquired ownership, which involved talking with hundreds of employees, and ensuring due process is provided for everyone as well. However, based on Silver’s statements made following the NBA Board of Governors meeting, the investigation is nearing a conclusion, and we might see the results anytime soon.

More NBA news: 

Follow our NBA page for more key NBA updates and news