The commissioner of the NBA, Adam Silver, said this Saturday that the project of creating a new tournament during the season is having a greater acceptance among the players.
In his traditional press conference in the framework of the All-Star Game, Silver assured that the success of the playoff playoff format (‘play in’) has led the players to be more receptive to the idea of ​​the new tournament.
"Today I am more satisfied with the ‘play-in’ than I thought when we first adopted it"Silver said of a format implemented in 2020 that increased the number of teams contending for the postseason.
"In a way, the players have been more receptive to the possibility of a tournament during the season because the ‘play in’ has been more successful than I think even they had anticipated."said the commissioner at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland (Ohio).
"Our players end up being more conservative than us when we come to them with new ideas"he pointed.
Regarding the new project, which would not be applied next season, Silver considered that they can be "find ways to improve the competition within the season, create a new cup, a trophy that players compete for".
In other business, the commissioner said the NBA is considering moving preseason games outside of North America again but has all but ruled out the possibility of them being on the next regular-season schedule.
"There are so many unknowns in the workings of our calendar. We have to plan those games well in advance"he pointed.