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NBA: 4 changes Adam Silver should make to improve league

By Michael Burke

Jun 26, 2014; Brooklyn, NY, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver addresses the crowd before the start of the 2014 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 26, 2014; Brooklyn, NY, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver addresses the crowd before the start of the 2014 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 28, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Paul George answers questions during a press conference following game five against the Miami Heat of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats Miami 93-90. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
May 28, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Paul George answers questions during a press conference following game five against the Miami Heat of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats Miami 93-90. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Reformat the playoffs:

The NBA Playoffs are my favorite postseason tournament that any sport offers. But even I recognize how grossly unfair they are.

Last season we saw four Eastern Conference teams — the Wizards, Bulls, Bobcats, and Hawks — make the playoffs that would’ve missed the playoffs in the West. Meanwhile, the 48-win Phoenix Suns missed the playoffs in the West but would’ve finished tied for the third in the East, and that was with a Western Conference schedule.

So I suggest that the NBA rids itself of conferences. Divisions can stay, with all six division winners getting automatic bids into the playoffs. But rather than 16 playoff teams, I would prefer to see 10 — that way, making the playoffs is more of an achievement and it adds that much more significance to the regular season.

Much like the MLB, the four Wild Card teams would play two one-game playoffs to determine the seventh and eighth spots in the eight-team tournament.

For fun, let’s examine what the 2014 NBA Playoffs would’ve looked like with my system:

  • Division winners: Indiana, Miami, Los Angeles (Clippers), Miami, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, and Toronto
  • Wild Cards: Golden State, Houston, Memphis, and Portland

Would that not have been a great postseason tournament? We would’ve seen Miami play Indiana in the first round, and potentially could have seen Oklahoma City square off against Golden State — the playoff series that we all wanted but unfortunately did not get in 2014.

With my system, there would be more intrigue than ever, no undeserving playoff teams, and no easy paths to the Finals — like the one Miami had in 2014.

Sounds perfect to me.

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