The success of the NBA’s first in-season tournament went a long way in establishing the event as a fixture for years to come. And while the inaugural IST may have just ended, the intrigue surrounding next year’s iteration has already begun to build.
The NBA will reportedly continue conversations in the coming months on ways to enhance the prize for the tournament’s winner, with the idea of a “team-based incentive” possibly on the table, according to a Monday report from ESPN.
As many NBA fans know, the Lakers winning Saturday’s championship final in Las Vegas netted the club a trophy, along with a banner, and $500K for each player and coach. But, according to ESPN, the 2024 winner may also receive an incentive that could make a greater impact down the road.
Per the report, one idea that’s been pitched would be “guaranteeing the winner of the tournament at least the seventh spot” in the playoffs. However, that received pushback due to the play-in tournament. ESPN also noted some around the NBA, including Lakers coach Darvin Ham, “proposed there be a draft-related incentive.”
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In regards to the 2024 event, Evan Wasch, the NBA’s executive vice president of basketball strategy and analytics, stopped short of confirming what may occur but sounded optimistic about a new prize being a part of next year’s event with teams pushing for the idea.
“Here’s certainly a case we made that [a team-based incentive] isn’t necessary because we had this really high-quality competition where teams and players were so bought in and we didn’t have that incremental reward for teams,” Wasch said. “But there are certainly those teams that have voiced that they think there should be something incremental. Exactly what that is, you know, is up for discussion.”
Entering the 2024–25 season, the NBA figures to examine all of the variables regarding any IST changes, which, even if it’s incremental, could add even more excitement to a tournament that quickly became a favorite for players and fans alike.
