The NBA keeps finding innovative ideas to make the season more engaging. To resume the NBA season, they first came up with the Orlando Bubble concept in the wake of the coronavirus. Now, they have included another bonus as we conclude the regular season with a short play-in tournament between the eighth and ninth seed. This idea is one that Lakers’ Kyle Kuzma really likes.

What is this play-in tournament?

This new concept by the league gives teams at the ninth seed an opportunity to make it to the NBA playoff bracket. However, there is a catch. The team at the ninth spot should be within four games of the team at the eighth spot. This is exactly why there is no play-in tournament for the Eastern Conference; nobody finished within four games of the Orlando Magic.

The way it works is that there will be two games in total between the two teams. The ninth-seeded team has to win twice against the eighth-seeded in order to make it to the playoffs. Whereas, the eighth-seeded team only needs to win once.

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The Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies from the West will be playing in the tournament on Saturday. With the standings in mind, the Blazers only need to win on Saturday to proceed while the Grizzlies have to beat them twice.

This game is quite important for the Los Angeles Lakers because it will determine their first-round matchup in the playoffs depending on who wins.

Lakers player expresses his support for the new rule

The buzz generated by this new rule grabbed a lot of attention. This included Lakers forward, Kyle Kuzma who will be facing the direct implications of this game.

He said, “Love it, great idea.” He went to say, “It’s another added element… The 8-9 game it just makes the season more entertaining.” He talks about how this gives the ninth seed a great chance to prove themselves one last time.

“Just think about if we had fans and we had a play-in game for 8 and 9. Especially in the West, those 9 seeds are always heartbroken because they’re deserving of a playoff spot… So I think it’s great for the NBA,” Kuzma concluded.

Following this play-in tournament, Monday will mark the first round of the NBA’s postseason.