USA - NBA changes play-off seeding system

NEW YORK (NBA) - After the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks met in the play-offs a round earlier than they deserved, the NBA has decided to change its play-off seeding system.

The NBA Board of Governors announced the measure as one of several rule changes for the new season.

Last season, Southwest Division rivals San Antonio and Dallas had the two best records in the Western Conference but were seeded first and fourth, respectively, for the play-offs because league rules mandated the division champions would automatically earn the top three seeds in each conference.

The teams met in a classic seven-game conference semi-final, which Dallas won en route to reaching the NBA Finals.

However, many felt the teams should have met in the conference final, and the NBA evidently listened.

For next season, the first four seeds in each conference will continue to be assigned to the three division winners and the team with the next-best record, but they now will be seeded in order of regular-season record.

This will ensure that the teams with the top two marks during the 82-game campaign will not meet earlier than the conference finals.

The league also voted to shorten timeouts. If a team has two 60-second timeouts left in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter or in overtime, one will be reduced to 20 seconds.

Instead of having three minute-long timeouts in overtime, squads will have two 60-minute stoppages and a 20-second one, and they will no longer be permitted to carry over a 20-second timeout into overtime.

"Our owners are intent on making the play-off seeding more fair for all teams going forward and in quickening the pace of the end of games," NBA executive vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson said.

Finally, play-off rosters will be expanded from 13 to 15 players, with teams designating 12 active and three inactive players before each game.

"The Board also thought it made sense to allow teams to utilise the same 15-man roster in the playoffs that they use during the regular season," Jackson said.

PA Sport