How to use the NBA playoff bracket
Use the bracket to compare possible paths to the championship. The initial view shows the stored season results; your edits create a personal scenario, not a live forecast or an official NBA result.
Build a prediction, one round at a time
Choose Clear all, then confirm the reset to start an empty bracket. Pick teams in empty slots, select the winners of the single-game Play-In matchups, and work through each conference from the first round to the Finals. Open a series to enter its win totals: the winner needs 4 wins and the opponent can have 0–3. A 4–2 entry means six games were played; it is not a single-game points score. Winners advance into the next round.
Understand the Play-In Tournament
The top six teams in each conference qualify directly. Teams ranked seventh through tenth compete for the remaining two places. The winner of 7 vs. 8 becomes the seventh playoff seed. The loser of 9 vs. 10 is eliminated; its winner faces the loser of 7 vs. 8 for the eighth seed. These are individual games, not best-of-seven series.
Read the playoff path
The first-round pairings in each conference are 1 vs. 8, 4 vs. 5, 2 vs. 7 and 3 vs. 6. The winner of 1/8 meets the winner of 4/5; the winner of 2/7 meets the winner of 3/6. The two surviving teams play the conference finals, and the conference champions meet in the NBA Finals. Every playoff series is best of seven, so four wins are required to advance.
Compare scenarios without losing the distinction
For example, predict that the eighth seed wins 4–2 over the first seed, then follow that team into the next matchup against the 4/5 winner. This helps you examine an upset path without treating it as an actual result. Use the Load actual results option in the Clear all dialog to restore the stored bracket, or open the separate season results page for a read-only reference.
View details and save your bracket
On the stored results bracket, open an available game-details view to inspect individual game scores and player statistics. Those details are disabled for a custom prediction because the hypothetical games have not happened. Use Save as Image to export your current bracket before resetting or leaving the page. There is no account-based saving; refreshing the page restores the initial bracket.
Frequently asked questions
- Why does a team show TBD?
- That slot depends on a previous matchup, or no team has been selected. Fill earlier rounds first. TBD is a bracket state, not a scheduled team.
- Why can I not enter 3–2 or 4–4?
- A completed best-of-seven series must have exactly one team with 4 wins and the other with no more than 3. Play-In games use a winner selection instead.
- Are these live scores or win probabilities?
- No. The result pages use the dataset shipped with the site, and your predictions are manual choices. This tool does not calculate win probabilities or promise automatic live updates.
- How can I move around the bracket?
- Use the zoom controls and drag to pan. On desktop, hold Ctrl or Command while scrolling to zoom; ordinary scrolling moves down to this guide. On a phone, use the layout and zoom controls to find a comfortable view.
- How do I report a wrong score?
- Email the series, game date, disputed value and a supporting source using the contact link below. Check the NBA or ESPN game record before relying on a result.