NBA Playoff Bracket Maker - 16-Team Fixed Bracket
Build an NBA playoff bracket. The postseason features 16 teams across 4 best-of-7 rounds, eight from each conference. Six teams per conference qualify directly on record; the Play-In Tournament decides the 7 and 8 seeds.
The NBA playoff bracket is a 16-team fixed bracket, eight seeds per conference. First-round matchups are 1v8, 4v5, 3v6, and 2v7, and winners advance along a locked bracket - the NBA does not reseed. Every round is best-of-7. Generate, seed, share, and print your bracket free below, no signup.
NBA Playoff Structure
16 Teams, 4 Rounds, Best-of-7 Series
- -16 teams: 8 from the Eastern Conference, 8 from the Western Conference
- -Top 6 per conference qualify directly by record; seeds 7-10 enter the Play-In Tournament
- -First Round, Conference Semifinals, Conference Finals, NBA Finals
- -Every round is a best-of-7 series (first to 4 wins)
- -Home-court advantage goes to the higher-seeded team (2-2-1-1-1)
Series Count
The Play-In Tournament
Before the 16-team bracket locks in, the Play-In Tournament settles the final two seeds in each conference. Seeds 7 through 10 compete over a handful of single games:
- 1.The 7 seed hosts the 8 seed. The winner becomes the No. 7 seed.
- 2.The 9 seed hosts the 10 seed. The loser is eliminated.
- 3.The loser of game 1 hosts the winner of game 2. That winner becomes the No. 8 seed; the loser is eliminated.
So four teams per conference chase the last two playoff spots, and only two survive into the main bracket. Once the 7 and 8 seeds are set, the fixed 1-8 bracket is complete.
Fixed Bracket and Seeding
Within each conference the first round is seeded 1v8, 4v5, 3v6, and 2v7. The 1v8 and 4v5 winners meet in one Conference Semifinal; the 3v6 and 2v7 winners meet in the other. The two semifinal winners play the Conference Finals, and the conference champions meet in the NBA Finals.
The bracket is locked once it is set: the NBA does not reseed between rounds, so a No. 1 seed can face a No. 4 or No. 5 seed in the semifinals even if lower seeds are still alive elsewhere. That is different from the NHL playoff bracket, which locks its first two rounds inside each division, and from an open reseeding format where the top seed always draws the lowest survivor.
NBA Playoff Office Pool
Pick the Champion + Per-Round
Tiebreak
Most NBA pools use total points scored in the NBA Finals-clinching game as the tiebreak. Predict the combined points (closest without going over wins).
Some pools add a Finals MVP prediction as a secondary tiebreak.
FAQ
How many teams make the NBA playoffs?
Sixteen teams reach the NBA playoffs, eight from each conference. The top six in each conference by record qualify directly; seeds 7 to 10 enter the Play-In Tournament to decide the final two seeds (7 and 8) in each conference.
How does the NBA Play-In Tournament work?
The 7th and 8th seeds play, and the winner takes the No. 7 seed. The 9th and 10th seeds play, and the loser is eliminated. The loser of the 7-8 game then hosts the winner of the 9-10 game, and that winner takes the No. 8 seed. So four teams per conference fight for the last two playoff spots.
Does the NBA reseed the playoff bracket between rounds?
No. Since the current format, the NBA uses a fixed bracket: the first-round matchups are 1v8, 4v5, 3v6, and 2v7 in each conference, and winners advance along a locked bracket. Higher seeds are not re-paired against the lowest remaining seed after each round, unlike an open reseeding format.
How many rounds and games are in the NBA playoffs?
Four rounds: First Round, Conference Semifinals, Conference Finals, and the NBA Finals. Every round is a best-of-seven series (first to 4 wins). That is 15 series in total (8 + 4 + 2 + 1), a maximum of 105 games if every series goes the full seven.
Who gets home-court advantage in an NBA series?
The higher-seeded team. A best-of-seven series uses the 2-2-1-1-1 pattern: the higher seed hosts games 1, 2, 5, and 7, and the lower seed hosts games 3, 4, and 6.