The Lakers performed well this season, winning four games in a row, ensuring the qualification for the knockout stage. Indiana Pacers also locked in the first place in the group and successfully advanced to the knockout stage. In addition, five teams were eliminated early, namely San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons, Washington Wizards, Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trailblazers.
The first four teams are all 0-3, while the Blazers' record is 1-3. Next, the remaining teams will compete fiercely for the final promotion quota. All competitions during the mid-season championship are counted in the regular season record, which will not make the participating teams feel overworked.
Mid-season championship rules
The NBA Intra-season Championship is a brand-new annual NBA tournament, which has been set up since the 2023-24 season, and all 30 NBA teams will participate. During the mid-season championship, the number of matches (except the finals) and the relationship between victory and defeat will be included in the regular season, which means that only two teams participating in the finals need to play one more game than other teams.
After the mid-season, the NBA will select the most valuable player in the mid-season and the best team in the championship. The selection will be based on the performance of the players in the group stage and the knockout stage.
Before the group draw, each team will be ranked according to last season's regular season ranking. The 15 teams in each league (East and West) will be divided into five grades. The first grade includes 1-3 in each league last season, the second grade includes 4-6, and so on until the fifth grade.