WOODBURY — The NBA has added a new tournament along with the others already implemented, but not everyone has caught on to how the whole tournament operates. While fans are excited to see basketball back on the court, many are unsure of the whole concept taking place. 

“I don’t understand how it works,” said Zach Szymanski, NHS senior and avid basketball fan. “It seems confusing for many fans across the community though.” 

Even the players are in a pit of confusion.

“I don’t even know what’s going on,” said Los Angeles Clippers guard Bones Hyland, according to UPROXX.

On Aug. 15, the NBA set its schedule for the inaugural in-season tournament, which if a team wins, they will receive a winning NBA Cup and $500,000 to each player. 

The tournament final will be held in Las Vegas on Dec. 9. Each NBA team will play a four-game group stage in November, with the group winners moving on to the final knockout rounds. 

This tournament has been in the works for years, according to NBA commissioner Adam Silver. 

“This is a concept that has been rumbling around the league office for about 15 years,” Silver said, according to the Associated Press.

Even on campus at Nonnewaug, the tournament is beginning to fuel student interest during a point in the season where fans may not be engaged.

“It’s definitely been more intense for the season just starting up,” said Nonnewaug senior Rai Costa. “There’s been a lot of action going on, and I think it has a lot of attention right now.” 

The tournament is built into the NBA’s regular season schedule. The 30 teams were divided into six five-team pods. These groups play on the following November dates: four Fridays (Nov. 3, 10, 17 and 24) and three Tuesdays (Nov. 14, 21, and 28). 

The quarter finals will be held Dec. 4 and 5 at the higher-placed team, and the semifinals and championship game will take place Dec. 7 and 9 in Las Vegas. 

What teams make up these groups? 

When creating the groups, the teams were separated by conferences. The NBA put all 15 teams in each of their conferences into five pods, separated by how they performed in last year’s season. Group 1 is teams that finished with a 1-3 in regular-season record, teams 4-6 went into Group 2, teams 7-9 in Group 3, teams 10-12 in Group 4, and teams 13-15 in Group 5.