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The 2024 NBA playoffs begin after the conclusion of the play-in tournament. They will commence with the first round in the Western and Eastern Conferences. The series will be played as Best of 7, and the first Game 1 will be on Saturday, April 20. This will be the official start of the 2024 NBA playoffs as the postseason begins with the play-in tournament.
The playoffs will begin with four games on Saturday. They will air back-to-back-to-back-to-back in a quadruple header.
Here is the schedule for day one of the NBA playoffs. The four games on Saturday are as follows:
Saturday, April 20
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East: No. 5 Orlando Magic vs. Cleveland Cavaliers - 1 p.m. ET
West: No. 6 Phoenix Suns vs. No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves - 3:30 p.m. ET
East: No. 7 Miami Heat/Philadelphia 76ers vs. No. 2 New York Knicks - 6 p.m. ET
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West: No. 7 LA Lakers vs. No. 2 Denver Nuggets - 8 p.m. ET
The Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers play-in matchup winner will take on the Knicks in their first-round series. The Lakers and Nuggets will be an exciting rematch of the 2023 Western Conference finals to cap the first night of action.
The first round will continue with another quadruple header on Sunday. The NBA will roll out the other four Game 1s of the first round. Here is the schedule for Sunday:
Sunday, April 21
East: No. 8 seed vs. No. 1 Boston Celtics - 1 p.m. ET
West: No. 5 Dallas Mavericks vs. No. 4 LA Clippers - 3:30 p.m. ET
East: No. 6 Indiana Pacers vs. No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks - 7 p.m. ET
West: No. 8 Sacramento Kings/New Orleans Pelicans vs. No. 1 OKC Thunder - 9:30 p.m. ET
The Celtics will take on whoever makes it out of the play-in tournament as the No. 8 seed. That will be the Heat vs. 76ers game loser or the Atlanta Hawks vs. Chicago Bulls game winner. The Celtics will find out their opponent when the play-in concludes on Friday.
The same goes for the Thunder who will have to await their opponent. They will take on the winner of the Sacramento Kings vs New Orleans Pelicans game on Friday.
When will the second round of the NBA playoffs begin?
The first round of the NBA playoffs can end as early as April 28 if every series ends in a sweep. If the series are extended, they will end on May 4-5.
The second round will begin May 6-7. However, that can be moved up to start on May 4-5 if the first-round series ends early.
The conference finals will begin on May 21-22 or as early as May 19 if the series ends early. The 2024 NBA Finals will start on June 6. Game 7 will be on June 23 if necessary.
