NBA Tiebreakers, Rules and Scenarios 2023

The NBA Regular Season is coming to an end, but there are still several Playoff and Play-In tournament spots up for grabs. At this time of year, it is common for many teams to finish with an identical record, and among NBA fans, the question of how the league calculates who comes first and who comes last is becoming more and more frequent. Let’s clear things up a bit.

How does NBA Tie-Break work?

In the NBA, Tie-Break comes into effect when two teams have the same record, and additional criteria are therefore necessary to determine the final position in the standings and therefore the potential passage to the postseason.

NBA Tiebreakers Rules

The criteria used in Tie-Break to determine the final position in the standings are as follows:

1. Head-to-head record
2. Position within one’s Division
3. Higher winning percentage within the division if the teams are in the same division
4. Higher winning percentage in the conference
5. Higher winning percentage compared to playoff-qualifying teams in one’s conference
6. Higher winning percentage compared to playoff teams in other conferences
7. Highest point differential (points scored minus points allowed)

If two teams end the season with the same overall record, priority will be given to the franchise that has achieved the highest winning percentage in head-to-head matches against the opponent. If the count is equal, priority will be given to whichever of the two is in a potentially better position within their respective Divisions.

And instead, among the Thunder, Nuggets, and T’Wolves, same record with 1 game left, and in the same Division? At that point, you have to look at the overall record that these 3 teams have in this case against all the other teams in the Northwest.

In case of a still-tied situation, the team with the higher winning percentage in their conference of belonging will be considered first, and if the tie persists, the winning percentage against Playoff-qualifying teams of one’s conference will be decisive. The last two criteria are the winning percentage against Playoff teams in the other conference and lastly, the highest point differential.

Same criteria (in this case the first criterion will be the position within their own Division and subsequently head-to-head record) will also be used if three or more teams were to finish the regular season with the same record, creating a mini-ranking to determine the order of the franchises. In a Western Conference that has never been so balanced and strange as this year, it is not excluded that this could happen.