If the NBA insists on keeping the play-in, it should be the best remaining eight teams regardless of conference

Chicago is 24-37, a .393 win percentage, and currently holds the last play-in spot in the East. This is ridiculous.

I don’t like the play-in to begin with. But if you’re going to keep it, then lock in the top six teams from each conference and have the play-in teams decided regardless of conference. If that means a West team ends up in the East playoff bracket, great! Nothing wrong with getting a bit weird if it means a better team gets to the playoffs.

Right now the play-in looks like:

East: Heat (28-31), Magic (29-33), Hawks (27-33), Bulls (24-37)

West: Warriors (32-28), Wolves (33-29), Kings (31-28), Mavs (32-29)

If it’s top eight regardless of seed, you get (listing win percentage):

Warriors .533
Wolves .532
Kings .525
Mavs .525
Heat .475
Magic .468
Suns .459 (28-33)
Blazers .452 (28-34)
—
Hawks .450
Spurs .424
Bulls .393

Immediately it’s way more exciting. You have rebuilding teams starting to figure some things out, like Portland and Atlanta, incentivized to play harder down the stretch. The Chicagos and Brooklyns of the NBA should be nowhere near the play-in and I’m pretty sure their fans would agree wholeheartedly.

It’s time to fix this and make it interesting if we’re going to insist on having it.