One of the most anticipated times for basketball fans is the NBA playoffs, along with march madness. In the playoffs, the top 8 teams from each conference move on to make the playoffs for a total of 16 teams. This year the tournament looks a little different. Now seeds from 7-10 will be in the tournament for both conferences. The 7 seed would play the 8  seed, and the winner will make the tournament. The loser of that game would play the winner of the 9 vs. 10 game, and the winner will get the 8 seed in the playoffs.  Once the real playoffs start, the 1 seed will play the 8 seed, and only 5 times in history has the 8 seed beaten the 1 seed in a 7 game series. The winner of the 1 vs. 8 matchup would play the 4 vs. 5 matchup winner to play in the conference semifinals. On the other side of the bracket is the 6 vs. 3 and the 2 vs. 7. The winner of each of those series will also play in conference finals. And if you win in the conference semifinals, you play in the conference finals to get a chance to play in the coveted finals. The winners of each conference play in the finals for a chance at the NBA championship. The finals are supposed to happen in June. In the finals, there is an MVP of the finals.  It goes to the player that contributed the most to help their team win the championship. That is how the NBA playoffs work.

Here is an article about it

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/31463086/nba-playoffs-2021-experts-predictions-play-round-1