The final four teams left in the NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament have been decided: the Pelicans, Lakers, Bucks and Pacers.
There’s a lot of uncharted territory when it comes to this tournament since it’s the first time the league is holding it. For instance, how big of a deal will it be for the team who eventually wins the tournament? Will the winning team get to hang a banner in the rafters, like the NBA champions do?
This last question became a huge topic of conversation Wednesday as an answer hasn’t been decided upon. Bucks star Damian Lillard, for example, would rather “just take the money” than hang a banner, NBA insider Rachel Nichols reported.
Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton sounded excited about being in the first semifinals of the in-season tournament, especially since he’s still in the early years of his NBA career. However, he doesn’t think someone like LeBron James, who has won four NBA titles, would be as enthused to hang a banner.
“I think at this point in my career, because I haven’t done anything yet, I’ll take a banner, but certainly Bron would not answer the same way,” Haliburton said, via The Athletic’s Joe Vardon.
Pelicans coach Willie Green seemed to share the same excitement about possibly hanging an in-season tournament banner up in the Smoothie King Center.
“Absolutely,” Green said when asked if they would raise a banner, via The Athletic’s Will Guillory.
The enthusiasm from the Pelicans and Pacers may be stemmed from the fact that neither franchise has ever won an NBA title. The Lakers hold 17 titles, while the Bucks have two in history.
The semifinals begin on Thursday night, with the in-season tournament final following suit on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
