NBA Play-In Tournament winners and losers: Deni Avdija dr...

What’s Happening

So basically Here are the biggest winners and losers from the first night of action in the 2026 NBA postseason NBA Play-In Tournament winners and losers: Deni Avdija drives Blazers to playoffs, Kon Knueppel gets benched Here are the biggest winners and losers from the first night of action in the 2026 NBA postseason By Sam Quinn Apr 15, 2026 at 1:41 am ET • 10 min read Welcome to the 2026 NBA postseason.

As the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat reminded us in the opener, this is when the NBA starts to turn wild. The Heat and Hornets gave us an instant classic, that was, in true Play-In Tournament fashion, filled with as many completely inexplicable moments as it had incredible plays. (it feels like chaos)

The Suns and Blazers gave us something a bit more conventional, but no less exciting.

The Details

The Blazers overcame an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to steal a road win and make it the playoffs for the first time since 2021. Now the Hornets will advance to Friday’s final Eastern Conference play-in game, where they will see the loser of tomorrow’s bout between Philadelphia and Orlando.

The Heat will go home, but tonight’s other loser, the Suns, will have one more shot at the playoffs when they face the winner of tomorrow’s Warriors vs. Only one team, the the Blazers, punched a ticket to the playoffs officially tonight.

Why This Matters

We have three more spots to dole out over the course of the week. Those games will come on Wednesday and Friday. For now, let’s focus on our first batch of Play-In Games and pick some winners and losers from the first night of the postseason.

This is the kind of move that can define a season.

Key Takeaways

• Winner: Both the Hornets and the Heat The Charlotte side of the equation needs no explanation.
• This is a signature win for a young team that hopes to have a whole lot more of them in their future.
• LaMelo Ball played in a couple of Play-In blowouts early in his career.
• He finally got the monkey off of his back with his first postseason win.

The Bottom Line

He finally got the monkey off of his back with his first postseason win. Several core players were in the postseason for the first time.

What’s your take on this whole situation?