Thunder G and NBPA President Chris Paul "did not fly back to Oklahoma City with his teammates" last night after their game against the Nets, instead staying in N.Y. for a meeting today with union officials to "discuss proposed changes to the playoff landscape," according to Chris Sheridan of FORBES. Under a recent proposal from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, there would be two "major adjustments: a play-in tournament for the seventh and eighth seeds, and an in-season tournament that would be held in November or December." Today's NBPA meeting should "bring some clarity to the union's position." For now, Paul is "non-committal as to where he and the union stand." Paul: "Nothing is set in stone, and we'll figure it out" (FORBES.com, 1/8).
LEAGUE RECONSIDERS RESEEDING: ESPN.com's Wojnarowski & Lowe cited sources as saying that the NBA is "seriously reconsidering the idea of reseeding the four conference finalists as part of a larger proposal to reshape the league's calendar." The sources said that the league appears to be "moving toward" on an April BOG vote to implement the in-season tournament and postseason play-in, but there is an "increasing chance that the reseeding idea could be eliminated before a final vote." Sources added that many teams, "especially those on the coasts, have expressed concerns about the increased travel." Sources cited league research showing that the proposal of reseeding teams based on regular-season records "could lead to travel increases of 60% and could result in one out of every four series being played across three time zones." With reseeding, the NBA had "hoped to create a scenario where the NBA's two best teams -- regardless of conference -- could meet in the NBA Finals" (ESPN.com, 1/7).
