The NBL is finalising a plan to introduce an in-season tournament to the 2025-26 season, sources told ESPN.
The in-season tournament would add an extra 20 games to the NBL's regular season schedule, sources said, and culminate in a Grand Final game that would be played in February.
The 20 games would count toward a team's record, while the Grand Final would not count as a regular season game.
The plan is for the in-season tournament to begin in Round 4, with games played every Wednesday evening. Teams will receive one point for every quarter they win, and three points for winning the game. Each team will play two home games and two road games as part of the in-season tournament.
The two highest-ranked teams based on both points will advance to the Grand Final, which will take place on the day of the Andrew Gaze MVP and Awards night in February. The winner of that Grand Final will receive prize money.
The initiative follows in the footsteps of the NBA, who introduced an in-season tournament - the NBA Cup - ahead of the 2023-24 season.
With the continuation of HoopsFest and addition of this in-season tournament, each team will now play 33 regular season games over the 2025-26 NBL campaign, up from the 29 games played in the previous season.
The NBL is also finalising bringing the 2025 NBL Blitz to Canberra, sources said, with a tentative start date set for August 28.
The Blitz - the league's annual preseason tournament - had been held in the Gold Coast for 2023 and 2024.