NEW YORK – The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved a change to the format of The Finals effective with the 2013-14 season, the league announced today.

Over the previous 29 seasons, The Finals featured a 2-3-2 setup in which the team with home-court advantage hosted Games 1, 2, 6 and 7, while the opponent hosted Games 3, 4 and 5.   Beginning with The Finals 2014, the format will shift to a 2-2-1-1-1 schedule, where the team with home-court advantage will host Games 1, 2, 5 and 7, and the opponent will host Games 3, 4 and 6.   The format change will include an extra day between Games 6 and 7.

The change, which was recommended by the NBA’s Competition Committee at its meeting on Sept. 17, aligns The Finals format with every other round of the NBA Playoffs.  The NBA previously used the 2-2-1-1-1 schedule for The Finals from 1957 to 1984 (except 1978).

“The Competition Committee felt strongly that a consistent format should be used for each round of our playoffs,” said Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.  “With improvements in team air travel and technology, the reasons the 2-3-2 format made sense for us in the past largely do not exist anymore, so creating consistency became the priority.”