2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 31

At the start of this month, I brought 72 NBA and ABA champions into a gauntlet the likes of which have only been seen maybe once or twice before. Over the last 30 days, those 72 teams have have all battled between 13 and 15 times, and we have established a mostly clear line between two groups of teams: the haves and the have-nots.

Only 32 teams will get to play meaningful basketball beyond the end of this coming week, and space is running out. The next six days are vital for the 47 teams still fighting to grab a spot in the Elimination Stage.

Today, Groups C and F are finishing off two straight days of games, while Groups A and G are coming off of a Saturday off day. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's head courtside for the action.

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 30

We're into something of uncharted territory here. It's the 30th day of round robin play, and there's still a lot of exciting basketball left to be played.

We have just over 100 games left on the docket for this stage of play as we narrow down the 72 teams we started with down to 32. There are still 29 spots in the Elimination Stage up for grabs, so every game today and for the next week is vital. We've had 14 teams see their meaningful seasons come to an end at this point, however, so it's not like we haven't established clear lines between the haves and the have-nots.

Today's schedule features returns for Group D and F after they took yesterday off, while Groups C and E are back to the court after two days to recuperate. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Here's today's results.

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 29

We're into our fifth week of tournament action in this year's Tournament of Champions. It's our final full week of games with one extra day next Friday to finish off the schedule.

It's crunch time now, though. With eight days left to go, teams have anywhere between two and four games left to play, and with that, a minimal amount of time to carve out a spot in the continuation of this tournament. Yet of the 32 spots in the Elimination Stage, only three have already been claimed. On the other end of the spectrum, nine teams have already been eliminated from contention and are only here to play out the string for pride.

Today's schedule boasts Groups A and B topping off a back-to-back, while Groups G and H got yesterday off and return to action today. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get to it!

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 28

To paraphrase from Lovie Smith, we are entering the fourth quarter of our season. We like our Tournament, the 1990 Detroit Pistons are our chalk favorite, and we have a lot of basketball left to play.

Just nine days remain for teams to try to make it to the Elimination Stage, and almost every berth is still up for grabs at this point.We have four teams with an opportunity to clinch a spot today, while three others need to win today to stave off elimination. In addition, one group can be won outright today, which would be the first of the tournament.

On today's slate, Groups B and F are doing the day on, day off thing with a return to action, while Groups A and D hopefully enjoyed two days to recover in preparation for today's tilts. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Here's our results as we kick off the final quarter of Group Play.

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 27

A year ago today, we were wrapping up the final round of Group Play games. Today, we're playing another 16 games, but there's still a lot of time left.

After this round, we still have another week or so of action left to play out. We've clearly established a pecking order at this point though, with two teams having already punched their tickets to the Elimination Stage. On the flip side, five teams are already playing for nothing more than pride, having been mathematically eliminated from contention.

To further our advance, Groups C and H are finishing off the back end of a doubleheader, while Groups E and G are back in action after having yesterday off. Group E concludes a home-and-home series in this round. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get started.

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 26

Another day, another slate of games in our quest to find the greatest team of all time.

We've answered this question a couple times over the past couple of years, if you're new to Confessions of a Sportscaster. But given the craziness that this last NBA season brought us, I had to run this scenario through again. By adding in the forgotten ABA champions, we have a bigger tournament than either of the ones run before. It's all building up towards a similar tournament to last year: 32 teams doing battle following weeks of proving themselves worthy of the stage, and all 32 of those spots are still up for grabs, with three available to be taken today.

Today's schedule features the return of Groups B, C, and H following a two day break, while Group F is taking the court after yesterday's day off. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play.

2016 NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 25

Another Monday afternoon is upon us, and if you need a little relief from any drudgery, the NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions is here!

We're two-thirds of the way through the hardest part of following along with the tournament, and that's keeping up with the goings-on of 72 NBA and ABA champions. In 12 days' time, that number will drop by more than half and we'll get to more of a playoff-type atmosphere.

We're getting there in some groups; five teams have already been mathematically eliminated from the next stage. We also have an opportunity for our first team to clinch today.

In the quest for that extended season, Groups D, E, and G are all back in action again today despite having just played yesterday, while Group A rounds out the schedule following a rest day yesterday. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's start our thirteenth round of games.