Sports scheduling is a tricky business. A team knows exactly where and when they will play their home games during the regular season. This allows the stadium owners to make the venue available for other activities when the home team is on the road.
However, the playoffs are a different beast altogether. In the NBA, all playoff series are played in a best-of-seven format. This means there is a minimum of four games and a maximum of seven. This allows both teams to get a minimum of two home games per series. Currently, a playoff series is played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format. This means that after game 4, the teams alternate hosting duties. But because those games aren’t needed, the venue might have been left available on those nights. This uncertainty is now causing some headaches in Atlanta.
Janet Jackson Concert Pushed Back A Night
Janet Jackson was supposed to play at State Farm Arena, home of the Atlanta Hawks, on April 27. However, April 25 saw the Hawks top the Boston Celtics 119-117 in Game 5 of their NBA Playoff series. The Hawks had been 3-1 down and facing elimination. However, the win meant that the series would necessitate a Game 6…hosted by Atlanta. Suddenly double-booked, State Farm Arena announced that Jackson’s concert would be pushed back a day to April 28. Tickets from the original Thursday show would be honored at the rescheduled event. Furthermore, refunds would be issued for anyone who could not attend the new show.