Thanks to the NBA's Competition Committee, seeding for the playoffs will now solely be based on a team's record. Division winners will no longer get preferential treatment by getting a top-four seed and home-court advantage in the first round.

From a press release from the NBA:

The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved changes to playoff seeding and qualification procedures effective with the 2015-16 season, the league announced today.

As part of the modifications, the eight playoff teams in each conference will be seeded in order of their regular-season record. Most recently, every division winner was guaranteed a top four seed in its respective conference regardless of its record but did not receive home-court advantage if its playoff opponent had a better record.

The Board also approved changes to tiebreak criteria for playoff seeding and home-court advantage. Head-to-head results have become the first criterion to break ties for playoff seeding and home-court advantage between two teams with identical regular-season records; the second criterion is whether a team won its division. Under the old tiebreak system, a division winner was awarded the higher seed and received home-court advantage in a series if the two teams met in the playoffs.

The Spurs were the defending champs at the time and had won 55 games but because the 51-win Portland Trail Blazers were the Northwest Division champs, Portland was the fourth seed. Even though the Spurs had won more games than the Blazers, they had to face off against the higher seeded Clippers instead of the Memphis Grizzlies (who also won 55 games).

Teams can still win their division and can hang their own banner to commemorate the achievement (the Toronto Raptors are big fans of division banners) but with this change, winning a division doesn't really have any actual merit anymore.

>>Knicks' Porzingis Bulks Up

Before Phil Jackson drafted Kristaps Porzingis with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, the Knicks president told his buddy Charlie Rosen that he was worried that the Latvatian big man may be too skinny and compared him to Shawn Bradley. Jackson did believe that Porzinigis would be able to add "at least 10 pounds of muscle" before the season, and apparently he can see into the future because that is exactly what the Knicks rookie has done.

Porzingis told The Post- "It's the upper body, guys can't push me around that easy, and I still got time to get a little stronger. I can't wait for training camp."

Porzingis confirmed he's put on "five kilos" since late July -- equivalent to 11 pounds. "I'm working out twice a day, lifting hard, trying to eat as much as possible to gain weight, getting my sleep, doing the right things to gain weight. I'm getting stronger and I'm feeling stronger playing in five-on-five pickup. Definitely feeling stronger."

Porzingis said he's played five-on-five with no-longer rehabbing Carmelo Anthony at Anthony's new gym in Manhattan. The games have also included the Knicks' Jose Calderon, Langston Galloway, Jerian Grant, Thanasis Antetokounmpo and area college players.

Porzingis actually being able to add weight to his lithe frame is a good sign for the Knicks and himself. Often, skinnier players are just unable to add any real muscle, but if Porzingis is actually able to bulk up, he could eventually fill out just like Anthony Davis did this summer. Since he is a stretch four that will usually play around the perimeter, Porzingis won't have to bang in the post with bigger players that often, however, adding muscle should help defensively and on the boards.