| MPBL playoffs | |
| Year: | 2020–21 |
| Other Titles: | MPBL Lakan Cup playoffs |
| Country: | Philippines |
| Dates: | February 15–March 11, 2020 (before suspension) March 10–21, 2021 (after suspension) |
| Num Teams: | 16 |
| Defending Champions: | San Juan Knights |
| Winners: | Davao Occidental Tigers |
| Second: | San Juan Knights |
| Semifinal1: | Makati Super Crunch |
| Semifinal2: | Basilan Steel |
| Matches: | 35 (1 defaulted) |
| Prev Season: | 2019 |
| Next Season: | 2022 |
The 2020–21 MPBL playoffs, originally billed as the 2020 MPBL playoffs and also known as the MPBL Lakan Cup playoffs, was the postseason tournament of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League's 2019–20 season, the league's third overall, and the second under the 16-team format. The postseason tournament began on February 15, 2020 and concluded on March 21, 2021, after the fourth game of the 2021 MPBL finals. The league suspended all the playoffs due to the COVID-19 outbreak in March 12, 2020.[1] After a year of stoppage of play, the league got an approval from the IATF-EID and resumed the playoffs on March 10, 2021, inside a bubble hosted by Subic.[2] [3]
The 2021 MPBL finals saw the Northern Division champions San Juan Knights competed against the Southern Division champion Davao Occidental Tigers. The Tigers eventually won the championship after beating the Knights in four games, avenging their last season's finals loss in 2019. Mark Yee was named the Finals MVP for that finals series.[4]
The top eight teams from each division advanced to the playoffs. Seeding was based on winning percentage, with tiebreaker rules applied should multiple teams have the same record. The single-elimination bracket consists of four rounds with no reseeding. The first three rounds were best-of-three series and the national finals was a best-of-five series.
During the first two rounds, two games within the same division were played in a gameday, with homecourt advantage alternating between the higher-seeded teams of each series. A traditional homecourt format was then used for the last two rounds, with the division finals using a 1-1-1 format and the national finals using a 2-2-1 format. The designated home team may not be able to play within its home locality. Should it occur, the gameday may take place elsewhere.
North DivisionSouth Division
Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its division, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. Teams with home court advantage, the higher seeded team, are shown in italics.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Knights and the Voyagers.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Stars and the Realtors.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Kuyas and the Super Crunch.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Giant Lanterns and the Risers.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Tigers and the Volcanoes.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Steel and United Royals.
This is the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Athletics winning the first one.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Knights and Lanterns.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Stars and the Super Crunch.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Tigers and the Valientes.
This is the first playoff meeting between the Steel and the Strikers.
Game 3 of the North Division finals was heavily affected in the San Juan Knights' favor as the Makati Super Crunch entered this game with only a five-man roster. Financial troubles amid the COVID-19 pandemic caused key players of the Makati side to not play for the team in the crucial do-or-die game.
This game was originally going to be postponed after a player from the Basilan Steel tested positive from COVID-19.[6] The league decided that should another member of the Basilan delegation test positive, the game would be defaulted and Davao Occidental would win the series and the division title.[7] On March 16, the league announced that an additional two members of the Basilan delegation were also tested positive from the virus. As a result, the game, the series, and the division title were all awarded in favor of Davao Occidental by default. As per FIBA rules, the game was ruled as a 2–0 victory for Davao Occidental.[8]
See main article: 2021 MPBL finals.
The San Juan Knights and the Davao Occidental Tigers competed in the MPBL finals to determine the third MPBL Champions. This was the first championship series to be held entirely inside a bubble, hosted by Subic. The series was a rematch of the last season's finals between both teams, with San Juan winning last year's championship in five games. The Tigers avenged their last season's finals loss against the Knights, defeating them in four games to win the title.
This is the second finals meeting between the Knights and the Tigers, with the Knights winning the first one.
As part of the broadcast deal, ABS-CBN held the broadcast rights for the entire playoff series. Prior to the suspension, all games were split between the network's sports channels, S+A and Liga. During the midst of the suspension, ABS-CBN's franchise expired, thus all post-suspension games were aired on A2Z, formed via a blocktime agreement with ZOE Broadcasting Network.