The first round was played at the home arena of the higher seed. The final 4 met in Las Vegas, NV.

Each team played 4 regular season games that counted towards their in-season tournment record. 2 games at home and 2 games on the road. Teams were broken into 6 pods of 5 teams; 3 western conference and 3 eastern conference. Each team played the other 4 teams in their pod one time. The pods were based on the teams records and the end of the 2022-23 season.

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers for the first ever in-season tournament. Lebron James was named MVP of the IST in a controversial decision because Anthony Davis had a much better game.

Reviews were mixed from fans about the IST. Some fans liked, others thought it was stupid. Complaints from the media were abundant because of the short time to plan flights and book hotles. This was especially true with the teams who did not play in the IST. Teams who failed to qualify for the IST where scheduled 2 additional games about a week before the games were played. This caused a booking nightmare for teams, fans, and media as the games took place between Thanksgiving and Christmas.