To catch up on all of the posts in this series visit the 2016-17 Early Season Events hub.
What Is It?
The NIT Season Tip-Off (official website)
How Long Has This Event Been Around?
To recap this tournament's long history and its recent format changes, I again turn to last season's primer...
The Metropolitan Intercollegiate Basketball Association (MIBA), a consortium of five New York City schools and former owner of the postseason NIT, started the preseason edition in 1985 as a way to provide the season with a proper start.