NBA Cup 101: What you need to know
Alta Sports4 months ago ยท 32 views
Photo: Getty Images
By Joel Reyes
The 2025 Emirates NBA Cup is in full swing, with teams battling for early-season hardware and a chance to join a short but prestigious list of champions. Here’s a quick primer on the tournament’s brief history, the current format, and who’s already through to the knockout phase as group play winds down.
NBA Cup history
The 2025 edition of the NBA Cup is just the third iteration of the in-season tournament. The Los Angeles Lakers captured the inaugural championship in 2023, winning all seven of their games on their way to the title. They defeated the Phoenix Suns and the New Orleans Pelicans in the knockout rounds before beating the Indiana Pacers in the championship game. LeBron James made history in that event, becoming the first player to win the competition’s MVP honors.
The Milwaukee Bucks claimed the NBA Cup title in 2024, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 97-81 in the final. Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded a triple-double in the championship game, scoring 26 points, 19 rebounds, and 10 assists.
2025 NBA Cup format
The format of this year’s NBA Cup is the same as the previous two editions, with all 30 teams being distributed into groups of five within their conference. West Group A featured the Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, and the Utah Jazz.
The Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, and New Orleans Pelicans competed in West Group B, while West Group C consists of the Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, and the San Antonio Spurs.
The Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, and Washington Wizards were placed in East Group A, while East Group B featured the Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, and the Philadelphia 76ers. East Group C consists of the Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, and the New York Knicks.
The tournament started on Nov. 1 (PH time), with the group stage games set to conclude on Saturday, November 29. A total of eight teams will advance to the knockout round of the NBA Cup, six of which are the winners of their respective groups. The remaining two spots will be given to the wild cards, those who finished with the best record among second-placed teams in each conference.
Multiple sets of tiebreakers will be used for teams with the same record in the hunt for playoff spots. Head-to-head results will be used first, followed by point differential and total points scored.
The quarterfinal stage will take place from December 10 to 11, with the teams with the best record in Group Play hosting those last-eight contests. The winners of those quarterfinal games will advance to the semifinals, with Las Vegas playing host to those two matches on December 14.
The championship game will be played in Las Vegas, with the final set to take place at T-Mobile Arena on December 17. Even though the NBA Cup is a separate competition, all games from the group stage up to the semis will count toward the standings of the 30 teams in the regular season.
Only the result of the NBA Cup Championship won’t factor in the regular season records of the two finalists.
Which teams have qualified for the 2025 NBA Cup?
The Toronto Raptors and the Los Angeles Lakers have sealed their spots in the quarterfinal round of the NBA Cup after winning their respective games last Wednesday. Toronto finished with a 4-0 record in East Group A after beating Indiana 97-95. The Lakers clinched the top spot in West Group B after beating the Clippers 135-118.
—JMS, Alta Sports
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NBA Detective
bold prediction: OKC ang NBA Cup champions at NBA Champions 4 months agoReply
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