The 2024 NBA Cup tipped off Tuesday and completed its first week of group play Friday with a full slate of exciting matchups.
LeBron James and the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers started their title defense in a thrilling win over Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. James led his squad to a 120-115 victory and produced his fourth straight triple-double and fifth overall this season.
The New York Knicks and Mikal Bridges were paid a visit by their crosstown rival, the Brooklyn Nets, in another exhilarating 11th-hour matchup that included a winning block by Bridges.
In other action, the Cleveland Cavaliers remained undefeated with a 144-126 win over the Chicago Bulls to stretch their season-opening winning streak to 14 games.
Meanwhile, the Orlando Magic defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 98-86, and the Miami Heat cruised past the Indiana Pacers 124-111. The Detroit Pistons held on for a 99-95 win over the Toronto Raptors, and the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Washington Wizards 129-117.
In the West, the Houston Rockets pounced on the LA Clippers 125-104, the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Denver Nuggets 101-94, and the Oklahoma City Thunder handled the Phoenix Suns 99-83.
The Golden State Warriors, coming off a home win against their former Splash Brother Klay Thompson, wrapped up Friday’s schedule with a win against Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies. And the Minnesota Timberwolves pulled out an overtime win against the Sacramento Kings.
Here’s what stood out from our NBA insiders from the second night of group stage action of the NBA Cup.
Jump to a section:
Takeaways | Schedule | FAQ
Knicks survive chaotic finish; Sixers dealt big blow
One week into NBA Cup play, the Knicks and Magic are on a collision course in Group A, after both teams claimed their second victory in as many games to open group play Friday night.
New York overcame the absences of both Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) and Deuce McBride (illness) to claim a wild 124-122 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, with Jalen Brunson hitting what became the winning 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds to go before Mikal Bridges blocked Dennis Schroder’s potential tying layup at the buzzer.
Brooklyn, which trailed by 21, had taken a lead on a Schroder 3-pointer with 11.5 seconds left before Brunson answered.
Meanwhile, Joel Embiid and Paul George are still searching for their win together as Sixers teammates. The duo finished a combined 9-for-30 shooting from the field as Orlando dealt Philadelphia a 98-86 loss, with Franz Wagner’s 31 points leading the Magic.
It has been quite the turnaround for Orlando, which has now won five straight after initially losing five in row following the injury to All-Star center Paolo Banchero. The loss leaves the 76ers in a big hole to advance to the knockout rounds, with the Dec. 3 game between the Knicks and Magic probably deciding the winner of Group A. — Tim Bontemps
Undersized OKC rises up on the Suns
No center, no sweat for the Thunder in their NBA Cup opener. With its tallest starter standing only 6-foot-6, Oklahoma City cruised to a 99-83 rout of the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.
Granted, the Suns were also short-handed, missing stars Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal because of calf strains. Still, the Thunder’s scrappy, swarming defensive effort was impressive.
You figured Phoenix’s 7-foot, 290-pound big man might have an advantage with OKC missing Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams? Wrong. Jusuf Nurkic went 0-of-7 from the field with Jalen Williams as his primary defender and the Thunder sending frequent double-teams.
The rest of the Suns didn’t fare much better. Phoenix shot 29.3% from the field (22-of-75) to fall to .500 in Western Conference Group B play.
This group could be decided on Nov. 29, when the Thunder visit the Lakers, who also won their Cup opener Friday night. By then, Oklahoma City could have a more suitably sized answer to the matchup problem presented by Lakers big man Anthony Davis as Hartenstein might be available after recovering from a broken left hand sustained Oct. 17 in the preseason finale. — Tim MacMahon
Cavs stay perfect; Group B battles it out
The Cavaliers continued their perfect start to the season, with Donovan Mitchell scoring a season-high 37 points and Darius Garland contributing 29 points and nine assists to hold off the Bulls for a 144-126 victory in Group C.
Cleveland’s first win in group play improved its record to 14-0. But the Cavaliers will have to face the defending champion Boston Celtics in group play Tuesday, a highly anticipated Eastern Conference matchup.
The leader of Group C is the Hawks, who got 25 points and six steals from Dyson Daniels to beat the Wizards and improve to 2-0 after Tuesday’s stunning upset over the Celtics.
In Group B, Detroit is also 2-0 after pulling out another close game against the Raptors, winning 98-95. The Heat bounced back from their overtime loss to Detroit on Tuesday with a 124-111 win over the Pacers, last season’s in-season tournament runners-up. Jimmy Butler is expected to return from an ankle injury in Sunday’s rubber match against the Pacers. — Bontemps
2024 Emirates NBA Cup schedule
All times Eastern
Tuesday
Hawks 117, Celtics 116
Magic 114, Hornets 89
Pistons 123, Heat 121 (OT)
Knicks 111, 76ers 99
Bucks 99, Raptors 85
Suns 120, Jazz 112
Trail Blazers 122, Timberwolves 108
Warriors 120, Mavericks 117
Friday
Heat 124, Pacers 111
Magic 98, 76ers 86
Pistons 99, Raptors 95
Lakers 120, Spurs 115
Hawks 129, Wizards 117
Cavaliers 144, Bulls 126
Pelicans 101, Nuggets 94
Knicks 124, Nets 122
Rockets 125, Clippers 104
Thunder 99, Suns 83
Timberwolves 130, Kings 126 (OT)
Warriors 123, Grizzlies 118
Nov. 19
Cavaliers at Celtics, 7 p.m. (TNT)
Hornets at Nets, 7:30 p.m.
Nuggets at Grizzlies, 8 p.m.
Pelicans at Mavericks, 8:30 p.m.
Thunder at Spurs, 9:30 p.m. (TNT)
Jazz at Lakers, 10:30 p.m.
Nov. 22
Nets at 76ers, 7 p.m.
Celtics at Wizards, 7 p.m.
Pacers at Bucks, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Hawks at Bulls, 8 p.m.
Trail Blazers at Rockets, 8 p.m.
Warriors at Pelicans, 8 p.m.
Mavericks at Nuggets, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Kings at Clippers, 10:30 p.m.
Nov. 26
Bulls at Wizards, 7 p.m.
Bucks at Heat, 7:30 p.m. (TNT)
Rockets at Timberwolves, 8 p.m.
Spurs at Jazz, 9 p.m.
Lakers at Suns, 10 p.m. (TNT)
Nov. 29
Knicks at Hornets, noon (NBA TV)
Cavaliers at Hawks, 2:30 p.m. (NBA TV)
Pelicans at Grizzlies, 5 p.m. (NBA TV)
Clippers at Timberwolves, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Magic at Nets, 7:30 p.m.
Pistons at Pacers, 8 p.m.
Raptors at Heat, 8 p.m.
Celtics at Bulls, 8 p.m.
Kings at Trail Blazers, 10 p.m.
Dec. 3
76ers at Magic, 7 p.m.
Wizards at Cavaliers, 7 p.m.
Bucks at Pistons, 7 p.m.
Magic at Knicks, 7:30 p.m. (TNT)
Pacers at Raptors, 7:30 p.m.
Jazz at Thunder, 8 p.m.
Grizzlies at Mavericks, 8:30 p.m.
Spurs at Suns, 9 p.m.
Warriors at Nuggets, 10 p.m. (TNT)
Rockets at Kings, 10 p.m.
Trail Blazers at Clippers, 10:30 p.m.
Dec. 10 and 11
Quarterfinals
Dec. 14
Semifinals
Dec. 17
Championship
FAQ (by Tim Bontemps)
The NBA unveiled the six groups for the second edition of its in-season tournament — now called the Emirates NBA Cup. Here’s a look at everything you’ll need to know about the return of the competition.
What is the format?
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has had a long-standing fascination with European soccer. The idea for having an in-season cup competition within the NBA schedule comes from soccer leagues having both a regular-season title, won by the team with the most points over the full year, and a separate tournament (or, in some leagues, multiple tournaments) that runs concurrently with the league season.
The 2024 Emirates NBA Cup
What to know about the NBA’s in-season tournament, including the Dec. 17 final in Las Vegas.
In England, for example, there are the various divisions — led by the Premier League — and also the FA Cup competition. But unlike those European leagues, which play their cup competitions outside of their league schedules, the NBA Cup is built into the regular-season slate.
The 30 NBA teams were split into six five-team groups — three featuring Eastern Conference teams, and three comprising teams from the West — with each team then playing one game against the other four in their group. The winner of each group, plus the team with the best record among the nongroup winners, will then advance to the knockout rounds.
How will this impact the regular-season schedule and standings?
Typically, the NBA sends out a full 82-game schedule in mid-August. Now, though, the league sends out only 80 games and leaves a gap for roughly a week to fill in later, depending on how the group stage of the NBA Cup plays out.
The teams that reach the NBA Cup’s finale will actually play 83 games — though the championship game won’t count toward the standings or any statistical markers. Those that lose in the semifinals will have played their full 82-game schedule, and won’t need anything added.
The two teams from both the East and West that lose in the quarterfinals will play their 82nd game against one another on one of four dates: Dec. 12, 13, 15 or 16. Meanwhile, the 22 teams that fail to qualify for the knockout rounds will have their final two games scheduled — one at home and one on the road — on Dec. 12 or 13 and 15 or 16 against others eliminated in the group stage.
Why does the NBA Cup include regular-season games?
Before its launch, one of the main questions surrounding the in-season tournament was why any team would be incentivized to compete in it. By making every game part of the season — and, being in-conference, potentially important from a playoff-tiebreaker standpoint — the NBA ensured teams will be motivated.
If this had been set up like the cup tournaments in European soccer, there would have been nothing stopping NBA teams from opting out, literally or figuratively — sitting their top players for extra rest.
What teams make up the groups?
To create the groups, the NBA put all 15 teams in each conference into five pots, separated by their finish in last season’s standings. Pot 1 included the teams that finished 1-3 in regular-season record, teams 4-6 went into Pot 2, teams 7-9 into Pot 3, teams 10-12 into Pot 4 and teams 13-15 into Pot 5.
As a result, the following groups were drawn:
East A: New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets
East B: Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons
East C: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards
West A: Minnesota Timberwolves, LA Clippers, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers
West B: Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, San Antonio Spurs
West C: Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans, Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies
Does one group stand out the most from the others?
Yes, there is an obvious one: West Group C, featuring the Nuggets, Mavericks, Pelicans, Warriors and Grizzlies.
Because of how the draw is performed, Golden State and Memphis, which dealt with a combination of suspensions and injuries, are significantly stronger than you would anticipate teams in the bottom two pots to be.
But in addition to featuring the reigning MVP in Nikola Jokic and Zion Williamson, the group also could offer the first meeting between Klay Thompson and his former team after the guard signed with Dallas following 13 seasons with Golden State.
What do players get for winning?
Last year, the players on the winning team received $500,000 each, while those on the runners-up got $200,000. The losing players of the semifinals each got $100,000, and those ousted in the quarterfinals each got $50,000.
This year, the prizes will be slightly higher because of negotiated raises year over year to keep pace with increases in the salary cap and basketball related income as part of the most recent collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association.
Will anyone earn individual honors for their play in NBA Cup games?
There will be an MVP award, as well as an all-tournament team.
Will this have any impact on the playoffs?
Not beyond the games counting in the regular-season standings (and toward tiebreakers). Though there was debate among league insiders about guaranteeing a playoff berth for winning the tournament, ultimately that idea (or any other to further incentivize teams) was not enacted.
The debate continued after last year’s in-season tournament winner, the Lakers, wound up in the play-in tournament, while the runner-up, the Pacers, narrowly avoided landing in it. But, in the end, the only playoff impact comes from the wins and losses accrued throughout the tournament.
Why is it called the Emirates NBA Cup?
The league struck a sponsorship deal with Emirates, the Dubai-based airline, to sponsor the tournament after its initial run. The NBA said last year that it went with the most basic titles for both the tournament and its trophy — the “in-season tournament” and “NBA Cup” — as a way to introduce the concept to fans.
However, using such nondescript names had another clear advantage: It gave the league a blank slate in case the tournament and cup became properties it ended up selling to a sponsor, and avoided the complications that could arise by naming them after someone (for example, the late NBA commissioner David Stern, one possibility that had been floated before the tournament was officially unveiled).