The 2024 NBA season tournament begins on Tuesday, November 12 and will culminate with the championship game on December 17 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Last year's inaugural event saw LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers win the first NBA Cup on December 9 by defeating the Indiana Pacers 123-109. After scoring 24 points in the title game, James won the tournament's Most Valuable Player award.
For this edition, the 30 NBA teams will be randomly drawn into six groups of five within their conference based on win-loss records from the 2023-24 regular season. Each team will play its opponents once, with group stage games on four Tuesdays (Nov. 12, 19, 26 and Dec. 3) and three Fridays (Nov. 15, 22 and 29).
The playoffs will begin with the quarterfinals on Tuesday, December 10 and Wednesday, December 11, followed by the semifinals and the championship.
Here's what you need to know about the season's tournament.
Jump to a section
FAQ | Full schedule
Frequently Asked Questions (by Tim Bontemps)
The NBA has unveiled the six groups for the second edition of its seasonal tournament, now called the Emirates NBA Cup. Here's everything you need to know about the return of the league's seasonal cup competition.
What is the format?
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has had a long-standing fascination with European soccer, and the idea of having an in-season cup competition within the NBA schedule stems from soccer leagues having a regular-season title, determined by the team with the most points throughout the year, and then a separate tournament (or, in some leagues, multiple tournaments) that run concurrently with the league season.
In England, for example, there are several divisions, led by the Premier League, and there is also the FA Cup. But unlike European leagues, which play their cup competitions outside of their league calendars, the NBA Cup is built into the NBA's regular season schedule.
The 30 NBA teams were divided into six groups of five teams (three from the Eastern Conference and three from the Western Conference). Each team will play one game against the other four teams in its group. The winner of each group (plus the team with the best record among the teams that did not win the group) will advance to the knockout rounds.
How will this affect the regular season schedule and standings?
Normally, the NBA sends out a full 82-game schedule in mid-August. Now, however, the league is sending out just 80 games and leaving a gap of about a week to fill in later, depending on how the NBA Cup group stage plays out.
Teams that reach the NBA Cup championship game will play 83 games, although the championship game will not count toward seeding or any statistical score. Teams that lose in the semifinals will have played their full 82-game schedule and no additional games will need to be added.
The two teams from the Eastern and Western Conferences that lose in the quarterfinals will play their 82nd game against each other on one of four dates: Dec. 12, 13, 15 or 16. Meanwhile, the 22 teams that fail to advance to the knockout rounds of the season-ending tournament will have their final two games scheduled, one at home and one on the road, on Dec. 12 or 13 and Dec. 15 or 16 against other teams eliminated in the group stage.
Why does the NBA Cup include regular season games?
Prior to its launch, one of the biggest questions surrounding the seasonal tournament was why a team would have any incentive to compete in it. By making it part of the regular season schedule and making every game count toward the regular season (which, since they are all conference games, makes it very important from a playoff tiebreaker standpoint), the NBA ensured that teams would be motivated to compete and win these games.
If it had been organised like European football's cup tournaments, there would have been nothing to stop NBA teams from opting out, literally or figuratively, and letting their best players sit out and have more time to rest. However, with this system, they will have every incentive to play and win.
What teams make up the groups?
To create the groups, which were separated by conference, the NBA placed the 15 teams from each conference into five pots, separated by their position in the previous season's standings. Pot 1 included teams that finished with a 1–3 record in the regular season, teams with a 4–6 record moved into Pot 2, teams with a 7–9 record moved into Pot 3, teams with a 10–12 record moved into Pot 4, and teams with a 13–15 record moved into Pot 5.
As a result, the following groups were drawn:
This one to the: New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets
This B: Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons
This 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 any group stand out more than the others?
Yes, there is an obvious one: Group C of the West, with the Nuggets, Mavericks, Pelicans, Warriors and Grizzlies.
Because of the way the draft is done, with teams placed into pots based on last year's rankings, teams like Golden State and Memphis, who were lower in the rankings due to a combination of suspensions and injuries, should be significantly stronger teams than the teams in the bottom two pots would normally be expected to be.
But in addition to featuring reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and Zion Williamson, it could also feature the first meeting between Klay Thompson and his former team, the Warriors, after Thompson signed with Dallas earlier this month after 13 seasons with Golden State.
What do players get for winning?
Last year, players on the winning team received $500,000 each, while the runners-up received $200,000 each. The losing players in the semi-finals received $100,000 each, and the losing players in the quarter-finals received $50,000 each.
This year, prizes will be slightly higher due to negotiated year-over-year increases to keep pace with increases in the salary cap and Basketball Related Income (BRI) as part of the most recent collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association.
Will anyone win individual honors for their performance in NBA Cup games?
There will be a Most Valuable Player award for the season tournament as well as an All-Tournament Team.
Will this have any impact on the playoffs?
Not beyond the games being regular-season games that count toward the standings. While there was some debate among league insiders about guaranteeing a playoff spot as a reward for winning the tournament, ultimately that idea (nor any other to further incentivize teams) didn't come to fruition.
There was a similar debate after last year's tournament was played and the winner, the Lakers, ended up in the play-in tournament, and the runner-up, the Pacers, narrowly escaped making it. But, in the end, the only impact on the playoffs remains the wins and losses accumulated throughout the tournament.
Why is it called the Emirates NBA Cup?
The league struck a sponsorship deal with Dubai-based airline Emirates to sponsor the tournament after its first edition. The NBA said last year that it opted for the most basic titles for both the tournament and its trophy — the “season tournament” and the “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 they hoped to sell to a sponsor, and it avoided the potential complications that would arise from naming them after someone (e.g., the late NBA commissioner David Stern, a possibility that had been floated before the tournament was officially revealed).
Results of the group stage of the seasonal tournament
Schedule to be determined.
