Which teams are advancing to the NBA Cup quarterfinals? Friday’s slate gave some clarity as all eyes turn to next Tuesday’s final night of action to determine which teams will fill out the bracket.
One team that won’t be moving on is the defending tournament champions, the Los Angeles Lakers, who lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder in West Group B action Friday. The Lakers finished group play with a 2-2 record and point differential of -24. The win kept the Thunder’s hopes alive with a 101-93 win.
Earlier Friday, the Atlanta Hawks became the first East team to advance after winning East Group C by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 117-101 on Friday. The loss also eliminated the Cavs, who still have the regular season’s best record.
The Hawks joined two West teams — the Houston Rockets (West Group A winners) and the Golden State Warriors (West Group C winners) — as teams guaranteed to move on. That leaves three more group winners (one in the West, two in the East), as well as one wild-card team from each conference, to punch their tickets. And remember, point differential in NBA Cup games matters, as it serves as the first tiebreaker (after head-to-head record in group play).
As we head into the seventh and final day of group stage play for the NBA Cup, here’s what’s at stake:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Clinched: Atlanta Hawks (Group C winners; road team for the quarterfinals)
In contention:
Group A: Orlando Magic, New York Knicks
Group B: Milwaukee Bucks, Detroit Pistons
Group C: Boston Celtics (wild card only)
Eliminated: Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Washington Wizards
Scenarios: Orlando is at New York in Group A. The winner will win the group and host a quarterfinal. If New York wins by 30 or less, Orlando will be the wild card.
Milwaukee is at Detroit in Group B. The winner will win the group and host a quarterfinal. If New York wins, the loser will be eliminated. If Orlando wins, it will come down to point differential for the wild card spot between the Bucks, Pistons and Celtics.
If Detroit wins by six or more or Milwaukee wins by five or more in regulation, then Boston will claim the wild card spot. If it’s a less than five point game, or goes to overtime, then the loser of Detroit-Milwaukee will get the spot — again, if Orlando wins, or loses by 30 or less.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Clinched: Houston Rockets (Group A winners), Golden State Warriors (Group C winners)
Contention:
Group A: Portland Trail Blazers, LA Clippers (wild card only for both teams)
Group B: San Antonio Spurs, Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder
Group C: Dallas Mavericks; Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies (wild card only for all teams)
Eliminated: Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz
Scenarios:
If the Rockets win in Sacramento and the Warriors win in Denver, they will clinch home court advantage in the quarterfinals. If they both lose, the Rockets will clinch a home court spot — so long as they lose by less than 37 points more than the Warriors do.
While there are technically 11 teams alive, the overwhelming likelihood is that the remaining two qualifiers for the quarterfinals will come from the three Group B teams — the Spurs, Suns and Thunder — and the Mavericks.
The Thunder host the Jazz Tuesday, and should win. If they do, the Thunder will win the group if the Suns beat the Spurs – while the Spurs will win it if they beat the Suns. In those scenarios, it will come down to point differential for the wild card spot.
If Dallas wins, considering it has a plus-41 point differential, it will be the heavy favorite to get the wild card in any scenario. The Suns or Thunder would have to have a margin of victory at least 23 or 24 points bigger than Dallas does against Memphis in its final game.
The only other team that can get to 3-1 is the Trail Blazers, who play at the Clippers. But Portland has a negative point differential, meaning their only realistic path to the wild card is for the Thunder and Mavericks to both lose.
In the very unlikely scenario that nine teams tie at 2-2, the Mavericks, by virtue of their big head start in point differential, would be the heavy favorites to get the wild card spot.
Here’s what stood out from Friday’s action.
Jump to a section:
Takeaways | Schedule | FAQ
Lakers’ repeat NBA Cup run fades out
The Lakers’ repeat chances in the NBA Cup aren’t officially extinguished, but they’re awfully close to it after Friday’s 101-93 loss to the Thunder dropped them to 2-2 in group play and with a point differential of -24 in the race for the wild card spot.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was brilliant for the Thunder, finishing with 36 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds as OKC finished the game on a 9-2 run.
It was a defense-first, physical game, with players from both teams — Isaiah Hartenstein and Austin Reaves — being brought to the floor with contact around the basket. Oklahoma City won despite shooting 40.9% from the field to L.A.’s 45.2% thanks in large part to the turnover differential — the Lakers had 17 turnovers leading to 20 Thunder points; the Thunder had 10 leading to only five points for the Lakers.
The main culprit for L.A. was LeBron James, who had five, continuing his streak of now nine straight games with at least four turnovers. Reaves also had five.
After losing three out of four regular-season games to L.A. a season ago, the Thunder started this season’s series with a victory — and kept their hopes alive in the NBA Cup to boot. — Dave McMenamin
Hawks move on but the East race remains tight
The Hawks secured the East’s first quarterfinal bid with their win over the Cavaliers. That leaves five teams — the Knicks and Magic in Group A; the Milwaukee Bucks and Pistons in Group B; and the Celtics in Group C — in contention for the remaining three spots.
After the Magic, Knicks and Pistons all won Friday, the two teams that will host quarterfinal games on Dec. 10 or 11 will be the winners of Magic-Knicks and Bucks-Pistons on Tuesday, as those teams will be the only 4-0 teams in the East at the end of group play.
As for the wild card? Well, that picture is a complex one to sort out — at least in one scenario.
If the Knicks beat the Magic, Orlando is a virtual lock to be the wild card. With a point differential of plus-60 after a 123-100 victory over Brooklyn on Friday, the Magic would have to lose to New York by at least 32 points to even potentially fall out of the wild-card spot.
But if Orlando beats New York, then the spot will be determined by the winner of the Bucks-Pistons game. If Milwaukee wins by five or more, the wild card will be Boston. A win by three points or fewer means it’ll be Detroit, with a four-point win leaving Boston and Detroit tied and it going down to total points scored.
If Detroit wins by six or more, Boston will be the wild card. If Detroit wins by four or fewer, it’ll be Milwaukee — with a five-point win leaving Boston and Detroit tied. — Tim Bontemps
0:26
Jalen Johnson throws down big slam vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Jalen Johnson throws down big slam vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Bridges’ struggles continues; Magic roll
The Knicks and Magic are set to decide East Group A on Tuesday after earning crucial wins Friday, but one star player still hasn’t found his footing.
It’s getting tougher to ignore Mikal Bridges’ struggles. They are so severe that, for the second time in a week, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau largely benched him in the final quarter. In Friday’s one-point win over Charlotte, Bridges subbed out with 8:25 left in the fourth, then checked in with 13 seconds remaining, out with 11 seconds left, then back in for the final eight seconds, when Thibodeau used him for only defensive possessions.
Bridges has shot just 33% from the field (20-for-60) in his past four games, and his seasonlong 30.8% mark from distance ranks fourth worst in the NBA of the 57 players who’ve launched at least 100 tries.
Against Brooklyn, the red-hot Magic illustrated they can win in a number of ways. They entered Friday as the worst 3-point shooting club in the league, but the Magic — winners in 11 of their past 12 despite playing without star Paolo Banchero — caught fire from deep, hitting 18 of 35 3s in a road rout. — Chris Herring
2024 Emirates NBA Cup schedule
All times ET
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 1, 4:30 p.m. (TNT)
Semifinals 2, 7:30 p.m. (ABC)
Dec. 17
Championship, 8:30 p.m. (ABC)
Previous results
Nov. 29
Knicks 99, Hornets 98
Hawks 117, Cavaliers 101
Grizzlies 120, Pelicans 109
Timberwolves 93, Clippers 92
Magic 123, Nets 100
Pistons 130, Pacers 106
Heat 121, Raptors 111
Celtics 138, Bulls 129
Thunder 101, Lakers 93
Trail Blazers 115, Kings 106
Nov. 12
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
Nov. 15
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
Celtics 120, Cavaliers 117
Nets 116, Hornets 115
Nuggets 122, Grizzlies 110
Mavericks 132, Pelicans 91
Spurs 110, Thunder 110
Lakers 124, Jazz 118
Nov. 22
76ers 113, Nets 98
Celtics 108, Wizards 96
Warriors 112, Pelicans 108
Bucks 129, Pacers 117
Bulls 136, Hawks 122
Rockets 116, Trail Blazers 88
Mavericks 123, Nuggets 120
Clippers 108, Kings 88
Nov. 26
Bulls 127, Wizards 108
Bucks 106, Heat 103
Rockets 117, Timberwolves 111 (OT)
Spurs 128, Jazz 115
Suns 127, Lakers 100
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.
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).
