What is the NBA Cup?
The NBA Cup (formerly known as the In-Season Tournament) is a multi-stage tournament that takes place during the regular season of the NBA schedule. The inaugural NBA Cup or In-Season Tournament occured during the 2023-24 season in which the Los Angelos Lakers were the winners. All 30 teams participate, first in a group stage in which all teams compete in four games that are designated as tournament games (as well as count toward regular season records). Following the group stage, a knockout round occurs with four teams from each conference – effectively, an eight-team, single elimination tournament. The last two rounds (semifinals and championship game) are located in Las Vegas.
The NBA Cup was developed to add in excitement during a long, 82-game regular season especially during an era where TV audiences might be dwindling. The November and December time frame during the NBA season is often dominated by football as well, so the NBA Cup is meant to increase interest during a relatively slow time of the regular season.
How does the NBA Cup work?
The NBA Cup games begin with a group stage in which teams are put into groups of five teams each. There are three eastern conference groups and three western conference groups. These groups are determined by first organized teams into “pots.” There are five pots organized by how the teams finished the previous season. The first pot has the top 3 finishing teams, the second pot has the next 3 finishing teams and so on until the fifth pot has teams that finished 13th through 15th in the conference. Then each group is created by drawing one team from each of the pots. This ensures that the groups have relatively similar profiles in terms of recent season performance.
The winner of each group is determined first by win-loss record over the four group stage games (the point differential of these games is used as the tie breaker). Next a fourth team from each conference is selected based on wins and losses and point differential. This provides eight teams that move on to the knockout, single elimination phase of the NBA Cup tournament.
The final four taems that are left play the remaining tournament games in Las Vegas. All tournament games are also considered regular season games, except for the championship game. Teams that compete in the NBA Cup championship game will end up playing 83 games total during the regular season. The NBA Cup championship game outcome does not count toward regular season records or standings.
What are the NBA Cup prizes and awards?
There are monetary awards for individual players as a result of progressing in the NBA Cup tournament. The prizes are as follows:
- Players that lose in the NBA Cup quarterfinals receive $50,000 each
- Players that lose in the NBA Cup semifinals receive $100,000 each
- Players that lose in the NBA Cup championship game receive $200,000 each
- Players that win the NBA Cup championship receive $500,000 each
Moreover, an NBA Cup MVP is named at the conclusion of the tournament.