NBA Unveils In-Season Tournament and NBA Cup at NBA2K24 Summer League
LAS VEGAS — The NBA has officially announced its newly formed in-season tournament and the NBA Cup at the NBA2K24 Summer League. This event marks the realization of NBA commissioner Adam Silver’s long-standing vision to bring a European cup-style competition to the league.
“This concept has been in talks within the league office for about 15 years,” said Silver during a special episode of “NBA Today” at “NBA Con”. “We believe it is a perfect fit for our game and a great opportunity for a global league like the NBA.”
The league revealed the six five-team groups that will make up the group stage of the tournament. The groups are divided into three Eastern Conference groups and three Western Conference groups. The teams in each group are as follows:
– Group 1: Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons
– Group 2: Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets
– Group 3: Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic
– Group 4: Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers
– Group 5: Denver Nuggets, LA Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets
– Group 6: Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs
The NBA utilized a World Cup-style draw process to create the groups. Teams were placed into five pots based on their standings from the previous regular season. The league hopes that this process will result in evenly matched groups for competitive games.
The group stage of the tournament will consist of four games, with each team playing against the other four teams in their group. These games will take place on seven dates in November. The quarterfinals, semifinals, and championship game will follow in December.
Players on the winning team of the NBA Cup will receive $500,000 each, while players on the runner-up team will receive $200,000 each. Monetary incentives were discussed, but the league decided against guaranteeing the winner a playoff spot or other similar measures.
The NBA acknowledges that it will take time for fans and players to adjust to this new tournament. Joe Dumars, the NBA’s executive vice president of basketball operations, stated, “These things take time. As time goes on, I think you can build this up and people can really get into it.”
The tournament’s championship trophy has been named the “NBA Cup”. The league considered various names before deciding on simple descriptors to establish understanding among fans. However, both the tournament name and trophy name may change in the future, possibly with sponsor involvement.
The NBA is excited about the launch of this in-season tournament and believes it will become an integral part of the NBA calendar. With the NBA Cup up for grabs, teams and players will have an additional goal to strive for throughout the season.