The Milwaukee Bucks, the reigning NBA Cup champions, will face off against New York, Chicago, Charlotte, and Miami in this season’s group stage of the NBA Cup tournament. The league has revealed the groups for the third edition of the event, with group play starting on October 31 and running through November 28.
The quarterfinals are set for December 9 and 10, while the semifinals will take place in Las Vegas on December 13. The Championship Game is scheduled for December 16 in Las Vegas; however, the results will not impact regular season records or statistics. During group play, each team will have two home games and two away games. Teams that do not advance to the quarterfinals or semifinals will be matched with two other non-qualifying teams for scheduled games to maintain the standard 82-game season format.
Quarterfinal and semifinal games will count toward the regular season records of the participating teams. The full NBA schedule, including the NBA Cup fixtures, will be announced in August for the 2025-26 season.
The groups are as follows:
– East Group A: Cleveland, Indiana, Atlanta, Toronto, Washington
– East Group B: Boston, Detroit, Orlando, Brooklyn, Philadelphia
– East Group C: Milwaukee, New York, Chicago, Miami, Charlotte
– West Group A: Oklahoma City, Minnesota, Sacramento, Phoenix, Utah
– West Group B: LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Memphis, Dallas, New Orleans
– West Group C: Houston, Denver, Golden State, Portland, San Antonio
Fan Take: The return of the NBA Cup with such competitive groupings promises to add excitement and intensity early in the season, offering fans new high-stakes matchups. This format could also reshape how teams approach the regular season, blending tournament pressure with long-term strategy and potentially changing the landscape of professional basketball.
