The NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament has reached the knockout rounds, which will culminate in one team hoisting the NBA Cup and each of its players walking away with $500,000 in prize money.
After all 30 teams were split into six groups and played four group stage games across November, eight qualified for the quarterfinals with four teams now heading to Las Vegas.
The Indiana Pacers beat the visiting Boston Celtics 122-112 on Monday night to clinch a berth in the semifinals, while the New Orleans Pelicans also booked their spot with a 127-117 win at the Sacramento Kings.
The Pacers will next face the Milwaukee Bucks, who topped the visiting New York Knicks 146-122 on Tuesday. The Pelicans will take on LeBron James and the Lakers, who later defeated the Phoenix Suns in a 106-103 thriller in Los Angeles.
The semifinals will take place on Thursday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, followed by the championship game on Saturday.
So what, exactly, is the NBA Cup? How will the tournament work? Why is it happening? What is the NBA hoping to get out of it?
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likes to say that as long as he stays mentally sharp, his body will follow.
It was apparent that he was locked in on Tuesday, arriving at Crypto.com Arena nearly five hours before tipoff of the Lakers’ eventual quarterfinals win over the Suns.
He arrived early and starred late, scoring 15 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter to earn L.A. a trip to Las Vegas and a chance to capture the first NBA Cup, starting with Thursday’s semifinal game against the Pelicans.
Before Tuesday’s contest, Lakers coach Darvin Ham spoke about how the timing of the tourney has lifted his team.
“This part of the year, you slowly start to feel the grind of the season early, but games like this, any type of mental or physical fatigue you kind of throw away and focus on the prize,” Ham said.
One team source joked to ESPN the Lakers should thank NBA commissioner Adam Silver for launching the in-season tournament this year, if only for the impact it had in reviving James (who will turn 39 this month) in his 21st season and getting him locked in on a new goal when he already has accomplished so much.
James’ performance marked the 76th time in his career that he scored 15 or more in the closing quarter, tying Kobe Bryant for the most such instances since play-by-play was first tracked in 1996-97, per ESPN Stats & Information research.
There were several flurries by James down the stretch. When the Suns tied the score at 89 with just over seven minutes to go, James had a driving layup and a walk-up 3 in transition to open up a 94-89 lead.
After hitting the 3, he pointed to his son, USC freshman guard Bronny James, who was sitting in the stands.
During the ensuing Phoenix timeout, Bronny pulled off his best Kenny Smith impression by signaling “It’s over! It’s over!” to comedian Druski, who was sitting on the baseline next to LeBron’s longtime friend and agent, Rich Paul.
It took another push by James to ultimately prove his son’s prediction — back-to-back scores to put the Lakers up by five with 2:20 to go — and a 3 by Austin Reaves with 15.1 seconds left that gave L.A. the final edge.
Reaves’ performance can’t be overlooked. He scored 13 of his 20 points in the third quarter after Phoenix used a 14-0 run to open the second half and erase L.A.’s double-digit lead.
Anthony Davis, despite missing a free throw with 6.1 seconds remaining and shooting 10-of-26 overall, set the tone early for the Lakers and finished with 27 points and 15 rebounds.
And James, who finished with a season-high five steals, certainly also rose to the occasion as the Lakers’ in-season tourney run marches on. — Dave McMenamin
Bucks knock out Knicks thanks to Antetokounmpo, Lillard
The star duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard put together an offensive masterpiece against the visiting Knicks on Tuesday night to advance to the tournament semifinals.
The Bucks scored their highest tally of the season in the 146-122 decision to remain undefeated during tourney play and book their spot in Las Vegas, where they’ll face the Pacers on Thursday (ESPN, 5 p.m. ET).
“We want to win two championships this year,” Bucks guard Malik Beasley said before the game. “Start off with this one and get us on the right foot.”
Milwaukee put together the kind of unstoppable offense it envisioned when it made the trade to acquire Lillard, generating wide-open 3-pointers all over the floor. The Bucks made 23 of their 38 attempts from deep on Tuesday to shoot 60.5% and outscore the Knicks by 48 points from behind the line. It’s the second time in team history Milwaukee has shot 60% or better on 3-pointers while taking at least 35 attempts.
The scoring barrage came against a stingy Knicks defense that had led the NBA in opponent scoring entering Tuesday. Lillard finished with 28 points, while Antetokounmpo enjoyed a 35-point, 10-assist performance.
Since their first meeting to kick off group stage play last month, the Bucks and the Knicks had found themselves on the upswing. Entering Tuesday’s matchup, Milwaukee had won nine of its previous 11 contests, while New York had captured seven of its prior nine.
The Knicks wasted an inspired effort from Julius Randle, who went 9-for-9 from the floor in the first half and finished with 41 points on 14-of-19 shooting.
New York will now travel to face the Boston Celtics on Friday night. — Jamal Collier
Semifinals schedule
Dec. 7 | Indiana Pacers vs. Milwaukee Bucks | 5 p.m. | ESPN
Dec. 7 | New Orleans Pelicans vs. Los Angeles Lakers | 9 p.m. | TNT
NBA in-season tournament bracket
Top tournament news
• High roller: Pacers-Bucks has highest betting total on any game since ’91
• Source: No black city-edition uniforms for Lakers due to court’s visual contrast
• Lakers hold off Suns to reach semifinals amid controversial timeout call
• ‘Our best offensive game’: Giannis, Dame shine in Bucks’ big win over Knicks
• NBA teams can scout prospects at Vegas showcase during tourney weekend
• Pelicans lean on ‘trust’ and healthy roster to eliminate Kings
• Haliburton posts 1st triple-double, Pacers top Celtics to reach semis
• ESPN Insiders: Dream final? MVP? The in-season tourney’s big questions
• NBA in-season tournament quarterfinal matchups set
• Fantasy: Top streamers to target during final week of in-season tournament
• Kings come back to stun Warriors, advance in tournament
• ‘It was a little weird’: Players irked by tourney’s point-differential rule
• Heat F Jimmy Butler sits out loss vs. Bucks with ankle injury
• Hornets guard LaMelo Ball out weeks due to ankle sprain
• Bontemps: Tournament provides added incentive for Haliburton, Pacers
• 309 total points! Pacers clinch first-ever QF spot in high scoring win over Hawks
• LeBron James passes 39,000-point mark as Lakers advance to knockouts
• Green, Thompson, McDaniels ejected in Wolves-Warriors fight
• Myles Turner’s dunk kicks off first NBA in-season tournament
• Sources: Coaches to get paid for advancing in NBA in-season tournament
• Lowe: How the bold new NBA in-season tournament courts came to fruition
• NBA goes Hollywood to promote in-season tournament
, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons
East Group B: Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets
East Group C: Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic
West Group A: Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns, LA Lakers, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers
West Group B: Denver Nuggets, LA Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets
West Group C: Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs
What do players get for winning?
The players on the winning team will each get $500,000, while the runners-up will get $200,000. The losing players of the semifinals will each get $100,000, and the losing players of the quarterfinals will each get $50,000.
Will anyone earn individual honors for their play in NBA Cup games?
There will be a Most Valuable Player award for the in-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 in the standings. While there was some debate among league insiders about guaranteeing a playoff berth as a reward for winning the tournament, ultimately that idea — or any other to further incentivize teams — was not enacted. The only playoff impact will come from the wins and losses accrued throughout the tournament.
Why is it called the NBA Cup?
Because it’s easy enough to change. In the short term, the NBA has said it went with the most basic of 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 bland, nondescript names has another clear advantage: When the league looks to sell the naming rights to both, it’ll be an easier transition from an unremarkable name than one connected with a specific individual (such as the late David Stern, one possibility that had been floated before the tournament was officially unveiled).
Dec. 4 | Pelicans 127, Kings 117
Dec. 5 | Bucks 146, Knicks 122
Dec. 5 | Lakers 106, Suns 103
Semifinals (at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas)
Dec. 7 | Indiana Pacers vs. Milwaukee Bucks | 5 p.m. | ESPN
Dec. 7 | New Orleans Pelicans vs. Los Angeles Lakers | 9 p.m. | TNT
Championship (at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas)
Dec. 9 | Pacers/Bucks vs. Pelicans/Lakers | 8:30 p.m. | ABC
In-season tournament group stage scores
Nov. 3
Pacers 121, Cavaliers 116
Bucks 110, Knicks 105
Heat 121, Wizards 114
Nets 109, Bulls 107
Trail Blazers 115, Grizzlies 113 (OT)
Nuggets 125, Mavericks 114
Warriors 141, Thunder 139
Nov. 10
76ers 114, Pistons 106
Hornets 124, Wizards 117
Celtics 121, Nets 107
Rockets 104, Pelicans 101
Jazz 127, Grizzlies 121
Timberwolves 117, Spurs 110
Mavericks 144, Clippers 129
Lakers 122, Suns 119
Kings 105, Thunder 98
Nov. 14
Pacers 132, 76ers 126
Hawks 126, Pistons 120
Heat 111, Hornets 105
Nets, 124, Magic 104
Pelicans 131, Mavericks 110
Thunder 123, Spurs 87
Nuggets 111, Clippers 108
Timberwolves 104, Warriors 101
Lakers 134, Grizzlies 107
Nov. 17
Bucks 130, Hornets 99
Knicks 120, Wizards 99
76ers 126, Hawks 116
Cavaliers 108, Pistons 100
Celtics 108, Raptors 105
Kings 129, Spurs 110
Magic 103, Bulls 97
Pelicans 115, Nuggets 110
Suns 131, Jazz 128
Lakers 107, Trail Blazers 95
Clippers 106, Rockets 100
Nov. 21
Magic 126, Raptors 107
Pacers 157, Hawks 152
Cavaliers 122, 76ers 119 (OT)
Suns 120, Trail Blazers 107
Lakers 131, Jazz 99
Nov. 24
Magic 113, Celtics, 96
Suns 110, Grizzlies 89
Knicks 100, Heat 98
Raptors 121, Bulls 108
Pacers 136, Pistons 113
Rockets 105, Nuggets 86
Bucks 131, Wizards 128
Kings 124, Timberwolves 111
Warriors 118, Spurs 112
Pelicans 116, Clippers 106
Nov. 28
Celtics 124, Bulls 97
Nets 115, Raptors 103
Cavaliers 128, Hawks 105
Bucks 131, Heat 124
Knicks 115, Hornets 91
Timberwolves 106, Thunder 103
Mavericks 121, Rockets 115
Kings 124, Warriors 123
