After weeks of colored courts, tiebreakers and group play, the Emirates NBA Cup has reached the knockout stage.
Eight teams survived pool play, and six remain to determine who will win the second-ever NBA Cup title, which includes a $514,971 payout for every winning player.
But beyond the cash prize and the somewhat fancy trophy, the NBA Cup is an opportunity for teams to bank tangible, early-season success. Every one of the 82 wins on the standard NBA schedule carries the same weight, but winning that 83rd game means just a little bit more. It means stringing together a series of win-or-go-home games. It means handling the pressure. It means coming together as a team and winning when it matters most.
Just how much it means will vary from team to team, so to break it down, here’s what it would mean for each of the teams left standing to win the 2024 NBA Cup:
Atlanta Hawks
The Hawks, only slightly, have the worst winning percentage and point differential of the quarterfinals teams, but no team in the entire league has a larger gap between its highs and lows than Atlanta. Their season is defined by the fact that so far, they’ve lost to the Wizards (twice), Bulls (twice), Blazers and Pistons but have beaten the Cavaliers (twice), Celtics, Knicks and Bucks.
Atlanta has been getting stronger recently. Before their blowout loss to a desperate Nuggets team on Sunday, they were on a six-game winning streak, which elevated them above .500. If they could string together three wins against championship-level competition, it would solidify the growing notion that this is not only a 2024 playoff team but a dangerous one.
Trae Young is no stranger to high-stakes playoff games, and a handful of the core pieces like De’Andre Hunter, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Clint Capela were with him during Atlanta’s 2021 Eastern Conference Finals run, but how far this team goes in the spring will be defined by its new faces. The ascendance of Jalen Johnson, the defensive brilliance of Dyson Daniels and the number-one-overall selection of Zaccharie Risacher will all be validated if Atlanta can pull off an NBA Cup win.
Golden State Warriors
Golden State, opposite Dallas, has been the biggest struggler lately. The Warriors, who have lost six of their last eight games, could use the NBA Cup to recalibrate.
In their way right off the bat are their Western Conference rivals, the Houston Rockets. Houston is a completely new-looking squad, based on what Steph and Draymond battled in the dynasty era, but they’re still filled to the brim with the same desire to crush Golden State. OKC and Dallas’ feelings about the Dubs aren’t too far off. Staving off the hungry, young teams would help boost Golden State’s morale.
While the Warriors are the third-oldest team in the league, they have their fair share of young role players. Their NBA Cup run will involve the younger rotational pieces proving to the league, themselves, the coaching staff and Steph that they can handle the big stage. For example, Steve Kerr has singled out Brandin Podziemski to put some productive pressure on the budding star.
Houston Rockets
The aforementioned Rockets likely need no extra motivation to continue winning games. The second-youngest squad of the field has been one of the more tenacious teams in the league this year. However, outside of Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, the core of this team has no postseason experience.
This will be the Rockets’ first season since the bubble that they’ll (most likely) be in the playoffs, yet it remains to be seen whether any of the other top dogs in the West will take them seriously. Developing the winning habits that turn young pretenders into contenders typically takes a couple of trial runs.
Houston mirrors the Indiana team that reached the title game last year. An ahead-of-schedule, blossoming team filled with talent that found its stride at the right time, the Pacers rode the confidence they gained in the In-Season Tournament to an Eastern Conference Finals berth. If the Rockets could mimic the Pacers in that way, it would be an overwhelmingly successful season for Houston.
Milwaukee Bucks
For how underwhelming the 2023-24 campaign and how atrocious this season started for Milwaukee, the Bucks could potentially use an NBA Cup win more than any other team. Thankfully for them, they’ve begun to figure some things out.
After last night’s win over Orlando, Milwaukee has won 11 of their last 14, vaulting them from the basement of the East to the six-seed. However, they only defeated two teams with an above-.500 record during that stretch (Miami by three points and an undermanned Orlando team last night). The Hawks and Celtics recently defeated them.
Milwaukee has salvaged the season from being a disaster, but much more work remains to achieve their team’s lofty goals. The NBA Cup provides a speed boost towards achieving those goals. While the Cup trophy isn’t what they ultimately covet, the wins over good competition, they’d rack up and the validation of greatness it would provide is everything Milwaukee is searching for at the moment.
New York Knicks
Given the opposition, the Knicks have a golden opportunity. The top two seeds in the East, the Celtics and the Cavaliers, failed to make it out of group play. The Knicks are the favorites to win the Cup.
The semifinals and final are all played in Vegas. That means an extra road trip and, for finals teams, one extra game. While that may be a bit of a particular deterrent to a veteran New York team that already works its starters more than just about every other organization right now, thanks to a lack of depth and Tom Thibodeau as their head coach, what the Knicks would get out of the NBA Cup is another bonding experience.
The Knicks’ superpower as a team is their friendship. As corny as it may sound, the ‘Nova Knicks’ have spent much time playing basketball on and off the court together. A run through the Cup would continue to grow the chemistry New York has been building, particularly with their fresh face in Karl-Anthony Towns. Although, based on Monday’s game against the Raptors, it looks as if Towns is already feeling pretty good about being in New York.
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Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder’s win on Tuesday was about as important as any of the ones that will follow. Dallas eliminated them from the postseason last time, so OKC has squashed the growing narrative that the Mavericks match up well against the Thunder and that Luka and Co. have their number.
Oklahoma City is the youngest team in the remaining field. They should cherish any opportunity to play more games with substance. But more than the Cup itself, OKC will be looking to show the world that they fear no matchup. They’ll do that after convincingly taking down Dallas in the first round.
Predictions
Remaining Quarterfinals
- Atlanta over New York
- Golden State over Houston
Semifinals
- Atlanta over Milwaukee
- Oklahoma City over Golden State
Finals
- Oklahoma City over Atlanta
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