2024 NBA Cup In-Season Tournament: Group Play draw, teams, format, dates…

The NBA have announced details of the second edition of their In-Season Tournament, which will now be referred to as the 2024 NBA Cup. The draw for the tournament’s Group Play, which resembles the UEFA Champions League and the FIFA World Cup in soccer in terms of its format, has pitted NBA champions Boston Celtics against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls, while the Los Angeles Lakers, the inaugural winners, will face Western Conference top seeds the Oklahoma City Thunder.

What is the format for the 2024 NBA Cup Group Play?

The 15 teams in each conference have been split into three groups of five. Each team will play one game against the other four in their group (two home and two away). Once all group games have been played, the top team from each group, along with the best second-placed team from each conference, will progress to the knockout rounds, which start at the quarterfinals.

What is the format for the 2024 NBA Cup knockout rounds?

All knockout games are single elimination games.

The quarterfinals will be played at the home of one of the two teams involved (the one that had the best record in the group stage).

The semifinals and championship Game are both played at a pre-established venue. As was the case last year, they will be held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in 2024.

Do NBA Cup games count towards the regular season standings?

All games in the group stage and knockout rounds count towards the regular season standings, with the exception of the championship game.

Other regular season fixtures will be scheduled according to which teams play against each other in the knockout rounds.

2024 NBA Cup group stage draw

Western Conference

Eastern Conference

When will the 2024 NBA Cup be played?

Group Play will begin on Tuesday November 12 and run through to Tuesday December 3. Each team will play four designated Group Play games on “Cup Nights”.

The knockout rounds get underway with the quarterfinals on Tuesday December 10 and Wednesday December 11. The semifinals will be played on Saturday December 14, with the championship game following on Tuesday December 17.