What is the NBA Cup? How the in-season tournament works
The NBA Cup (officially the Emirates NBA Cup) is a tournament played inside the NBA regular season. All 30 teams start in a group stage in November, eight of them reach a single-elimination knockout in December, and the last two meet for a trophy and a prize pot. For 2026, that final is on Friday, December 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
It's the NBA's version of a midseason cup: real games, real standings, and a bracket that turns a random Tuesday in December into a must-win.
What changed in 2026
Two things, and most of what's already written about the Cup gets them wrong:
- The final left Las Vegas. Every Cup final so far (2023, 2024, 2025) was played at T-Mobile Arena. The 2026 championship moves to Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
- The semifinals moved to home arenas. Quarterfinals were already at home sites. Now the semifinals are too, on December 8-9, so only the final is at a neutral venue.
The rest of the format - groups of five, one wild card per conference, an eight-team bracket - is unchanged.
How the group stage works
The 15 teams in each conference were drawn into three groups of five, using pots based on the 2025-26 regular-season records so each group gets a mix of strong and weak teams. Every team plays the other four in its group once, so four group games each.
Those games land on Cup Nights: every Friday from October 30 to November 27, plus Tuesday, November 24 and Wednesday, November 25.
| Group | Teams |
|---|---|
| East A | Pistons, Raptors, Magic, Bucks, Nets |
| East B | Knicks, Cavaliers, 76ers, Heat, Pacers |
| East C | Celtics, Hawks, Hornets, Bulls, Wizards |
| West A | Nuggets, Rockets, Suns, Mavericks, Jazz |
| West B | Thunder, Timberwolves, Clippers, Pelicans, Grizzlies |
| West C | Spurs, Lakers, Trail Blazers, Warriors, Kings |
Who makes the knockout
Eight teams go through, four from each conference:
- The three group winners in each conference.
- One wild card per conference: the runner-up with the best group-stage record.
With only four games each, ties are common. In 2025 the NBA broke them in this order, and it hasn't announced a different list for 2026:
- Head-to-head result in the group stage
- Point differential in the group stage
- Total points scored in the group stage
- Record from the previous regular season
- Random drawing
One quirk worth knowing: overtime doesn't count for the point tiebreakers. A group game that goes to overtime counts as a point differential of zero, and overtime points don't add to points scored. So running up the score in OT does nothing for you.
The knockout bracket
The eight teams are seeded by group-stage record within each conference, and the bracket stays inside each conference until the final:
- Quarterfinals - December 4-5, home arenas. In each conference the top seed hosts the wild card, and the 2 seed hosts the 3 seed.
- Semifinals - December 8-9, home arenas. The two quarterfinal winners in each conference meet, at the higher seed's arena.
- Championship - December 11, Hinkle Fieldhouse. East winner against West winner.
It's single elimination all the way: lose once and you're out.
Do NBA Cup games count?
Yes - all but one. Every group game and every quarterfinal and semifinal counts as a normal regular-season game, toward the standings and the stats. The championship is the exception: it's an extra game outside the 82, so the two finalists play one more game than everybody else and it doesn't touch the standings.
The prize money
The Cup pays every player on the eight knockout teams, and the further you go, the more you get. The amounts rise each year with league revenue. For 2025 they were, per player:
| Finish | Per player (2025) |
|---|---|
| Champion | $530,933 |
| Runner-up | $212,373 |
| Semifinal loss | $106,187 |
| Quarterfinal loss | $53,093 |
The 2026 figures follow the same formula and will land a little higher; the league hasn't published them yet.
Past winners
| Year | Champion | Final | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Los Angeles Lakers | 123-109 over the Pacers | T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas |
| 2024 | Milwaukee Bucks | 97-81 over the Thunder | T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas |
| 2025 | New York Knicks | 124-113 over the Spurs | T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas |
Three different champions in three years, none of them repeat finalists. Good luck calling 2026.
Call the bracket before it happens
The knockout field is set when group play ends on November 27, and the quarterfinals tip off a week later. That's the window to call it. Our NBA Cup 2026 bracket fills in the eight teams as they qualify; you pick every knockout game, it scores itself as results land, and the leaderboard shows who called the champion and who picked a wild card to win it all. Start a pool for your group free for up to 10 players.
Thinking past December? Our NBA pick'em pool page covers the other ways a group plays along with the season.
Frequently asked questions
What is the NBA Cup?
The NBA Cup, officially the Emirates NBA Cup, is an in-season tournament inside the NBA regular season. All 30 teams play a group stage in November, eight advance to a single-elimination knockout in December, and the final is played for a trophy and prize money.
How does the NBA Cup work?
Each conference is split into three groups of five. Teams play each group opponent once. The three group winners and the best runner-up (the wild card) in each conference reach an eight-team knockout: quarterfinals and semifinals at home arenas, then a final between the East and West winners.
When and where is the 2026 NBA Cup final?
Friday, December 11, 2026, at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. It's the first Cup final played outside Las Vegas.
Do NBA Cup games count toward the standings?
Group games, quarterfinals and semifinals all count as regular-season games. The championship does not - it's an extra game outside the 82.
How is the NBA Cup wild card decided?
Each conference sends one wild card: the group runner-up with the best group-stage record. Ties are broken by head-to-head, then point differential, then points scored (overtime excluded from both), then the previous season's record.
How much prize money do NBA Cup winners get?
In 2025 each player on the winning team got $530,933, the runners-up $212,373, semifinal losers $106,187 and quarterfinal losers $53,093. The 2026 amounts rise slightly with league revenue and hadn't been published at the time of writing.
Who won the NBA Cup last year?
The New York Knicks won the 2025 NBA Cup, beating the San Antonio Spurs 124-113. The Lakers won the first Cup in 2023 and the Bucks won in 2024.
More on NBA pools: NBA Cup 2026 bracket · NBA pick'em pool · NBA playoff bracket