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NBA Cup Playoffs Schedule: When Do Elimination Games Take Place?
The third annual Emirates NBA Cup has reached the knockout round. Things have worked out quite nicely for the league as the defending NBA champion Thunder and two of the league's premier franchises in the Lakers and Knicks have earned spots in the final eight.
The Magic, Heat, Raptors, Suns and Spurs will round out the mini-tournament. It seems like Victor Wembanyama will miss the remainder of the NBA Cup, but MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may be back for Oklahoma City soon.
Here's a look at the remaining schedule for the third annual tournament.
NBA Cup Quarterfinals Schedule
The quarterfinals will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday with Eastern Conference and Western Conference double-headers on Prime Video. Winners will advance to the semifinals in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Date | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Tuesday, Dec. 9 | 6 p.m. EST | 1. Magic | 4. Heat |
Tuesday, Dec. 9 | 8:30 p.m. EST | 2. Raptors | 3. Knicks |
Wednesday, Dec 10. | 7:30 p.m. EST | 1. Thunder | 4. Suns |
Wednesday, Dec 10 | 10 p.m. EST | 2. Lakers | 3. Spurs |
NBA Cup Semifinals and Finals Schedule
The winners of the quarterfinal games will meet on Saturday, Dec. 13 in Las Vegas in another double-header on Prime Video. The Eastern Conference teams will play at 5:30 p.m. EST followed by the Western Conference teams which are scheduled to play at 9 p.m. EST.
The finals will then take place at 8:30 p.m. EST on Tuesday, December 16. That game will also air on Amazon Prime.
These are the only three games taking place on Saturday and Tuesday so that the entire basketball community can concentrate on the Cup and their beautiful floors.
NBA Cup History
The NBA Cup may still be finding its footing with sports fans, but if the results of the first two events lent a ton of credibility to the proceedings with two future Hall of Famers leading their teams to Cup victories.
The Lakers beat the Pacers in the inaugural event back in 2023 when it was called the NBA In-Season Tournament. LeBron James was named the MVP.
By the second year Emirates had claimed sponsorship and the IST became the NBA Cup. The Bucks beat the Pacers in the championship game with Giannis Antetokounmpo claiming MVP honors.
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Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.