JWSport Jacek Waszak – Sport journalist
The 2025 Emirates NBA Cup begins on October 31 and will once again feature a distinctive and unique court design. Each team will have a new, dedicated court for the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup.
Earlier in the season, the Milwaukee Bucks won the second annual Emirates NBA Cup, and now the league has announced the brackets for the extended 2025 season.
Remaining with the defending champions, they will face the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Hornets, and Miami Heat. The Bucks will struggle to return to form due to several major roster changes, including the absence of Damian Lillard, the signing of Myles Turner, and the uncertain future of Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The regular season will begin on October 31st, with group play continuing until November 28th. The quarterfinals will then take place on December 9th and 10th, with the semifinals following shortly thereafter, on December 13th in Las Vegas. Finally, the championship game will also take place in Vegas on December 16th. Although it will be a close game, it will not be counted towards either team’s regular season record or statistics.
In the Cup, each group consists of five teams from the same conference, randomly selected based on their standings from the previous season. During the group stage, each team will play one match against each of the four remaining teams in its group. The teams with the best record in each group qualify for the knockout stage.
In addition, there are two wild card teams, which are second-place teams in the group stage standings from each conference.
You can check the schedule below for the remaining groups.
Eastern Group A – Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, Washington Wizards
Eastern Group B – Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers
Eastern Group C – Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Charlotte Hornets
Western Group A – Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns, Utah Jazz
West Group B – L.A. Lakers, L.A. Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans
West Group C – Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs
