The NBA has revealed its schedule (and a new logo) for the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup, the freshly re-branded second annual edition of the league’s in-season tournament, via a press statement.
According to the presser, the group play stage of games is slated to begin on Tuesday, November 12, and will continue on “Cup Nights” across a few successive Tuesdays (Nov. 19, Nov. 26, and Dec. 3) and Fridays (Nov. 15, 22, and 29).
The 30 NBA clubs will be allocated into five-team groups within their own conference, based on 2023/24 season records — each group will include one team that finished in the top three in its conference, one that finished between Nos. 4-6, one that finished between 7-9, and so on. Each team will play the other four squads in its group once during the group play stage.
The single-game elimination knockout round for the top eight teams (three group winners and one wild card in each conference) are slated to tip off on December 10 and 11, with the quarterfinals played in the teams’ own normal markets. Winners will advance to the semifinals (Dec. 14) and the final (Dec. 17) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The 22 eliminated teams will play two assigned regular season games, one at home and one on the road, on December 12-13 and December 15-16. The quarterfinals losers will play each other during that same window.
Last year, the Lakers defeated the Pacers in the inaugural in-season tournament championship game, with Anthony Davis racking up 41 points and 20 rebounds in the victory.