Somewhere over the next month, an NBA team is going to be up big in the fourth quarter and keep pushing for more. The losing team won’t love it. Someone watching at home will wonder why the starters are still on the floor.

Welcome back to the NBA Emirates Cup.

By now, those little quirks are part of what makes the tournament so much fun. Margin of victory actually matters, which is a phrase a lot of these guys probably haven’t heard since high school. Four games can decide whether a team moves on, and a double-digit win can mean more than just padding the standings. Meanwhile, a team that’s still trying to figure out their rotation can suddenly find themselves playing a game that really matters.

The fourth edition tips off Friday with 10 games, including Knicks–76ers and Lakers–Warriors on Prime Video. The finish line has changed, too: December’s championship game is heading to Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

There’s plenty to watch before we get there. New York has another trophy to defend. Philadelphia's put together a ridiculous amount of talent. And quite a few other contenders are already dealing with injuries that could shape their entire tournament.

Everyone starts in the same place, though: there's no room for error.

How the NBA Cup Actually Works

All 30 teams are in on this, split into six groups of five. Each conference has three groups, with the draw based on last season’s records.

Every team plays their four group opponents once, with two games at home and two on the road. Only those games count toward the Cup standings. So if you beat a group opponent on some random Tuesday outside the tournament, that win doesn’t help your Cup record.

The six group winners move on. They’re then joined by two wild cards, one from each conference, chosen from the second-place teams. That gives us an eight-team, single-elimination tournament for the trophy.

Four games are enough to make things interesting. There’s enough time for the standings to mean something, but not enough time to recover from a bad night. Start 0–2, and you’ve already used up half your group stage trying to climb out of a hole.

The tiebreakers add another layer. Within a group, head-to-head results come first, followed by point differential, total points scored, last season’s regular-season record, and — if it somehow gets that far — a random drawing. Ties for the wild cards skip head-to-head results.

Overtime points don’t count toward point differential or total points scored. An overtime game gives both teams a differential of zero, but the winner still gets the win.

That means winning by 18 instead of 12 could eventually be the difference between advancing and going home. Losing by eight instead of 20 might keep you alive.

It creates some awkward basketball etiquette. Do you keep pushing when the game's basically over? Do you keep fouling? Nobody loves it, but it gives fans a reason to keep watching.

These games count toward the regular season, too. The one exception is the championship, which sits outside the regular-season standings and stats. Everyone still plays an 82-game regular season; the finalists just play one extra game for the Cup.

The Trophy's Already Given Us Something Worth Watching

The Lakers won the first tournament in 2023, Milwaukee followed in 2024, and New York won last year. LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jalen Brunson took home the first three tournament MVP awards.

The money's gotten better, too. In 2025, players on standard contracts with the championship team earned $530,933 each. Players on the runner-up earned $212,373. Those are last year’s numbers. The NBA’s said the prize pool will keep growing, but they don't list specific payouts for 2026.

That’s real money, especially for players farther down the roster. A tournament bonus can mean something very different to a reserve than it does to a superstar.

There’s basketball value here, too. After last year’s final, Brunson called the Cup “an important steppingstone for us.”

That doesn’t prove there’s some magical Cup-to-championship pipeline. But it does make it tougher to shrug off everything New York learned winning that first trophy.

The East Has One Particularly Unpleasant Group

East Group A: Pistons, Raptors, Magic, Bucks, Nets

Detroit’s my initial lean here. The Pistons won 60 games last season, and Cade Cunningham gives them the kind of offensive organizer who can keep a short tournament from turning into four separate rounds of “let’s see what happens.”

Toronto and Orlando should make things interesting. Both went 4–0 in last year’s group stage, but their opening matchup guarantees that one of them won’t get off to the same start this time around.

Health is a big part of the story. Kawhi Leonard's dealing with left-knee swelling, and Paolo Banchero has a high right-ankle sprain. Those are major losses in a competition that doesn’t give teams much time to wait around for their preferred lineups.

For Detroit, the challenge is handling the expectations. Being the sensible pick doesn’t get you to the quarterfinals. The Pistons still have to take care of the games on the schedule, starting Friday in Brooklyn.

East Group B: Knicks, Cavaliers, 76ers, Heat, Pacers

This is the group that's going to be a grind.

New York's defending the Cup. Cleveland got to last season’s Eastern Conference Finals. Philadelphia added LeBron and Jaylen Brown to a roster that already had Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. Miami brought in Antetokounmpo. Indiana has Tyrese Haliburton back after his Achilles injury.

Only one of them is guaranteed to move on.

It’s easy to rank these teams by star power and leave it there. I’m more interested in how quickly each one can find a closing lineup they trust.

That gets uncomfortable fast when there's four games on the schedule. A team can have a perfectly good explanation for their growing pains and still be eliminated.

East Group C: Celtics, Hawks, Hornets, Bulls, Wizards

Boston’s got Jayson Tatum, sure, but Atlanta’s worth a long look here.

Jalen Johnson averaged 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 7.9 assists last season. That’s a pretty serious starting point for an offense, especially with a group that has multiple guys who can make life difficult for opposing guards.

There’s a lot changing around them, too. Brown leaving reshaped Boston. Charlotte’s building around Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel. Chicago has a new coach in Tiago Splitter and the No. 4 pick, Caleb Wilson. Washington’s putting together a mix of Trae Young, Anthony Davis, and top pick AJ Dybantsa.

So this should give us a decent idea of how quickly all that talent can turn into an actual team.

I like Atlanta’s chances of looking more organized early. Boston still has the guy who can make even a well-prepared opponent feel completely helpless for six straight possessions, though. Their November 27th matchup could be a pretty good way to settle the argument.

The West’s Outlook Is Already Changing

West Group A: Nuggets, Rockets, Suns, Mavericks, Jazz

Denver and Houston are the obvious places to start. Nikola Jokić gives the Nuggets a really steady way to create good shots and good possessions, and then Houston can make life difficult with Kevin Durant’s shot-making and the different problems Alperen Sengün and Amen Thompson bring to the table.

Their November 20th matchup in Denver is already something to circle.

Dallas is the team that could make this feel different. Cooper Flagg came back from a shoulder sprain Monday and put up 29 points and 11 assists in a win over Miami. The scoring is impressive, obviously, but his ability to create for everyone else might be even more interesting.

That’s why Friday’s Rockets–Mavericks game matters right away. Houston gets a chance to show they belong in the conversation against a dangerous opponent. Dallas gets to see how much their young centerpiece can control a game against a physical defense.

West Group B: Thunder, Timberwolves, Clippers, Pelicans, Grizzlies

Oklahoma City's dealing with some major injuries to Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace. Williams fractured his fibula and dislocated his ankle, and Wallace has a torn labrum. Both will probably end up missing the rest of the season.

Minnesota got hit with some rough news of their own. Anthony Edwards needs a procedure on his right knee and is expected to miss several weeks. Some reports have suggested he could be out for up to two months.

The Thunder still have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren. The Wolves still have LaMelo Ball. So no, neither team should be written off just yet.

But if you’re looking at their November meeting as a full-strength star showdown, you’re going to be sadly mistaken.

For the Clippers, Pelicans, and Grizzlies, the opportunity's pretty clear. The major players in their group have some serious injuries. Can anyone step up and take advantage of that?

West Group C: Spurs, Lakers, Trail Blazers, Warriors, Kings

San Antonio made both the Cup final and the NBA Finals last season. With Victor Wembanyama in the middle of everything, the Spurs are a real threat again, even in a group loaded with guards who can take over a game.

The Lakers have Dončić and Austin Reaves. Portland's paired Ja Morant with a healthy Damian Lillard. Golden State has Steph Curry. Sacramento's the only one who doesn't quite feel on the same level.

To me, this group comes down to which team can handle the less glamorous stretches.

Stars can win you a close game down the stretch. But somebody still has to keep things from falling apart when that star sits.

Friday’s Doubleheader Gives Us Drama Right Away

Knicks at 76ers — 7:30 p.m. ET, Prime Video

Philadelphia already spoiled New York’s banner night, beating the Knicks 106–100 behind 28 points from Maxey. This time, the rematch comes with another competition.

Maxey's a big reason this version of Philadelphia is so interesting. James and Brown will get plenty of attention, and for good reason, but Maxey’s the guy who can turn a normal possession into a full-blown defensive problem in a hurry.

New York’s challenge is to make the Sixers work for everything in the half court. Philadelphia has to try to keep Brunson from dictating the game once things slow down.

The Sixers have already shown what they can do, and what still needs work. Embiid put up 28 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists against Milwaukee with James out. But Philadelphia also gave up 58 points in the paint and 31 in transition. Having a ton of talent doesn’t magically clean up the defense.

The loser will still have plenty of season left. But their Cup situation will get a whole lot less comfortable.

Lakers at Warriors — 10 p.m. ET, Prime Video

Los Angeles won the first meeting 127–105 with Dončić scoring 28 points and Reaves adding 23. So Golden State has a pretty obvious place to start in the rematch: make the Lakers work a little harder for everything.

Curry’s still the reason this game could look way different. His movement forces defenders to make decisions before he even gets the ball, which is usually when things start to get messy.

Luka creates a different kind of problem. He keeps a defender tied up longer than they’d like and waits for the help defense to make one wrong move.

The highlights will show the tough shots. This game might come down to the much simpler plays somebody didn’t finish.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com.

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