Deadspin | Klay Thompson, Mavericks visit Warriors in NBA Cup opener

Posted by Admin August 13, 2024 NBA

Apr 9, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) reacts after the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The first night of the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup will feature guard Klay Thompson, now with the Dallas Mavericks, facing the host Golden State Warriors, with whom he spent the past 13 seasons and won four league championships.

The game is the second of a doubleheader on Nov. 12, when the league tips off the second year of its in-season tournament, now branded as the Emirates NBA Cup.

The NBA on Tuesday released its complete game schedule and national television slate for group play, with the full 2024-25 regular-season schedule to be announced on Thursday.

The first Cup Night (TNT) opens with the Philadelphia 76ers hosting the New York Knicks, followed by Mavericks at Warriors.

The defending NBA Cup champion Los Angeles Lakers visit the San Antonio Spurs on Nov. 15 (ESPN), followed that night by the Memphis Grizzlies at the Warriors.

As with last year’s competition, teams were randomly drawn into six groups of five for a single round robin of two home and two road games. The seeding was based on win-loss records from the 2023-24 regular season.

Group play games will take place across four Tuesdays (Nov. 12, Nov. 19, Nov. 26 and Dec. 3) and three Fridays (Nov. 15, Nov. 22 and Nov. 29).

TNT and ESPN will combine to air 14 games and NBA TV will televise three games in this first stage of the Emirates NBA Cup.

The quarterfinals of the single-elimination knockout bracket will be played Dec. 10 and 11. Then the tournament will shift from NBA team markets to Las Vegas, where T-Mobile Arena (home of the NHL’s Golden Knights) will host the semifinals on Dec. 14 and the championship game on Dec. 17.

The groups are below, with teams listed by seed number:

Western Conference

Group A: 1. Minnesota, 2. Los Angeles Clippers, 3. Sacramento, 4. Houston, 5 Portland

Group B: 1. Oklahoma City, 2. Phoenix, 3. Los Angeles Lakers, 4. Utah, 5. San Antonio

Group C: 1. Denver, 2. Dallas, 3. New Orleans, 4. Golden State, 5. Memphis

Eastern Conference

Group A: 1. New York, 2. Orlando, 3. Philadelphia, 4. Brooklyn, 5. Charlotte

Group B: 1. Milwaukee, 2. Indiana, 3. Miami, 4. Toronto, 5. Detroit

Group C: 1. Boston, 2. Cleveland, 3. Chicago, 4. Atlanta, 5. Washington

–Field Level Media