2025 NBA Cup bracket: Knicks, Magic, Thunder, Spurs win group stages to advance to knockout rounds

Coming into Friday, six of the eight spots in the league’s third annual in-season tournament were up for grabs. The Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors previously clinched a spot in the quarterfinals, but the rest of the bracket was undetermined heading into the final day of group play. 

The first team to punch their ticket into the knockout round was the Orlando Magic. The Magic (4-0) defeated the Detroit Pistons (2-2), 112-109, behind 37 points from Desmond Bane to win the the East’s Group B. The New York Knicks (3-1) also advanced to the knockout stage with a 118-109 win over the Milwaukee Bucks (2-2). Jalen Brunson (37 points, 5 assists) led the Knicks who won Group C because they previously beat the Heat (3-1) head-to-head, but Miami will advance as the wild card team from the Eastern Conference based on their +49 point differential.

In the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder (4-0) came out of Group A on the strength of a 123-119 win over the Phoenix Suns (3-1). Meanwhile, the San Antonio Spurs (3-1) got a 139-136 road win over the Denver Nuggets (3-1) to take Group C. The conference’s wild-card spot is likely to be Phoenix because of its +31 point differential, but officially that will be determined after the Lakers-Mavericks and Grizzlies-Clippers games.

The 19-1 Thunder are currently the favorites to win the 2025 NBA Cup (-105 at FanDuel). The Bucks won the competition last year, and the Lakers won the initial version in 2023.

Bracket to be determined after Friday’s games.

NBA Cup standings

Standings entering Friday’s action.

2025 NBA Cup knockout stage schedule

• Quarterfinals: Tuesday, Dec. 9, and Wednesday, Dec. 10, at higher seed
• Semifinals: Saturday, Dec. 13, at Las Vegas
• Final: Tuesday, Dec. 16, at Las Vegas