The 2024 Emirates NBA Cup has reached the knockout stage with eight teams set to battle in the quarterfinals of the tournament on Tuesday and Wednesday. Who will survive the single-elimination bracket and be crowned this year’s champ? Our writers weigh in.
Kevin O’Connor: An upgrade over the standard regular season. While I understand the criticisms, they pale in comparison to the rather vapid nature of the season from October until Christmas. The NBA needs to do something to make all of these other games feel more important. Perhaps going even further and making the entire first quarter of the season about the NBA Cup is the key. Once expansion happens, why not have a 32-team, single-elimination tournament take place in the lead up to Christmas every year?
Dan Titus: Necessary. Viewership is down, so it’s a perfect time to spark some interest in watching the NBA on a random Tuesday or Wednesday night in early December. Bring on the loud courts with heightened competitiveness — especially in the Western Conference. We get all the star power brewing with the Mavericks facing the Thunder. Plus, some Rockets drama as Houston attempts to end its 15-game losing streak versus the Warriors. I won’t speak for the East, but these games will not disappoint.
Vincent Goodwill: A sign that players need to heed the perception of their effort not being enough through the 82-game marathon. There are a lot of positives, like an introduction to teams that aren’t household names (Orlando Magic), and perhaps it was a springboard for the Indiana Pacers’ run to the ECF last season. But more than anything, when the league goes out of its way to say only the playoffs matter, the players will begin to believe it. You don’t want fans believing the story of the regular season is meaningless, and while a trip to Vegas is exciting, I’m still concerned over the messaging.
Tom Haberstroh: A welcome addition. The NBA needed to inject some stakes to the needlessly long 82-game regular season. It makes sense to do it now. Statistically, we basically know who’s good, who’s not around the 20-game mark, so might as well capitalize on that with a tourney. If you think the group play is wonky, I foresee the NBA Cup format changing dramatically with domestic and international expansion in the coming years.
Haberstroh: Mavericks-Thunder. For my money, these are the two best teams in the West. The Mavericks are a couple bounces away from riding a 17-game win streak into this matchup. Though the Thunder will be without Chet Holmgren, I’m stoked to watch the OKC Dobermans attack Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving.
Titus: Mavericks-Thunder. The Mavs are streaking, knocking off seven consecutive opponents, and they’re 1-0 versus the Thunder this season. OKC is equally as dangerous and didn’t have Isaiah Hartenstein or Alex Caruso in the teams’ first meeting in November. Still, the Thunder’s top-ranked defense will have their work cut out for them. We know what Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving can bring, but with the Mavs’ role players stepping up and playing above expectations, I give them the slight edge because of their health and roster depth.
O’Connor: Mavs-Thunder. It’s the best team in the West so far this season, including even since Chet Holmgren got hurt, against last year’s West representative in the Finals and one of the league’s hottest teams. This should be an entertaining game.
Goodwill: In the interest of variety, Rockets-Warriors. The Fighting Imes are coming and the Warriors are reeling former champions searching for solid ground. This used to be an annual playoff matchup in another NBA lifetime and seemingly only Stephen Curry remains. It’ll be nice to see if the Warriors can rev it up for a game, for Steve Kerr to extend Steph, and if the Rockets can handle the added attention.
Titus: Kyrie Irving. Irving has the highest FG% and eFG% among active players with one minute left in the fourth quarter or overtime, with a shot to tie or take the lead (min 20 shot attempts). The man is cold-blooded and thrives in high-pressure situations. He’s proven that there’s no shot he’s incapable of hitting in the clutch. Irving has the IQ, handle and craftiness to make winning plays with the game on the line.
Haberstroh: Stephen Curry. Give me the reigning NBA Clutch Player of the Year and the guy who tucked everyone to bed in Paris this summer. Always possessing a flair for the dramatic, it only seems right for Curry to inform everyone it’s bedtime in Vegas, a place that famously has no clocks.
Goodwill: Kyrie Irving. While he’s more boom or bust than Curry and Giannis, he’s been utterly spectacular and consistent this season, in terms of his efficiency. And … he’s the dude who hit one of the biggest shots in NBA history.
O’Connor: Giannis Antetokounmpo. We saw this man score 50 points in Game 7 of the Finals. Give me Giannis.
Goodwill: Knicks over Warriors. Why? Because Tom Thibodeau would sell your limbs to win a game, stakes be damned (don’t tell him the Final doesn’t count toward regular-season record). And we all know Steve Kerr is always playing the long game. Perhaps one just wants to see Steph against Jalen Brunson, too.
Haberstroh: Warriors over Bucks. With Fred VanVleet dealing with an ailing knee and Tari Eason in concussion protocols, the Warriors may be facing a battered Houston Rockets team that desperately needs FVV to be 100 percent. The West is 56-41 (.577) against the East this year, so I’ll take the West squad for the Cup, and I don’t know who, if anyone, will survive the Mavs-Thunder bloodbath. The ol’ Warriors take the 25-game trophy knowing they might not have enough in the tank to snatch the 100-game one.
O’Connor: Bucks over Mavericks. Milwaukee proves it has turned the corner, and Giannis takes the lead in the early MVP race.
Titus: Mavericks over Knicks. Clearly I have a type. Powered by the league’s top offense (121 points per 100 possessions) and a top-10 defense (109 points allowed per 100 possessions) during their current seven-game win streak, the Mavs are a formidable NBA Cup underdog. Despite the long odds, Dallas’ scoring prowess, versatile frontcourt, and strong perimeter defense has them positioned to upset the field and capture the trophy.
