With Group Play of the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup tipping off Oct. 31, we’re breaking down each group as they prepare for opening night, concluding with East Group C.
Led by the defending Emirates NBA Cup champion Milwaukee Bucks, East Group C features a mix of teams that found success in both the in-season competition and the NBA postseason.
Of the five teams in East Group C, two reached the playoffs via top-six finishes (3-seed Knicks and 5-seed Bucks), two reached the Play-In (9th-place Bulls and 10th-place Heat, with Miami earning the 8-seed in the playoffs), and two teams that went undefeated to win their groups and earn the top two seeds in the East Knockouts (1-seed Bucks and 2-seed Knicks).
While New York’s NBA Cup run ended in the quarterfinals, the Bucks defeated Orlando and Atlanta to reach the championship game against the Thunder. The Bucks won the Cup behind Giannis Antetokounmpo’s MVP performance, posting the first-ever triple-double in the Knockouts (26 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists, two steals, three blocks).
| TEAMS | NYK | CHI | MIL | CHA | MIA | TOTAL |
| NYK | x | 1-2 | 3-0 | 2-1 | 3-0 | 9-3 (.750) |
| CHI | 2-1 | x | 2-2 | 3-1 | 3-0 | 10-4 (.714) |
| MIL | 0-3 | 2-2 | x | 2-1 | 4-0 | 8-6 (.571) |
| CHA | 1-2 | 1-3 | 1-2 | x | 1-3 | 4-10 (.286) |
| MIA | 0-3 | 0-3 | 0-4 | 3-1 | x | 3-11 (.214) |
As the Bucks try to run it back in 2025, the first step is to emerge out of East Group C, which will be no easy task. When looking at head-to-head matchups from last season between teams in East Group C, Milwaukee (8-6) finished behind both New York (9-3) and Chicago (10-4), with the Bulls being the only team that did not lose a single season series to any of their four East Group C opponents.
Teams breakdown
Charlotte Hornets: Rookies Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner and Liam McNeeley helped the Hornets to the 2025 NBA 2K26 Summer League title in July. The key for Charlotte to begin its rise in the East during the season hinges on the health of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller (they combined to miss 90 games last season). How veterans such as Collin Sexton, Pat Connaughton and Mason Plumlee fare will be key as well.
Chicago Bulls: Can momentum carry over from one season to the next? Chicago was one of the hottest teams at the end of the 2024-25 season, winning 15 of its final 20 before ultimately losing in the Play-In for the third straight season. With nine players who have five or more seasons of experience, the Bulls will look to lean on that veteran presence to get off to a faster start in 2025-26, including a run at the NBA Cup.
Miami Heat: The team that has eliminated the Bulls in the Play-In each of the past three seasons, the Heat needed a late-season surge (8-4 in their last 12 games) to qualify before prevailing in two win-or-go-home contests. That experience in high-pressure games should help Miami as it looks to win the group and reach the single-elimination Knockouts. The addition of Norman Powell, who joins the Heat after averaging a career-best 21.8 points on 41.8% shooting from 3, should also make an impact.
Milwaukee Bucks: After retooling their roster over the summer by adding Myles Turner, Cole Anthony and Gary Harris, while parting with Damian Lillard, Brook Lopez and Pat Connaughton, the Bucks are not just looking to defend their NBA Cup title but also to get back into contention for the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the fifth season since their 2021 championship run.
New York Knicks: Following last season’s run to the East Finals, where they lost to Indiana in six games, the Knicks return in 2025 with their sights set on winning the East and reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999. While other teams made several offseason moves, the Knicks chose continuity, re-signing Mikal Bridges and adding veterans Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele to help push them over the top.
Five games to watch
Bulls at Bucks (Friday, Nov. 7, 8 p.m. ET, League Pass): The Bucks take their first step toward defending their 2024 NBA Cup Trophy when they open Group Play hosting the Bulls – a team that split its season series with Milwaukee last season. How quickly the new-look Bucks can find their groove together will go a long way toward determining their repeat chances.
Heat at Knicks (Friday, Nov. 14, 7 p.m. ET, Prime): These longtime rivals met back in Group Play in 2023 when the Knicks rallied from 21 down to defeat the Heat and ultimately earned the East Wild Card. New York enters this game having won nine of the last 11 head-to-head matchups with Miami. Can the Knicks continue that roll in Group Play?
Heat at Bulls (Friday, Nov. 21, 8 p.m. ET, League Pass): For the past three seasons, the Heat have eliminated the Bulls from playoff contention with a win in the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament. That should add some fuel to this matchup as Miami looks to extend its winning ways over the Bulls in games with elevated stakes.
Bucks at Heat (Wednesday, Nov. 26, 7:30 p.m. ET, League Pass): The Bucks-Heat rivalry can add to its already lengthy lore as the teams add NBA Cup flair to their rivalry in this Group Play matchup. (A refresher: The Bucks have won eight of the last nine regular-season meetings and eliminated the Heat in the 2021 playoffs, but they also lost to the Heat in the 2020 and ’23 playoffs.)
Bucks at Knicks (Friday, Nov. 28, 7:30 p.m. ET, Prime): Both teams went a perfect 4-0 in Group Play in last season’s NBA Cup. Both teams have finished top five in the East each of the past three seasons. There’s no better matchup to close out Group Play in East Group C than a clash between the Bucks and Knicks. To top it off, it’s going down on one of the brightest stages – Madison Square Garden.
Prediction
The Knicks and Bucks meet on the final night of Group Play, with the winner taking East Group C and the loser hoping to remain in contention for the East Wild Card. After going 4-0 in Group Play in each of the two seasons of the NBA’s in-season competition, the Bucks are dealt their first Group Play loss as the Knicks win the group and advance to the Knockouts.
Keep an eye on Chicago, which played each of these teams well last season and could challenge New York and Milwaukee for the group and/or wild card.
