• Emirates NBA Cup 2026: Complete coverage
Below is a list of frequently asked questions about the Emirates NBA Cup 2026. For more information, read the NBA Cup 101 summary.
> What is the Emirates NBA Cup?
The Emirates NBA Cup (formerly the NBA In-Season Tournament) is the league’s annual in-season tournament, which provides players and teams with another competition to win, engages fans in a new way and drives additional interest in the early portion of the regular-season schedule.
> When is the Emirates NBA Cup 2026?
The third annual in-season competition will tip off on Friday, Oct. 30 and culminate with the Championship on Friday, Dec. 11. Click here for all of the key dates.
> Where will the Emirates NBA Cup 2026 be played?
All tournament games will be played in NBA team markets except the Championship, which will be held at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. For ticket information, click here.
> Which teams will participate in the Emirates NBA Cup?
All 30 teams will participate in the first stage of the tournament, Group Play. Eight teams will advance to the second and final stage, the single-elimination Knockout Rounds.
> What does the champion of the Emirates NBA Cup receive?
The champion will receive a trophy, the NBA Cup. In addition, a prize pool will be allocated to players on teams that qualify for the Knockout Rounds, with allocations increasing depending on how far a team progresses in the tournament.
• 2025: New York Knicks
• 2024: Milwaukee Bucks
• 2023: Los Angeles Lakers
> Will top performers from the Emirates NBA Cup be honored?
After the Championship is played, a media panel will select the Most Valuable Player of the Emirates NBA Cup and the All-Tournament Team. Selection will be based on the players’ performance in both Group Play and the Knockout Rounds.
2025 MVP:
Jalen Brunson | New York Knicks | All-NBA Cup Team
2024 MVP:
Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee Bucks | All-NBA Cup Team
2023 MVP:
LeBron James | Los Angeles Lakers | All-NBA Cup Team
> What is Group Play?
All 30 teams have been randomly drawn into groups of five within their conference based on won-loss records from the 2025-26 regular season. Each team will play four designated Group Play games – one game against each opponent in its group, with two games at home and two on the road.
Group Play games will be played on designated “Cup Nights.” Cup Nights will take place every Friday from Oct. 30 – Nov. 27, with additional Cup Nights on Tuesday, Nov. 24 and Wednesday, Nov. 25.
2026 Group Draw:
> How were the groups determined?
Before the Group Play draw, each team was placed into a “pot” based on its record from the prior regular season (2025-26). In each conference, one team from each pot was randomly selected into each of the three groups in that conference.
Pot 1 had the teams with the three best prior-season records in a conference, Pot 2 had the teams with the fourth- through sixth-best prior-season records in a conference, and so on through Pot 5.
> What is the schedule for Group Play?
The game and broadcast schedules for Group Play will be announced in August. Group Play will begin on Friday, Oct. 30.
> What are the Knockout Rounds?
The Knockout Rounds will consist of single-elimination games in the Quarterfinals (Dec. 4-5), Semifinals (Dec. 8 and/or Dec. 9) and Championship (Dec. 11).
> Which teams advance to the Knockout Rounds?
Eight teams will advance to the Knockout Rounds: the team with the best standing in Group Play games in each of the six groups and one “wild card” team from each conference. The wild card will be the team from each conference with the best record in Group Play games that finished second in its group.
> How does the Emirates NBA Cup affect the regular season?
Every team will still play an 82-game regular season. All Emirates NBA Cup games will count toward the regular-season standings except the Championship, which will sit outside the regular season.
> Why are there two games labeled as “TBD” on each team’s 2026-27 regular-season schedule?
Every team will play two regular-season games (including the Emirates NBA Cup Quarterfinals and Semifinals for qualifying teams) from Dec. 9-15. The 22 teams that do not qualify for the Knockout Rounds will play two regular-season games on off nights during the Knockout Rounds.
> How can I watch the Emirates NBA Cup?
The game and broadcast schedules for the Emirates NBA Cup Group Play stage will be announced in August. All games in the Knockout Rounds will be streamed on Prime.
> Where can I purchase tickets for the Emirates NBA Cup?
NBA Experiences premium offerings for the Championship at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis are available now. For more information about tickets and packages, please visit NBAExperiences.com.
General tickets for the Championship will go on sale to the public in August. Fans can visit NBAEvents.com to register interest.
Tickets for Group Play, Quarterfinals or Semifinals games, which will all be played in NBA team markets, can be purchased directly through the host team’s ticketing provider. Additional information on purchasing tickets for Group Play can be found at NBATickets.com.
> Where can I follow the latest news about the Emirates NBA Cup?
Complete information is available here.
