NBA Cup semifinals live updates, results, takeaways
The NBA Cup will take place in Las Vegas on Saturday with the semifinals beginning at T-Mobile Arena.
The doubleheader begins at 5:30 p.m. ET with the New York Knicks taking on the Orlando Magic, before the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the San Antonio Spurs (9 p.m. ET). The winners of each match advance to the final, which takes place Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
The Magic defeated the Miami Heat 117-108 in the quarterfinals, led by guard Desmond Bane with a season-high 37 points. Although the Magic will be without their leading scorer Franz Wagner due to a sprained left ankle, Paolo Banchero is back. He missed nearly a month with a groin injury and appeared in Orlando’s previous three games.
The Knicks beat the Toronto Raptors 117-101 on Wednesday in a game that saw 10 lead changes until the start of the second quarter, before New York took the lead for good. He led by no less than 24 points, thus winning his fourth consecutive victory. A notable reason for the Knicks’ recent strong performance? Inserting guard Josh Hart into the starting lineup – New York is 8-1 with Hart in the starting five.
Notably, Bane was fined $35,000 by the NBA for shooting a basketball at New York’s OG Anunoby in an unsportsmanlike manner when the teams met on December 7. The two were able to laugh about it on the field after the match.
Oklahoma City is the only team in this quartet with previous experience in Las Vegas. The Thunder reached the NBA Cup Finals last season, losing to the Milwaukee Bucks. However, Oklahoma City comes to Sin City as the defending NBA champions and in the midst of a historic run.
The Thunder are 24-1, tying the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors for the best 25-game start in NBA history, and have won a franchise-record 16 straight games. They beat the Phoenix Suns 138-89 in the quarterfinals, the largest margin of victory in any NBA Cup game since the format was implemented in 2023-24.
San Antonio has yet to face the league’s leading team, but is coming off a big 132-119 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in the quarterfinals. Missing Victor Wembanyama due to a calf injury, guard Stephon Castle dropped 30 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists in the victory. Wembanyama has not played since November 14, but is expected to play on Saturday.
Who will land a spot in the NBA Cup finals? Follow the best moments, highlights and reactions from the semi-finals.
