Spurs vs. Knicks: NBA Cup Preview

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Wembanyama dominated by Curry, provoked by Green: “If someone speaks to you in a certain way…”

Video credit: Eurosport

“If we win, I will instead have a sober celebration, like the Bucks last year. It’s only the middle of the season, we have to stay humble. As we would not celebrate a series of play-offs won, we will not pop the champagne in the event of a victory.“In a response at a press conference on Monday, Victor Wembanyama summed up the general feeling around the NBA Cup. Little, if at all, prestigious, the latter is not a sporting objective for anyone and its carrot is only financial.

If you are wondering why the league wanted to establish this tournament at the heart of its season, there are three reasons. First of all, the infernal length of it and its 82 team matches, the interest of which is inevitably diluted by their number. The desire to bring in a little more money then by selling key matches (from the quarter-finals) to broadcasters or sponsors. The vain hope, finally, of competing with the all-powerful NFL at a time of year when the calendars of the two leagues overlap… with the approach of the Playoffs for one (the NFL) and a real low point for the other (the NBA).

Normal matches but made up

In terms of viewer interest, the NBA communicated this year about a huge increase in audiences for the group stage (+90%) without us really knowing how to explain this phenomenon, these matches very closely resembling regular season duels of which they are also a part. But on the player side, interest remains limited, if not non-existent. No doubt the NBA Cup, from the quarter-finals onwards, is a kind of breath of fresh air with knockout matches but no team makes this tournament a goal, not even those who have no chance of winning the NBA title. That’s saying something.

Still young, the NBA Cup can always hope that over time its prestige will increase, but it will come from the players and nothing else. As long as the latter consider it for what it is at 95%, that is to say regular season matches (only the final does not count in the results of the teams concerned) somewhat disguised, it will remain a very small trophy that few franchises or players want to celebrate. What would an NBA Cup winner’s banner look like next to the Lakers’ 17 titles on the ceiling of the Crypto.com Arena ?

A nice financial bonus for players

Basically, and the league understood this from the start by seeking out the players in the portfolio, this competition is only worth the nice bonus it offers. If Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs win the trophy next night, each player will take home $530,933. A straw or almost for De’Aaron Fox and his 37 million this season and even more for Karl-Anthony Towns and his 53 million. On the other hand, this $530,000 represents almost 25% of the annual salary of Knicks player Tyler Kolek.

It is in particular for him that his teammates will fight next night in Las Vegas, as Antetokounmpo did last year in the final against OKC. “We say that we play for the young guys in the squad because this money will mean a lot to them“, explained the Greek. In short, the NBA Cup has no sporting value and its reason for existence lies in the money it generates, as much for (small) players as for the NBA.

Sofia Reyes

Sofia Reyes covers basketball and baseball for Archysport, specializing in statistical analysis and player development stories. With a background in sports data science, Sofia translates advanced metrics into compelling narratives that both casual fans and analytics enthusiasts can appreciate. She covers the NBA, WNBA, MLB, and international basketball competitions, with a particular focus on emerging talent and how front offices build winning rosters through data-driven decisions.

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