NBA In-Season Tournament: Everything You Need to Know

The 2025 Emirates NBA Cup, known as the NBA In-Season Tournament, continues a new tradition that began in 2023 to boost fan engagement and increase competition before the All-Star Break.

Purpose and Background

Introduced to make early-season basketball more exciting while other major sports dominate U.S. viewership, the tournament offers high-stakes matchups within the regular season structure.

“New traditions take time. But, all throughout sports, we are seeing new innovations, and now is the time for this NBA In-Season Tournament.” — Commissioner Adam Silver, July 8, 2023

Format and Schedule

The Emirates NBA Cup consists of two stages before the Championship Game:

Group Play Round: A monthlong phase where each team plays four group opponents once — two at home and two away. Group Play takes place mainly on Fridays, known as “Cup Nights.”
Knockout Round: A single-elimination stage composed of Quarterfinals and Semifinals leading to the final game.

Key Dates

Tip-off: Friday, October 31, 2025
End of Group Play: Friday, November 28, 2025
Quarterfinals: Tuesday–Wednesday, December 9–10, 2025
Semifinals: Saturday, December 13, 2025
Championship Game: Tuesday, December 16, 2025

All Group Play matchups count toward the regular season and follow its scheduling model.

Author’s Summary

The 2025 Emirates NBA Cup brings added excitement and structure to early-season basketball, blending tradition with innovation to engage fans before the All-Star Break.

Ticketmaster Blog — 2025-11-08