Last season, Adam Silver introduced the NBA Cup, a tournament-style event that culminated with a championship game in Las Vegas. The format featured three separate groupings in each conference consisting of five teams per group. The league revealed the groupings for the 2024-25 season on Friday with a few major storylines. The Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors are in the same group and their initial cup meeting will also be Klay Thompson's return to the Bay.
The Warriors and Mavericks are in a tough group, West Group C, that also includes the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans. The 2024-25 NBA Cup will starr on Nov. 12 and the championship bracket play will take place on Dec. 14 and Dec. 17.
That initial Warriors and Mavericks matchup will sure draw plenty of attention, with Klay Thompson making his first appearance in the Bay as an opponent. Thompson chose to leave the Warriors this offseason and signed with the Mavericks in free agency. Ultimately, the Mavericks completed a sign-and-trade for Thompson while giving away Josh Green and a pair of second-rounders.
Thompson and the Warriors were unable to reach an agreement on a contract extension throughout the season. With each passing day, it appeared more likely that Thompson's days in a Warriors jersey were numbered. Thompson drew free agent interest from other teams including his hometown Los Angeles Lakers, but he opted to join Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving in their pursuit for a championship.
For the inaugural NBA Cup, the winning team took home a prize of about $500,000 per player. The losing team players each received around $200,000. The Lakers won the 2023-24 NBA Cup defeating the Indiana Pacers in the title game. The Lakers ended up hanging a banner in their arena celebrating their cup win, a decision that drew mixed reactions.
Klay Thompson ready for a fresh start with Mavericks
The Warriors made the decision to break up their championship core when they didn't seem to make re-signing Klay Thompson a priority. Thompson was originally drafted by the Warriors with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. During his time with the Warriors, he became a five-time All-Star and four-time NBA champion.
Thompson suffered back to back major injuries that caused him to miss the entirety of the 2019-20 and the 2020-21 seasons. Thompson returned to the court for the 2021-22 season and helped the Warriors to the 2022 title when they defeated the Boston Celtics in six games.
Thompson has managed to make a strong recovery from his injuries and this past season he played in 77 games, the most since returning to the court in 2021. He averaged 17.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists with splits of 43.2 percent shooting from the field, 38.7 percent shooting from the three-point line and a league-leading 92.7 percent shooting from the three-point line.
Klay Thompson will now be a part of a formidable trio alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. The Mavericks reached the NBA Finals for the third time in franchise history last year and their first since the Dirk Nowitzki era. They were defeated by the Celtics in five games.
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