The NBA In-Season Tournament has a new name as it enters its second year of operations, as the Emirates NBA Cup will now determine the league's midseason champion. Adam Silver and the NBA saw huge success with the instillation of this in-season tournament last year, and even more attention is expected to be cast on the competition during the 2024-25 season. This is especially true after the league announced the full schedule of the 2024 NBA Cup, highlighted by the West Group C, a group that is filled with five teams that could all see deep postseason runs.
When the schedule for the 2024 NBA Cup group stage was announced on Tuesday, everyone quickly circled every matchup to be played in West Group C, which many are beginning to refer to as the “group of death.” At the top, the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks seem like the obvious choices to win the group due to the fact that they are the last two teams to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals.
Then there are the Golden State Warriors and the New Orleans Pelicans, two teams that hold lofty playoff expectations. If you don't recall, the Pelicans made it to the semifinals of the very first in-season tournament last season before falling victim to the Los Angeles Lakers, who went on to win the entire tournament. The Memphis Grizzlies, who were decimated by injuries over the course of the 2023-24 season, are the final team in West Group C.
Do not let the Grizzlies' 27-55 record from a season ago fool you, as Ja Morant, Marcus Smart, Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr., and others will be fully healthy for the start of the new season in October. There is a strong chance that Memphis has the best bounce-back year out of any team in the league.
Five teams with high postseason expectations create what will be the most entertaining group to keep an eye on during the NBA Cup. This is a group of heavyweights, and what happens during the 20 games these five teams play will give a glimpse as to what we should expect to see come time for the playoffs.
How West Group C will impact playoff picture during NBA Cup
The 82-game schedule the NBA has offers plenty of opportunity for teams to move up and down the standings. Although we tend to see teams turn things on in the final few weeks of the season, games early on matter in terms of tiebreakers.
Last season alone, the Western Conference saw a few teams finish with the same record, as well as finish within a game of one another. The top three spots in the conference were decided by a single game, as were many of the play-in tournament spots.
The fact of the matter is that the West isn't going to be getting any easier this season, as it appears as if the Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, and San Antonio Spurs don't fully seem to be in the early playoff picture. However, the other 12 teams in the conference have their eyes set on making the playoffs, including all five teams that make up West Group C for the NBA Cup.
Each team will play one game against each other, with these matchups counting as regular season games. While it is hard to predict the result of these contests close to five months out, there are already storylines that follow each team based on how they could perform.
Take the Nuggets, for example, who enter the 2024-25 season after losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the offseason. Denver has now lost both Bruce Brown and KCP, two members of their 2022 championship roster, and is putting a lot of faith in their young core that has been assembled through the draft. If Denver goes 1-3 or 0-4 in their Group C matchups, this will directly impact their chances of earning a spot at the top of the West standings come the end of the year. Not to mention, early losses and failing to meet expectations may result in the Nuggets having to take a long look at the trade market.
The Mavericks, fresh off their run to the NBA Finals, will enter NBA Cup group play with their matchup against the Warriors meaning more than just a game. This will be Klay Thompson's first trip back to The Bay to take on his former team, and it is a moment for the Mavs to really assert themselves over Stephen Curry and Co. On the other side of things, these games represent a chance for the Warriors to regain their footing in the West after missing the playoffs last season.
After going 2-2 in their in-season tournament games a season ago, the Warriors went on to miss the postseason as a result of having to fight as the 10-seed in the play-in tournament. If Golden State had defeated both the Sacramento Kings and Minnesota Timberwolves during group play, then they would've earned the 7-seed and possibly made the playoffs.
A single loss or win can drastically change the entirety of the playoff picture in the Western Conference. That is why these group play games are so important. It is also worth mentioning that all of these games between the five teams in West Group C will have a playoff-like atmosphere to them because of the mini rivalries all of these organizations share.
Of course, everyone always wants to beat the Warriors after the four-title run they have endured since 2015. Now, extra motivation is added to these matchups due to the fact that they are a part of the tournament for the NBA Cup.
The Nuggets, Mavericks, Warriors, Pelicans, and Grizzlies all have a lot on the line in these four games they will play during the group stage. Each outcome will directly influence the West standings at the time, as well as late in the season when each of these five teams is vying for wins to either increase their playoff probability or simply make the playoffs.
Only eight teams will ultimately play postseason basketball in the conference, and all five of these teams believe they have what it takes to get there. Those who come out on top of the group will increase their likelihood of making the playoffs, but those that falter and fail to record wins in West Group C will see their playoff chances drop.
This is the group of death in the NBA Cup. Every outcome from West Group C will impact the standings, which will ultimately decide where teams end up in the playoff picture.
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