Both times the NBA Cup has been lifted, it has been by one of the legends of the game — LeBron James in 2023 and Giannis Antetokounmpo last year.

The NBA Cup can also tell us something about teams we may want to keep an eye on in May and June. Last December, the Oklahoma City Thunder were playing in the NBA Cup Finals (but had an off night and fell to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks; they were ready for the big stage by the time June rolled around). Two years ago, the Indiana Pacers, an up-and-coming team, reached the NBA Cup Finals, where they lost to the Lakers. However, they used the momentum from that run to reach the Eastern Conference Finals that year, then the NBA Finals this past season.

The NBA Cup schedule has been released , with games starting on Oct. 31 and r

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