With a 124-113 victory over the San Antonio Spurs this past week, the New York Knicks are your 2025-26 NBA Cup champions. As the confetti rained down from the rafters of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, the city that never sleeps finally had a reason to stay up all night in celebration.
But what does this victory even mean? Does winning the NBA Cup make the Knicks more likely to succeed in the playoffs, or is it a pointless mid-season tournament? While the games count towards the official standings, players (and fans) still aren’t sure how to react to this new NBA tradition.
In order to answer these questions, we took some time to examine the NBA Cup and its short history in the league. By seeing how past NBA Cup winners performed the rest of the season, we can figure out whether the tournament is a true indicator of postseason success or just an early-season storyline created to boost television ratings.
What is the NBA Cup?
In case any of you are still unfamiliar, the NBA Cup is a special tournament that takes place in the early stages of the regular season. Originally called the “In-Season Tournament”, it was introduced in the summer of 2023 and debuted the following season.
In an effort to emulate European soccer tournaments, the NBA Cup starts with all 30 NBA teams in group play before advancing to single-elimination knockout rounds. Each team gets to play four group stage games, which count towards the NBA Cup and the regular season standings. The winner of each group, plus one wild card team from each conference, moves on to the knockout rounds.
The semi-finals and championship game are played at a neutral site, with Las Vegas having hosted these games over the tournament’s first three years. In addition to the trophy and championship banner, the NBA Cup also offers cash incentives to keep the players motivated. The bonuses begin in the quarterfinals and get bigger as teams progress through the tournament.
Playoff Results for NBA Cup Winners
As a relatively new addition to the NBA calendar, we are working with a very small sample size of winners. There have been just three NBA Cups so far, leaving us with just three champions to evaluate.
Here’s a quick snapshot of all three winners, including the year they won and how they fared in the playoffs later on in the season. These results can help tell us whether an NBA Cup victory is a sign of future playoff success or simply a meaningless mid-season surge.
2023 – Los Angeles Lakers
NBA Cup Result: The Lakers became the first-ever NBA Cup champions, defeating the Indiana Pacers in the final. Led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers gave this new tournament their full attention, guiding Los Angeles to yet another milestone in the franchise’s already-impressive history.
NBA Playoff Result: Despite their NBA Cup championship, the Lakers finished the season as the seven-seed in the Western Conference. While they beat New Orleans in a play-in game to secure their spot in the playoffs, they were quickly bounced by the Denver Nuggets in five games.
2024 – Milwaukee Bucks
MVP: Giannis Antetokounmpo
NBA Cup Result: Milwaukee became the next team to win the NBA Cup, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder in the championship game. Leaning heavily on Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, the Bucks dominated the competition to go a perfect 7-0 in tournament play and take home the trophy.
NBA Playoff Result: After winning the NBA Cup, Milwaukee finished the regular season as the five-seed in the Eastern Conference. Once again, the tournament champions had an early exit from the NBA playoffs, as the Indiana Pacers needed just five games to end the Bucks’ season.
2025 – New York Knicks
MVP: Jalen Brunson
NBA Cup Result: The Knicks just became the most recent team to be crowned NBA Cup champions after pulling off a comeback win over Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in the final. It was a team effort from New York, getting major contributions from Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson and others.
NBA Playoff Result: It’s still too early to tell how the Knicks will fare in this year’s playoffs, but we’re already seeing New York as one of the top contenders to win it all this season following their NBA Cup success. We still have a long way to go before the postseason tips off, but the Knicks are currently sitting comfortably atop the Atlantic Division and have the fourth-best record in the NBA.
Final Verdict: Does Winning the NBA Cup Matter?
With such a brief history, it’s hard to say with absolute certainty whether winning the NBA Cup is a true indicator of future playoff success. Having said that, the first two NBA Cup champions (Lakers, Bucks) suffered disappointing first-round playoff exits.
While the Knicks’ full story has yet to be written this season, all eyes are on New York to see if they can break this recent trend. They appear to have all the makings of a championship roster, but perhaps their NBA Cup success was a sign that the team has peaked too early. Only time will tell, but the Knicks playoff run later this season should go a long way in telling us whether winning the NBA Cup is a blessing or a curse.