Spurs to play Thunder, Lakers, Suns and Jazz in NBA Emirates Cup

San Antonio’s placement for the second-annual In Season Tournament announced.

The NBA introduced the In-Season Tournament last year to mixed results. Crazy colorful courts and weird schedule changes were a lot to get used to. The final basketball product was an upgrade for some of the “regular season is boring” naysayers. The experiment did enough to get a second edition, rebranded as the NBA Emirates Cup.

Last year the San Antonio Spurs went 0-4 in the tournament’s group stage, with a -58 point differential. That landed them in a tough group for the 2024 NBA Emirates Cup. Today, the Spurs learned they will play the defending In-Season Tournament Champion, the Los Angeles Lakers, along with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz and Phoenix Suns. They are placed in Western Group B, a group that is stacked with playoff talent.

The Thunder bring back their #1 seeded team with the additions of Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. Phoenix has a big three and has upgraded some of their role players. The Lakers are always a threat with Anthony Davis and LeBron James. While San Antonio has improved its roster, they will still face an uphill battle to make the knockout rounds.

To jog your memory, two teams from each group, plus two “wild card” teams (whoever has the best record + point differential out of the remaining teams) make the knockout rounds. Tiebreakers are decided by point differential, making blowouts a killer in group play. The winners of the knockout rounds will meet in the semifinals and the championship held in Las Vegas in December.

Group play will begin on November 12. Last season the group play games were clearly designated with alternative uniforms and crazy courts. It remains to be seen if the NBA will bring that back.

San Antonio will look to improve on their winless performance last season. With an improved roster and Victor Wembanyama in year two, they have a better chance of making a run at the knockout rounds.