What to watch this week in NBA: Cup games, LeBron-Wembanyama and rolling Thunder

Cue those saturated, colorful courts. Embrace the confusion about groups, schedules and what the point of this all is. That’s right, folks — the NBA Cup is getting a sequel.

Despite its immediate novelty and the awkward lack of historical context, last year’s in-season tournament did yield a few interesting moments. The Indiana Pacers introduced their zippy strain of basketball to a national audience and dropped hints of what their eventual Eastern Conference Finals run would look like. Anthony Davis muscled his way to 41 points and 20 rebounds in a win-or-go-home championship game — a game unacknowledged in the standings, and sequestered in the league’s records.

Maybe the NBA Cup will be an institution for generations to come, with its own canon and unique place in basketball culture. Maybe it will be abandoned entirely, collecting dust with other failed experiments like sleeved jerseys and the captains picking All-Star teams. None of it should really matter if you like watching this league — the house fire in Philadelphia aside, these featured matchups should make for agreeable mid-week vibes.

Here’s your viewing guide to the next few days in professional basketball.

Full NBA national TV schedule

For games Nov. 11-17, all times Eastern

* denotes NBA Cup game.

NBA Cup games worth watching

New York Knicks at Philadelphia 76ers

Time: Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: TNT

How it stays close: New York’s perimeter defense looks uncalibrated since trading for Karl-Anthony Towns. The pace remains astonishingly slow. The starting five is scoring but owns a -2.5 point differential and has tumbled to the dregs of effective field goal percentage allowed, per Cleaning the Glass. Joel Embiid could be in for a colossal season debut. With Tyrese Maxey sidelined by a hamstring injury, Philadelphia will need a locked-in Paul George and a providential outburst from some surprise source. Take your pick — maybe Eric Gordon and Kyle Lowry access a time portal, or perhaps Jared McCain forges a signature rookie moment. Kelly Oubre Jr. has two 30-point games as a Sixer.

How it breaks open: Even with their best player coming back, the 2-7 Sixers are an unmitigated mess right now. They needed every second of overtime to beat the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday. George shot 6-for-18 and had four turnovers. Embiid may look rusty after a lengthy knee injury. The Knicks are a work in progress, but tout the offensive firepower to make this uncomfortable.

How it gets flavor: To seal a closeout playoff game in this building last spring, Brunson hit an acrobatic floater, drew a foul…and mugged up toward the Villanova national title banners he helped install. The star point guard will want to show out in Philadelphia, as will fellow alumni Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges. On the other end, pressure continues to vortex around the 76ers. This squad was harboring title aspirations just a few months ago. It employs not one but two All-NBA names with harrowing playoff histories. And the city’s fan base, while massive and loyal, can turn apoplectic quickly. Daryl Morey teams are culverts for trade rumors, and Embiid’s every step will draw hyperfixation until things turn around.

If there was a rivalry trophy, it would be: The Amtrak Trophy

Starting five of players to wear both jerseys (minimum 82 games with each franchise):

• G Maurice Cheeks
• G Dick Barnett
• F Clarence Weatherspoon
• F Tim Thomas
• C Nerlens Noel

Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors

Time: Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET
TV: TNT

How it stays close: This should be a compelling game as long as both sides come prepared. Dallas won the West last season. Golden State is off to a blistering 8-2 start. These are two of the best defenses in the sport right now. Luka Dončić elevates his game against the Warriors, shooting 40.8 percent on 3-pointers in 19 games — a full six points higher than his career mark. Kyrie Irving is getting buckets with ultra-efficiency and has more makes than misses from behind the arc. The Mavericks have a sterling turnover rate so far. Meanwhile, Golden State’s bench has the best net rating, and several rotation guys are capable of swinging momentum — Buddy Hield is averaging 18 points off the second unit, and Jonathan Kuminga scores 14.6 in 24 minutes per game.

How it breaks open: The Mavericks’ 5-5 record belies their talent. They took two losses this weekend by a combined three points, to elite opponents in the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets. But they’re just not on the Warriors’ level through 10 games. Steve Kerr’s group is in the top five in both offensive and defensive rating, blitzing teams from the perimeter despite a relatively humble start from Stephen Curry. They’ll catch the Mavs in the middle of a road trip. Of course, this game can break open in the other direction, too. Dončić and Irving tease transcendence on any given night, and Dallas may get some critical depth back with P.J. Washington (knee) and Dereck Lively II (shoulder) both nearing returns.

How it gets flavor: Full sauce and extra seasoning on this one. It’s Klay Thompson’s first game against the Warriors after a dynastic run across 11 seasons and four NBA championships. And it would’ve been five titles if not for Irving’s deliverance in the 2016 Finals. Irving’s recruiting efforts this summer helped land Thompson in Dallas. Curry should be in prime form against his longtime “Splash Brother” and comes in hot after a 36-point performance against the vaunted Oklahoma City Thunder defense. Of course, the intensity modifier will always be Draymond Green — no one in this league is better at riling up opposing superstars.

If there was a rivalry trophy, it would be: The Rocco Thompson Collar

Buzzer beaters:

• Dallas has one over Golden State — Pat Cummings (1984)
• Golden State has two over Dallas — World B. Free (1982), Jason Richardson (2006)

Los Angeles Lakers at San Antonio Spurs

Time: Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Streaming: Fubo

How it stays close: The young Spurs are hustling. They enter this week tied for the league lead in loose balls recovered and contest more 2-pointers than any other team. They’re also getting value from their new veterans — Chris Paul is still diming at age 39, and Harrison Barnes is shooting 50.7 percent from the field. Devin Vassell made his season debut on Saturday against the Utah Jazz, dropping 21 points on clean 8-for-13 shooting. And Victor Wembanyama certainly has the length and skill to disrupt Anthony Davis in the paint. At the dawn of his second NBA season, the 7-foot-4 sensation already has three games with five 3-pointers and five blocks. Only Raef LaFrentz had more — he did it four times across a 10-year career.

How it breaks open: JJ Redick has the 6-4 Lakers playing sharp, motivated basketball. LeBron James’ 22nd professional season is somehow one of his most efficient. Austin Reaves continues to ascend. And yes, Wembanyama could disrupt Anthony Davis, but no one is actually doing that right now.

How it gets flavor: Paul and James are epochal figures who have permanently changed this sport. We should appreciate every remaining moment of their playing careers. Davis and Wembanyama are mind-scrambling and eye-melting giants. The Spurs’ Cup court is a sleek charcoal design with a gold key and clean baseline. And yes, it sounds a bit clunky, but the Lakers are the defending in-season tournament champions. They will not phone this one in.

If there was a rivalry trophy, it would be: The Derek Fisher Tenth of a Second Spittoon

Best all-time matchup: 2003 Western Conference Semifinals (six games)

• Tim Duncan: 28 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks
• Kobe Bryant: 32.3 points, 5 rebounds and 3.7 assists
• The Lakers’ Robert Horry, a name synonymous with clutch playoff shots, missed the go-ahead jumper at the end of Game 5. He signed with the Spurs the following offseason.

Memphis Grizzlies at Golden State Warriors

Time: Friday, 10 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Streaming: Fubo

How it stays close: Ja Morant’s hip injury is a massive bummer. But Scottie Pippen Jr. looks like the real deal. He’s been a plus-8 or better in five of the Grizzlies’ last six games. Running stats up on a dreadful Washington Wizards team isn’t that cool, but Pippen and his dad became the first father-son duo to record a triple-double since Dolph and Danny Schayes in 1982. Marcus Smart should be back from an ankle injury by Friday. And Jaren Jackson Jr. is playing inspired ball with the highest PER of his seven-year career. Taylor Jenkins’ team shows heart and energy and enters the week with the second-fastest pace in the NBA.

How it breaks open: Well, the Warriors are very much not the Wizards.

How it gets flavor: The gray Chase Center court will be aesthetically pleasing, and a welcome relief after last year’s copper and gold debacle. Kerr and Jenkins went at it from a distance during their 2022 playoff series — which featured three ejections in its first three games, hard fouls to Morant and Gary Payton II, and a series of deleted social media posts. Then there’s the litany of agitations from Green to Jaren Jackson Jr. — the elbow to the face last season, and the game-sealing block in those 2022 playoffs. The Michigan State alumni are friends outside of work but consistently get into it on the floor.

If there was a rivalry trophy, it would be: The Jerry West Bowl

Head-to-head scoring leaders:

• Steph Curry — 46 points vs. Grizzlies in 2021
• Ja Morant — 47 points vs. Warriors in 2022

NBA Cup odds

The Boston Celtics are the favorites to win the NBA Cup, just as they are the current favorite to win the NBA title this season. The Knicks and undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers are getting some love here as well. The Cavs are a trendy pick because of how hot they are right now. Cleveland is only eighth in the NBA title odds, but are third to lift the cup.

Eastern Conference teams are higher in the odds here because the conference is viewed as weaker (somehow only two teams in the East have winning records) and an underdog finalist only has to win one-game as opposed to a seven-game series.

Non-Cup watch: Los Angeles Clippers at Oklahoma City Thunder

Time: Monday, 8 p.m. ET
TV: NBA TV
Streaming: Fubo

How it stays close: The Thunder will be without Chet Holmgren for an extended period after the upstart big man fractured his pelvis Sunday. That’s gutting, no doubt about it. Holmgren is the rim-protecting anchor of the league’s best defense, which is already thin in the paint without Isaiah Hartenstein (hand) and Jaylin Williams (hamstring). Perhaps seeing “at Oklahoma City” on team schedules becomes a bit less daunting. The Clippers have their own injury concerns with the shelved Kawhi Leonard (knee), but they’ve played competitive basketball to a 6-4 record thus far. They enter Monday’s contest fifth in defensive rating and second in defensive rebounding rate. Norman Powell is looking sublime right now, averaging career-bests in points per game, efficiency and field goal percentage. Ivica Zubac is also playing his best ball.

How it breaks open: Setting up half-court offense against this Thunder squad feels like line dancing across a carousel of whirring razors. James Harden is averaging a downright silly 5.2 turnovers per game. Oklahoma City is uniquely equipped to feast here.

Steal ➡️ 👌 pic.twitter.com/R2uZOhI7TU

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 7, 2024

How it gets flavor: Remember when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a Clipper? Remember when Los Angeles attached five first-round picks to get him in OKC?

Other Clippers-Thunder trades:

• The Thunder were the third-team facilitator in the deal that got James Harden from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in November 2023.
• OKC traded Eric Bledsoe to LA on the night of the 2010 NBA Draft. They received a 2012 first-rounder, which ultimately went to the Boston Celtics — who used the pick to select Fab Melo.
• The franchise, then known as the Seattle SuperSonics, dealt Vladimir Radmanović for Chris Wilcox in February 2006.

(Photo by Juan Ocampo / NBAE via Getty Images)