Thompson, Mavs face Warriors in NBA Cup opener

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — Klay Thompson’s new club, the Dallas Mavericks, will visit his long-time team, the Golden State Warriors, on the opening night of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Cup, the league announced Tuesday.

The second edition of the NBA’s in-season tournament will start on 12 November and conclude on 17 December under the group-stage Cup schedule revealed by the league.

The complete NBA 2024-25 regular-season schedule will be released on Thursday.

Group-stage games, which also count in the league standings, will be played on Tuesdays and Fridays from 12 November to 3 December.

A feature contest on Cup opening night will send reigning Western Conference champion Dallas to San Francisco to face Golden State, with new Mavs guard Thompson, a five-time NBA All-Star, going against the Warriors, the squad with which he won four NBA titles and played for the past 13 seasons.

Also on opening night will be the New York Knicks at the Philadelphia 76ers in a matchup of expected Eastern Conference contenders.

Three days later, the defending Cup champion Los Angeles Lakers, who beat the Indiana Pacers in last year’s final to complete an undefeated title run, will visit French star Victor Wembanyama, last season’s NBA Rookie of the Year, and the San Antonio Spurs.

Indiana and Milwaukee, who met in last year’s Cup semifinals and the first round of last season’s NBA playoffs, will meet on 22 November as well as Dallas and the Denver Nuggets, the past two West champions.

The closing day of group play will feature the Warriors visiting Denver.

All 30 NBA teams were randomly drawn into five-team groups, who will each play four group contests. Four teams from each conference, three group winners and a wild card will advance into knockout rounds.

Quarterfinals will be played 10 to 11 December with the semifinals and final to be played on 14 and 17 December in Las Vegas.