Year two of the Emirates NBA Cup has concluded with the Milwaukee Bucks winning the trophy.
The event is still in its early stages and will evolve with time.
I agree with Marcus Thompson from The Athletic regarding location. Las Vegas might not be the best venue for this event, but that’s a discussion for a different time.
There still needs to be a connection between teams playing for something and those rebuilding, but for the most part, players care. That would always be the first and most important part of this.
Last season, the Los Angeles Lakers, led by LeBron James, made it a point to coach and play the game as if it was the playoffs. Some NBA detractors laughed when the Lakers raised a banner for the NBA Cup, but it was what the league needed.
This season, the Milwaukee Bucks needed the NBA Cup to chart a course toward expectations. The Bucks started slowly, and the easy target was Doc Rivers, followed by the Dame Lillard deal that some feel hasn’t worked out, even though it’s still way too early to make a judgment.
But there is nothing like a trophy being at stake to get a team that was supposed to challenge the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference to get the blood pumping.
Milwaukee went a perfect 4-0 in Group B (Indiana, Miami, Toronto, and Detroit) before taking out a banged-up Orlando Magic team, the spunky Atlanta Hawks, and a statement win against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
That’s the beauty of the event. It matters to the players and most teams.
The league’s challenge is changing it from “most” teams to “all” teams.
Once that gets fixed, the league can turn to other things like location, but overall, the event is off to a solid start.
