The Miami Heat court for all NBA Cup games at Kaseya Center during the 2025-26 season.
The Miami Heat have become play-in tournament experts, qualifying for the playoffs in each of the last three seasons through the NBA’s relatively new play-in tourney. But the Heat has yet to find positive results in the league’s in-season tournament.
After failing to make it past the group stage of the NBA’s first two in-season tournaments, the Heat hopes the third time is the charm this season.
The Heat will open this season’s in-season tournament — known as the NBA Cup — with the first of four group-play games Friday night against the Charlotte Hornets on its new in-season tournament court at Kaseya Center.
The Heat’s other three group-play games come on Nov. 14 against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, Nov. 21 against the Chicago Bulls at United Center and Nov. 26 against the Milwaukee Bucks at Kaseya Center.
Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins (22) drives the ball as Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel (7) defends in the second half of their NBA game at Kaseya Center on Oct. 28, 2025, in Miami. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com
With the NBA’s 30 teams randomly drawn into six groups of five within their conference based on win-loss records from the 2024-25 regular season, the winner of each of the six groups and two wild cards (the team from each conference with the best record in group play that finished second in its group) — a total of eight teams — will advance to the knockout single-elimination rounds of the NBA Cup.
Despite the recently added wrinkle of the in-season tourney, every team continues to play 82 regular-season games. That’s because every game in the NBA’s in-season tournament will count toward regular-season stats and standings, except the championship game.
The 22 teams not advancing to the quarterfinals will play two regular-season games on either Dec. 11 of 12 and Dec. 14 or 15 to fill the missing two games in their standard 82-game schedules.
The four teams that lose in the quarterfinals will each play a regular-season game on Dec. 11, 12, 14 or 15 to fill the missing game in their 82-game schedules.
For the four teams that win in the quarterfinals, their 82nd game will come in the semifinals.
And the two teams that advance to the championship game will play an extra game (83rd game) for the in-season tournament title that won’t count toward the regular season.
The quarterfinals will be played in NBA team markets on Dec. 9 and 10. These games will be hosted by the two teams with the best record in group play games from each conference, and the team with the best record in group play from each conference will host the wild card team in their respective conference.
The semifinals and championship game of the event will be played at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Dec. 13 and Dec. 16.
Since two games for each team from Dec. 9 to Dec. 15 will remain up in the air until the group stage of the in-season tournament plays out, only 80 of the 82 regular-season games for each team have been announced.
What’s at stake in the in-season tournament? The NBA Cup trophy and bonus money for the quarterfinalists, semifinalists, runner-up and champion.
Each player on the four teams that lose in the quarterfinals of this year’s in-season tournament will get $53,093, each player on the two teams that lose in the semifinals will get $106,187, each player on the team that loses in the championship will get $212,373 and each player on the team that’s crowned champion of the tourney will get $530,933.
Every in-season tournament game in the knockout rounds (quarterfinals, semifinals and championship rounds) will be streamed exclusively on Amazon Prime.
The winners of the NBA’s first two in-season tournaments were the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023 and Milwaukee Bucks in 2024. Both teams were ousted in the first round of the NBA playoffs during the season they won the NBA Cup.
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