NBA Unveils Groups for League’s First-Ever In-Season Tournament

The stage is set for the first-ever tournament, which will be played in November and December.

The NBA is set to debut its first-ever in-season tournament during the 2023–24 campaign. 

On Saturday, the league hosted the 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament Launch, during which they released additional information regarding the details of the competition.

The tournament will consist of all 30 NBA teams, eight of which will advance to the knockout stages and compete for the NBA Cup. In the first stage, known as Group Play, teams will be divided into six groups, three per conference, with division not playing a role in determining the groups. The Group Stage will take place in November, starting on Nov. 3. 

Fans were given an early glimpse at this year’s Group Stages on Saturday, when the NBA revealed the six groups for the tournament. Here’s how the brackets shook out. 

West A: Grizzlies, Suns, Lakers, Jazz, Trail Blazers

West B: Nuggets, Clippers, Pelicans, Mavericks, Rockets

West C: Kings, Warriors, Timberwolves, Thunder, Spurs

East A: 76ers, Cavaliers, Hawks, Pistons, Pacers

East B: Bucks, Knicks, Heat, Wizards, Hornets

East C: Celtics, Nets, Raptors, Bulls, Magic

Which 8 teams will advance out of the group stage? 🤔

The NBA In-Season Tournament starts November 3!

➡️ https://t.co/MC7QUx0Bv9 pic.twitter.com/Bord9D2GCi

— NBA (@NBA) July 9, 2023

The top team from each group and the next best team from each conference will advance to the knockout stages. The knockout stages will be a standard eight-team, single-elimination playoff format, with the championship game set to be held in Las Vegas on Dec. 9.