NBA Cup Bracket Locked: Thunder, Knicks, Spurs

The eight NBA Cup quarterfinalists are set: Knicks, Magic, Thunder and Spurs won their groups, with the Suns and Heat advancing as the best second-place teams to complete the eight-team knockout bracket. Quarterfinals are Dec. 9–10, semifinals Dec. 13 and the championship is Dec. 16 in Las Vegas. Orlando earned East No. 1 and will host Miami; Toronto hosts New York; OKC hosts Phoenix; San Antonio visits the Lakers after an upset in Denver. Merlin sees Oklahoma City as the clear favorite — the Thunder are “playing the best basketball of any team in the NBA” — and their form plus last year’s runner-up hunger suit single-elimination stakes. The East is wide open: home-court and New York’s knockout experience could tip close games, and San Antonio’s shock win makes this bracket slippery.