For the Thunder, the Cup is the trophy that got away. The Knicks, Spurs and Magic want it as well

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LAS VEGAS (AP) — All Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did last season was lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to the NBA title, win a scoring crown, claim the league's MVP award and cap it all off by winning NBA Finals MVP.

Only one thing was missing.

Silly as it might sound for a team that went 68-14 in the regular season and won the NBA title and is off to a record-tying 24-1 start this season, the NBA Cup is very much a motivator for the Thunder. They played in the Cup final last year and lost. They're back in Las Vegas for the Cup semifinals this season, knowing the only trophy that got away last year is just two wins away.

“It would be phenomenal,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, whose Thunder are a staggering 88-17, including playoffs, since losing last season’s Cup final to Milwaukee. “Every game I play, we play as a team, we wake up in the morning and before the game starts we want to win the game. ... Whenever you get a chance to play for something and win, it’s always the goal to win. It’s always the same feeling. So it would be phenomenal to win, that’s for sure.”

The semifinals are Saturday: New York vs. Orlando from the Eastern Conference side of the bracket, San Antonio — with Victor Wembanyama back — vs. Oklahoma City on the Western Conference side.

“Their record is that for a reason,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "And until someone knocks them off, obviously they are the champs.”

The winners will play Tuesday in the title game, one that won't count in the season's stats or standings.

“You’ve got to give the NBA credit,” New York coach Mike Brown said. “Everybody naturally fights change or wants to say something against change. I was one of those guys when they came up with the Cup idea, I was like, ‘Oh, man, for what? In the middle of the season? We are trying to do this and that and practice and blah, blah, blah.’ ... Initially I doubted them on the Cup, initially I doubted them on the play-in games, and they are both phenomenal. So, I really don’t know what the hell I’m talking about.”

Brown lauded Commissioner Adam Silver for the innovations like the NBA Cup and the Play-In Tournament, both of which have been widely considered as smashing successes.

The motivator for the play-in games is simple: A spot in the playoffs is on the line. The motivator for Cup games is also simple: There's money up for grabs. The teams that are here have clinched $106,187 in prize money per player (half that amount for two-way players) so far. Semifinal winners see their total pushed to $212,373 and for winning the Cup, the number goes to $530,933. So, no, Tuesday night won't count in the standings, but more than $300,000 per player is at stake.

“When you are playing for something extra like that, you want to go after it,” Orlando forward Paolo Banchero said. “And then I think as far as besides the money, I think it’s just the atmosphere that is created when it’s a Cup game, whether it’s at home or on the road. ... I wouldn’t say it’s a playoff environment, but it’s definitely not a normal regular-season game environment. Stuff is a little elevated. Teams play a little harder.”

It's a small sample size — this is only Year 3 of the Cup event — but teams that have made it to Vegas in the past have insisted that there were tangible, positive benefits. Indiana made it to the final against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023-24 and the Pacers said that fueled that run to the East finals in each of the following two postseasons. And the Thunder said losing to Milwaukee provided valuable lessons on their road to last season's title.

The Spurs haven't been to the NBA Finals since 2014. The Magic, not since 2009. The Knicks, not since 1999. The Cup isn't the finals, but seeds could be planted here to give some sort of glimpse of what that level looks like.

“I think it’s great for our guys ... the bright lights, the stakes,” Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley said. “I think these guys understand what is at stake and the intensity, the focus, the game planning that you have to go through. Those are such great pieces for us to experience.”

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