By Tim Bontemps | ESPN, 2025-12-15 20:00:00
周六，在拉斯维加斯的T-Mobile球馆，当纽约尼克斯队与奥兰多魔术队为两场阿联酋航空NBA杯半决赛中的第一场跳球开赛时，场馆内仍有大量空座，尤其是在上层看台。
已进入第三个赛季的NBA杯，在很大程度上实现了总裁亚当·席尔瓦 (Adam Silver) 最初倡导这项季中锦标赛时设定的目标。在赛季初期这个传统上由大学橄榄球和NFL主导体育日历的时期，它成功地提升了NBA的关注度。球员们也十分投入，即便仅仅是为了冠军球队成员能够赢取超过50万美元的奖金。
然而，锦标赛决出冠军的最后阶段，现场氛围却始终未能达到预期。这在一定程度上解释了为何联盟在九月份宣布，2025年将是最后一届在中立场地举办半决赛的NBA杯——此举承认了现有模式未能营造出联盟所期望的活力与激情。
而且，NBA似乎正在考虑另一项变革。据知情人士向ESPN透露，联盟正考虑将总决赛也移出拉斯维加斯。
除了关于锦标赛未来是否落户拉斯维加斯的讨论，在周二晚尼克斯队与圣安东尼奥马刺队的终极对决之前，各方议论纷纷。从奖金的激励作用、对赛程安排的持续不满，到淘汰赛阶段日益成为联盟年轻天赋展示自我的舞台，以下是球员和教练们对第三届NBA杯的看法。
半决赛改制，众望所归
如果杯赛半决赛的场馆变更从本赛季就开始实施，那么比赛本应在奥兰多和俄克拉荷马城举行，因为魔术队和雷霆队分别是以东、西部头号种子的身份进入淘汰赛阶段的。然而，这两支球队周六都在拉斯维加斯输掉了比赛。
不出所料，本可以从这一变化中受益的两位教练——魔术队主教练贾马尔·莫斯利 (Jamahl Mosley) 和雷霆队主教练马克·戴格诺特 (Mark Daigneault)——都对这一举措表示赞同。
“哦，当然了，” 莫斯利在周六比赛前被问及这一变化时笑着说。“谁不想要主场优势呢？”
“我认为这和季后赛类似。你通过努力赢得了更高种子的排位……我认为这非常重要。”
周六的对决很可能在2026年的季后赛中重演。过去几个赛季，奥兰多魔术与纽约尼克斯之间不乏火药味十足的比赛，两队之间正形成一种新生的宿敌关系。与此同时，雷霆和马刺之间也有着丰富的交锋史，他们在2012年、2014年和2016年的季后赛中都曾相遇。年轻的明星大个子维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 和切特·霍姆格伦 (Chet Holmgren) 也已多次交手，他们的对决始于四年多前的FIBA U-19世界青年篮球锦标赛决赛。
试想一下这样的场景：因小腿拉伤缺席了此前12场比赛的文班亚马，在俄克拉荷马城那如同大熔炉般激烈的氛围中复出，而雷霆队正力图延续他们创纪录的赛季开局？又或者，魔术队获得一个额外的主场比赛，对阵一支他们可能在东部季后赛后期再次遭遇的尼克斯队？
“这是[联盟]做出的一项很好的改变，而且也为[球队]提供了进一步的激励，”戴格诺特说。“他们希望这些杯赛的级别能得到提升。显然，现金奖励做到了这一点。品牌包装的差异化也起到了作用。比赛在电视上播出，被安排在特定的夜晚进行。他们在这方面做得很好。”
“但我认为，如果你有可能因此多获得一个主场比赛，这无疑会成为让你在那些比赛中全力争胜的更强动力。”
金钱，依然是核心驱动力
过去几天里，很多讨论都围绕着每位球员的现金奖励，以及他们会如何处理球队赢得的奖金。
“杰林·威廉姆斯 (Jaylin Williams) 每天都会提醒我们确切的奖金额度。”雷霆队前锋杰伦·威廉姆斯 (Jalen Williams) 在周五表示，一天后，雷霆在一场惊心动魄的半决赛中输给了马刺队。
“五十万美元是一大笔钱，不管你挣得像我这么多还是其他情况，你懂我的意思。这笔钱足以让你充满动力、拼尽全力。”
在圣安东尼奥马刺队战胜丹佛掘金队、锁定淘汰赛席位后，马刺队前锋凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 说：“为了50万美元，我愿意打背靠背靠背的比赛。我愿意为它赴汤蹈火。”
球员们的一大主要动力，是为那些签着双向合同的队友或阵容末端的年轻球员争取一笔足以改变人生的奖金。
“我们不常谈论这笔钱（对双向合同球员）的价值，但它确实意义非凡，”独行侠后卫丹吉洛·拉塞尔 (D’Angelo Russell) 说。“很多并不真正需要这笔钱的球员，知道那些队友也能分一杯羹后，也备受鼓舞。”
这在过去几年里已成为一种普遍心声。两年前的勒布朗·詹姆斯 (LeBron James) 和安东尼·戴维斯 (Anthony Davis)，以及去年的达米安·利拉德 (Damian Lillard)，都曾公开表示很高兴能为那些阵容末端的球员争取到更多奖金。
“联盟里很多人挣不到那些当家球星或超级巨星的收入，”太阳队前锋莱恩·邓恩 (Ryan Dunn) 说。“拥有这样的机会，对他们来说意义重大。”
“你想为那些（双向合同）球员赢得比赛。”
赛程安排：争议依旧，现状难改
本月，由于联盟试图将杯赛融入NBA赛季的早期阶段，几位球队官员抱怨赛程过于紧凑。
但问题只有一个：数据并不支持这一说法。
截至周日晚的比赛，本赛季共进行了354场比赛——比上赛季同期少4场，比两个赛季前（季中锦标赛创立之前）多2场。
与此同时，七天五赛的密集赛程仍然存在，但总体上，这种情况会比2024-25赛季有所减少。不过，由于过去两周各队为了配合淘汰赛的进行而休战了数日，这些比赛日将不得不在常规赛的某个时间点补上。
对于在拉斯维加斯比赛的球队来说，额外的旅途劳顿是一个更直接的担忧。去年，俄克拉荷马雷霆队在杯赛决赛失利后，紧接着就要开启客场背靠背之旅，先后对阵奥兰多魔术和迈阿密热火。上个月，密尔沃基雄鹿队主教练道格·里弗斯 (Doc Rivers) 描述了赢得2024年NBA杯给他的球队带来的消耗。
“我认为它所获得的关注度是惊人的，”里弗斯说。“然而，我要说，在夺冠之后，冠军球队往往会陷入挣扎。我去年就发现了这一点。这很艰难。”
本赛季，如果魔术队在周六击败尼克斯队，他们将面临长达16天的客场之旅——奥兰多将于周四开启对阵丹佛掘金队的西部四连客。
“把它搬到纽约去吧，”尼克斯队主教练迈克·布朗 (Mike Brown) 笑着说。“我很乐意。让别人也来体验一下飞六个小时是什么感觉。你知道，再说一次，拉斯维加斯很棒。但可以换换地方……”
“最初，我质疑过他们办的杯赛，也质疑过附加赛，结果这两项都非常成功。所以，我真不知道自己在胡说些什么，这事儿还是交给亚当·席尔瓦决定吧。”
杯赛聚光灯：年轻球队的绝佳跳板
上个赛季，当雷霆队抵达拉斯维加斯参加NBA杯半决赛时，他们正处于其历史性冠军赛季的早期阶段。尽管雷霆队在与雄鹿队的决赛中打出了那个赛季最糟糕的比赛之一，但雷霆后卫杰伦·威廉姆斯表示，这次经历帮助这支年轻的球队为NBA总决赛的耀眼聚光灯做好了准备。
“就是现在这样，接受媒体群访，我得在训练结束后待上好几个小时，”威廉姆斯在周五说。“总决赛期间和季后赛期间的情况就是这样。这让我们对未来有了很好的预演。”
“最重要的是如何明智地利用我的时间，知道何时接受治疗，同时还能保持自己的日常节奏。我们有机会练习，有机会利用这次经历。”
也许，杯赛最大的好处是让冉冉升起的新锐球队有机会在更大的舞台上展示自己。
两年前，当印第安纳步行者队接连击败波士顿凯尔特人队和雄鹿队，最终在杯赛决赛中对阵洛杉矶湖人队时，步行者队的明星后卫泰瑞斯·哈利伯顿 (Tyrese Haliburton) 也因此进入了全国观众的视野。步行者队的杯赛经历帮助球队为最终在2025年总决赛打到抢七大战的惊险历程做好了准备。
即便是休斯顿火箭队，尽管去年在杯赛半决赛中输给了雷霆队，但作为一支年轻球队，他们也在季后赛首轮与金州勇士队的七场鏖战之前，提前体验了一把大场面的滋味。
对于像自2010年以来从未赢过一轮季后赛的奥兰多魔术队，以及自2019年以来从未进入季后赛的圣安东尼奥马刺队来说，杯赛提供了一个体验一场定胜负比赛压力的机会。
“能在这个舞台上打球是一次绝佳的机会，”魔术队球星保罗·班凯罗 (Paolo Banchero) 说。“从周围发生的一切你就能感受到。”
对于年轻的马刺队和主教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 而言，通往NBA杯决赛的道路是这支队伍迄今为止面临的最大挑战。
“我想我们生活中的任何方面，无论是个人还是职业，都可以印证一个道理：通常经验能帮助你增长智慧，”约翰逊说。
“我们正努力一步一个脚印地应对这一切，并且深知其中充满了未知，这不仅是对我们个人，更是对我们整个团队……不要试图把它看得过于复杂，但同时要让它成为一种积极的影响。”
ESPN记者蒂姆·麦克马洪 (Tim MacMahon)、戴夫·麦克梅纳明 (Dave McMenamin) 和 迈克尔·C·莱特 (Michael C. Wright) 对此报道亦有贡献。
由生成式 AI 翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
点击查看原文：NBA Cup 2025: Players, coaches on future of in-season tournament
NBA Cup 2025: Players, coaches on future of in-season tournament
As the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic tipped off the first of two Emirates NBA Cup semifinal games Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, plenty of empty seats – particularly in the upper level – were scattered across the building.
The NBA Cup, which is in its third season, has largely accomplished the objective laid out by commissioner Adam Silver when he first championed the in-season tournament. It has successfully increased the spotlight on the NBA during the early part of the season, when college football and the NFL traditionally dominate the sports calendar. Players have bought in, too, if for no other reason than the more than $500,000 at stake for title-winning players.
What hasn’t caught on is the atmosphere of the tournament’s final stretch to decide a champion. That’s in part why the league announced in September that 2025 would be the final Cup featuring a neutral-site semifinals, a recognition that the approach has lacked the energy and enthusiasm the league had hoped to create.
And it seems the NBA is pondering another change. Sources familiar with the situation told ESPN recently that the league is considering also moving the title game out of Las Vegas.
Beyond the tournament’s future in Las Vegas, there has been plenty of chatter in the lead-up to Tuesday night’s finale between the Knicks and San Antonio Spurs. From the motivation of prize money and continued frustrations over the schedule, to the growing trend of the knockout rounds showcasing the league’s young talent, here is what players and coaches have said about the third installment of the NBA Cup.
The semifinal shift is a welcome one
If the venue changes for the semifinals of the Cup began this season, those matchups would have been held in Orlando and Oklahoma City because the Magic and Thunder entered the knockout stage as the top seeds in the Eastern and Western Conference brackets, respectively. Both teams lost Saturday in Vegas.
Not surprisingly, the two coaches who would’ve benefitted – Magic coach Jamahl Mosley and Thunder coach Mark Daigneault – approved of the move.
“Oh, absolutely,” Mosley said with a smile when asked about the change ahead of Saturday’s game. "Who wouldn’t want to take a home-court advantage?
“I think it’s similar to playoffs. You earn the right to get the higher seed … I think that’s very important.”
Saturday’s matchups could occur again in the 2026 playoffs. Orlando and New York have had some feisty games over the past couple of seasons to create a nascent rivalry between the two franchises. Meanwhile, there is plenty of history between the Thunder and Spurs, who met in the playoffs in 2012, 2014 and 2016. Young star big men Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren have faced off numerous times, a rivalry that began at the FIBA U-19 championship game more than four years ago.
Imagine a scenario where Wembanyama, who had missed the previous 12 games because of a calf strain, returned inside a cauldron of intensity in Oklahoma City as the Thunder looked to continue their record-setting start? Or if the Magic got an extra home game to play a Knicks team it could face again late in the East playoffs?
“It’s a good change by [the league], and it’s further incentive [for teams],” Daigneault said. "They want these Cup games to be elevated. Obviously, the cash prize does that. The difference of branding or whatever does that. They are on TV. They are isolated to certain nights. They have done a nice job there.
“But I think it’s further incentive to really go after those games if you can potentially get an extra home game out of it, for sure.”
Money remains a motivating factor
Plenty of discussion over the past few days centered on the cash prize for every player, and what they would do with the money their team won.
“[Jaylin Williams] reminds us the exact dollar amount every single day.” Thunder forward Jalen Williams said Friday, one day before OKC lost to the Spurs in a thrilling semifinal game.
“Half a million dollars is a lot of money, regardless if you make what I make or whatever the case may be, you know what I mean. That’s enough money to get you going and play hard.”
After San Antonio clinched a spot in the knockout round of the tournament with a win over the Denver Nuggets, Spurs forward Keldon Johnson said, “for $500,000, I’d play in a back-to-back-to-back. I’ll run through a wall.”
One major motivator among players is giving teammates on two-way contracts or young guys at the end of the roster a chance at life-changing money.
“We don’t speak on the value of it [to the two-way players] as much as what it really is,” Mavericks guard D’Angelo Russell said. “A lot of guys that didn’t really need it [were motivated] knowing that those guys get an extra piece of the cake.”
That has been a common refrain over the past couple of years, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis two years ago and then Damian Lillard last year openly talking about their happiness at getting those end-of-roster players more money.
“A lot of people in the league don’t make the funds of all the franchise players, the superstars,” Suns forward Ryan Dunn said. “Having that chance, having that opportunity is big for them.”
“You want to win for those [two-way] guys.”
The schedule – and frustrations regarding it – aren’t changing
This month, several team officials complained about the condensed schedule as the league tried to fit Cup games into the early part of the NBA calendar.
There’s only one problem: The data doesn’t back it up.
Through Sunday night’s action, there had been 354 games played this season – four fewer games from the same point last season and two more than two seasons, before the addition of the in-season tournament.
Meanwhile, stretches of five games in seven days remain from past seasons, and overall, they will be down from 2024-25. But with teams having several days off over the past two weeks to accommodate for the knockout rounds to play out, those dates will have to be made up at some point during the regular season.
The added travel was a more immediate concern to the teams playing in Las Vegas. Last year, it was Oklahoma City going from its Cup title game defeat to a road back-to-back set against Orlando and the Miami Heat. Last month, Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers described the toll winning the 2024 NBA Cup took on his team.
“I think the attention that it gets has been amazing,” Rivers said. “Now, I will say, on the back end of it, the team that has won it has struggled coming out. I found that out last year. It’s hard.”
This season, the Magic would have faced a 16-day road trip if they had beaten the Knicks on Saturday – Orlando starts a four-game western road trip Thursday against the Denver Nuggets.
“Move it to New York,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said with a smile. "I’d like that. Let somebody else fly that way for six hours or whatever it was. You know, again, Vegas is great. But to move it around. …
“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, so I’m going to leave it up to Adam [Silver].”
The Cup spotlight remains a springboard
Last season, the Thunder were in the early stages of their historic championship season when they arrived in Las Vegas for the NBA Cup semifinals. And though the Thunder played one of their worst games of that season in the title matchup against the Bucks, OKC guard Jalen Williams said the experience helped prepare the young team for the bright lights of the NBA Finals.
“This right now, like doing the media scrum, I’m going to stay here hours after practice,” Williams said Friday. "Just that kind of stuff was what happened in the Finals. That’s what happened during the playoffs. It gave us a good gauge of what to expect.
“The biggest thing is how to use my time wisely, to know when to get treatment and still stay in a routine. We get to practice it, we get to utilize this.”
Perhaps the biggest benefit of the Cup has been allowing up-and-coming teams to showcase themselves on a bigger stage.
Two years ago, when the Indiana Pacers beat the Boston Celtics and the Bucks en route to the Cup championship game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton emerged into the national spotlight. Indiana’s Cup experience helped the team prepare for what eventually became a thrilling run to Game 7 of the 2025 Finals.
Even the Houston Rockets, despite losing to the Thunder in the Cup semifinals last year, were a young team that got a taste of a big stage ahead of their seven-game slugfest against the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
For teams like Orlando, which hasn’t won a playoff series since 2010, and San Antonio, which hasn’t made the playoffs since 2019, the Cup presents an opportunity to experience the pressure of a one-game scenario.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity to play on this stage,” Magic star Paolo Banchero said. “You can just tell by all the stuff going on.”
For the young Spurs and coach Mitch Johnson, the road to the NBA Cup title game represents the biggest challenge the group has faced.
“I think we can all go to any part of our lives, personally, professionally, where usually experience helps you gain some wisdom,” Johnson said.
“We’re kind of just trying to take all this day by day and know it’s a lot of unknown, for a lot of us, not only individually but most of us as a group. … Don’t try to make it more than that, but also allow it to be a positive influence.”
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Dave McMenamin and Michael C. Wright contributed to this report.
By Tim Bontemps | ESPN, via ESPN