NBA Cup 2024: Latest Standings, Bracket Predictions After November 29 Group Play

Three of the eight NBA Cup quarterfinalists have been determined after three weeks of group-stage games.

The Atlanta Hawks became the surprise winner of East Group C on Friday with a triumph over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Atlanta produced wins over both the Cavs and Boston Celtics to become the first confirmed group winner out of the Eastern Conference.

The other two Eastern Conference groups will be determined by head-to-head matchups of 3-0 teams on Tuesday. The losers of those games will be in the mix for the wild-card spot along with the Celtics.

West Group B is where all the drama is in the Western Conference. A three-way tie was created at the top thanks to the Oklahoma City Thunder's win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

The winner of West Group B will join the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors in the quarterfinals.

The three group winners and one wild-card team from each conference qualify for the quarterfinals.

East Group A

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BROOKLYN, NY - NOVEMBER 29: Franz Wagner #22 of the Orlando Magic celebrates during the game against the Brooklyn Nets during a Emirates NBA Cup game on October 22, 2024 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

1. Orlando (3-0; +60)

2. New York (3-0; +15)

3. Philadelphia (1-2; -9)

4. Brooklyn (1-3; -39)

5. Charlotte (0-3; -27)

The Orlando Magic and New York Knicks will do battle for the East Group A title on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.

Both teams won on Friday to keep their NBA Cup records at 3-0.

Orlando used an emphatic win over the Brooklyn Nets to create the best point differential in the entire Eastern Conference. That will be a good buffer to fall back on in the wild-card race with Boston and the second-place team from East Group B if the Magic loses to New York.

The Knicks struggled to put away the Charlotte Hornets and are now in a more dire situation than the Magic.

New York has the worst point differential between it, the Magic, Milwaukee, Detroit and Boston, The Knicks need to win at home on Tuesday to avoid dropping out of the competition because it will not have the point differential tiebreaker on at least Boston with a loss.

Prediction: 1. New York, 2. Orlando, 3. Philadelphia, 4. Brooklyn, 5. Charlotte

East Group B

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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - NOVEMBER 29: Cade Cunningham #2 of the Detroit Pistons dribbles the ball in the first quarter against the Indiana Pacers of the Emirates NBA Cup game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on November 29, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

1. Milwaukee (3-0; +29)

2. Detroit (3-0; +28)

3. Miami (2-2; +20)

4. Toronto (0-3; -28)

5. Indiana (0-3; -49)

The Milwaukee Bucks and Detroit Pistons will play for the East Group B title on Tuesday.

Detroit padded its point differential on Friday with a double-digit win over the Indiana Pacers.

Detroit owns the third-best point differential among itself, New York, Milwaukee, Orlando and Boston. That's a good starting point in case it loses to the Bucks.

The Pistons can still get in with a loss to the Bucks through a few different routes. The easiest path is a Magic win over the Knicks and a loss of less than five points to the Bucks. That would keep them ahead on point differential compared to the Celtics and Knicks.

Milwaukee needs something similar to happen so that its point differential could get it through with a loss on Tuesday.

The Bucks should be the favorite to win, but the Pistons have the firepower, led by Cade Cunningham, to keep the game close.

Prediction: 1. Milwaukee, 2. Detroit, 3. Miami, 4. Toronto, 5. Indiana

East Group C

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ATLANTA, GA - NOVEMBER 29: Trae Young #11 and Clint Capela #15 of the Atlanta Hawks smile during the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the Emirates NBA Cup game on November 29, 2024 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Adam Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images)

1. Atlanta (3-1; +15)

2. Boston (3-1; +23)

3. Chicago (2-2; +6)

4. Cleveland (1-2; -1)

5. Washington (0-3; -43)

The Hawks claimed East Group C with a stunning win over the Cavs.

Atlanta is easily the most surprising team in the NBA Cup with wins over Cleveland and Boston.

The Hawks will be one of the top three seeds in the quarterfinal round, but they will have to wait for the exact seed until after Tuesday's games.

Boston resides in tough spot now because it has to get through as the wild-card team with the best point differential, which is the first tiebreaker.

The Celtics need a Magic win over the Knicks and a blowout in the Milwaukee-Detroit game. They can advance with a New York win, but Boston would need a 37-point swing between itself and Orlando on point differential.

Prediction: 1. Atlanta, 2. Boston, 3. Cleveland, 4. Chicago, 5. Washington

West Group A

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PORTLAND, OR - NOVEMBER 29: Deni Avdija #8 of the Portland Trail Blazers goes up for the rebound during the game against the Sacramento Kings during the Emirates NBA Cup on November 29, 2024 at the Moda Center Arena in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images)

1. Houston (3-0; +49)

2. Portland (2-1; -5)

3. Minnesota (2-2; -13)

4. Los Angeles Clippers (1-2; -6)

5. Sacramento (0-3; -25)

The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Sacramento Kings on Friday to stay alive for a wild-card berth.

Houston clinched West Group A on Tuesday and it needs to run up the score on the Kings on Tuesday to get the best top-three seed possible.

Portland is still alive for the West wild-card spot, but it must run up the score on the Los Angeles Clippers to beat out the handful of 2-1 teams from the other two Western Conference groups.

Prediction: 1. Houston, 2. Portland, 3. Minnesota, 4. LA Clippers, 5. Sacramento

West Group B

Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 29: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during the game against the Los Angeles Lakersduring a Emirates NBA Cup game on October 22, 2024 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)

1. San Antonio (2-1; +14)

2. Oklahoma City (2-1; +18)

3. Phoenix (2-1; +19)

4. Los Angeles Lakers (2-2; -24)

5. Utah (0-3; -27)

West Group B is the group to watch on Tuesday night.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have the easiest path to a victory against the Utah Jazz, while the San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns play each other.

San Antonio wins the group if it beats Phoenix since it would then have head-to-head wins over the Thunder and Suns.

Oklahoma City captures the group title with a win and a Phoenix victory because it already beat the Suns in group play.

All three of those teams will be rooting for the Memphis Grizzlies to beat the Dallas Mavericks and for Sacramento to upset Portland so that there is a better path to the wild-card spot for the second-place finisher.

OKC is the likeliest group winner, though, since a full-strength Phoenix team should take down the Spurs.

Prediction: 1. OKC, 2. Phoenix, 3. San Antonio, 4. LA Lakers, 5. Utah

West Group C

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MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 29: Ja Morant #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies goes to the basket against the New Orleans Pelicans during the game of an Emirates NBA Cup game at FedExForum on November 29, 2024 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)

1. Golden State (3-0; +12)

2. Dallas (2-1; +41)

3. Denver (1-2; +2)

4. Memphis (1-2; -6)

5. New Orleans (1-3; -49)

The Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks should advance together into the quarterfinals.

Golden State clinched the West Group C crown last week and will play to improve its knockout-round seeding against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday.

Dallas needs to beat Memphis and maintain its edge in point differential over the rest of the wild-card contenders.

The Mavericks have a 22-point edge on Phoenix and are up 23 points on OKC in the point differential tiebreaker.

A big win over Memphis is expected, so we should see Dallas as the fourth West team in the final eight.

Prediction: 1. Golden State, 2. Dallas, 3. Denver, 4. Memphis, 5. New Orleans