NBA Cup 2025 Top Storylines for Semifinals Bracket

The Oklahoma City Thunder are two wins away from holding the NBA title and the NBA Cup.

The Thunder, who lost in the 2024 NBA Cup final, take on the San Antonio Spurs in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

San Antonio has a better shot at OKC with Victor Wembanyama in the lineup. The French big man is expected to make his return from injury for the semifinal showdown.

The first of the two semifinals pits the New York Knicks against the Orlando Magic.

New York is 8-1 in its last nine games and it appears to be the best team capable of slowing down OKC among the other three semifinalists.

Will Knicks Keep Up Winning Run?

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The Knicks are starting to look like the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.

Jalen Brunson and Co. reeled off eight wins in their last nine games, including a Sunday win at home over the Orlando Magic.

New York beat Orlando by six points in that contest behind 30 points from Brunson and 21 from OG Anunoby.

After that game, the Knicks handled the Toronto Raptors on the road in their NBA Cup quarterfinal.

Orlando is coming off a come-from-behind win over the Miami Heat after a rough start. It won't be at full strength with Franz Wagner, who got hurt on Sunday in New York, listed out.

The Paolo Banchero-Magic can still compete with the Knicks, but New York has more players capable of breaking open leads and finishing games.

The New York-Orlando semifinal should be the closer of the two games, but New York in its current form should win.

Will San Antonio Have An Answer for OKC with Wemby In Lineup?

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The Spurs obviously have a better chance to contend with the Thunder with their best player on the floor.

Victor Wembanyama hasn't played since November 14. He needs to shake off the rust fast so that the Spurs don't fall behind too quick against the NBA's best team.

OKC will probably win the game, but it might not win in runaway fashion, like it did on Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns, if Wembanyama is effective on both ends of the floor.

A year ago, Wembanyama had six points and eight rebounds over 27 minutes in his lone matchup with the Thunder.

OKC could either opt to neutralize Wembanyama, or let the big man score and smother the supporting cast.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is more than capable of matching Wembanyama shot-for-shot, and if the OKC offense scores at a high rate again, it might not matter if the Frenchman is on the floor or not.