The quarterfinals of the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup have been set following Friday's group stage action, with eight teams advancing to play between December 10 and 11. In the East, the Orlando Magic will face the Miami Heat, while the Toronto Raptors take on the New York Knicks. The West features the Oklahoma City Thunder against the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers versus the San Antonio Spurs.
Friday's results finalized the NBA Cup quarterfinal bracket, highlighting intense group stage finishes across both conferences. In the Eastern Conference, the Orlando Magic secured their spot with a 112-109 win over the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena. Desmond Bane led Orlando with 37 points and eight rebounds, while Cade Cunningham posted a triple-double of 39 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists for Detroit but missed a chance to force overtime. The New York Knicks eliminated the defending champions Milwaukee Bucks 118-109 at Madison Square Garden, powered by Jalen Brunson's 37 points and Josh Hart's 19 points and 15 rebounds. Giannis Antetokounmpo returned from injury to record 30 points, 15 rebounds, and eight assists, but the Bucks lost the rebounding battle 55-40. The Miami Heat advanced without playing, thanks to tiebreakers.
In the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder topped the Phoenix Suns 123-119 at Paycom Center to finish 4-0 in pool play and claim the top seed. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 37 points for the Thunder, who sit at 19-1 overall. Phoenix qualified as the wild card despite the loss, setting up a rematch on December 10. The San Antonio Spurs pulled off a 139-136 upset over the Denver Nuggets without Victor Wembanyama or Stephon Castle. Devin Vassell dropped 35 points on 7-of-9 from three, Julian Champagnie added 25 points and 10 rebounds, and De'Aaron Fox contributed 15 points and 12 assists. Jamal Murray led Denver with 37 points, and Nikola Jokic nearly triple-doubled with 21 points, nine rebounds, and 10 assists. The Los Angeles Lakers, on a six-game winning streak at 14-4, beat the Dallas Mavericks 129-119 to advance, facing the 13-5 Spurs on December 10 at Crypto.com Arena.
All quarterfinals will air exclusively on Amazon Prime, with winners heading to Las Vegas for the final four. Teams eliminated from the Cup, like the Portland Trail Blazers (lost 115-102 to Spurs) and Sacramento Kings, received added regular-season games to complete their 82-game schedules.