New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs meet in the 2025 NBA Cup championship Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (8:30 p.m. ET, Amazon Prime). Knicks beat Magic 132-120, Spurs edged Thunder 111-109 in semis. Winners take $530,933 per player; losers get $212,373.
With both teams at 18-7, the NBA Cup final pits surging Knicks against resilient Spurs. New York has won five straight and nine of 10, powered by Jalen Brunson (40 points in semi, 30+ in four straight) and Karl-Anthony Towns (29 points, 8 rebounds vs. Magic). San Antonio has three in a row, including snapping OKC's 16-game streak; Victor Wembanyama dazzled post-calf injury with 22 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 assists in 20 bench minutes (54% FG).
Knicks injuries: Miles McBride (ankle), Landry Shamet (shoulder). Wembanyama's minutes may stay limited.
Semifinal bonuses were $106,187 per player, as Grizzlies' Desmond Bane celebrated post-fine: "That's huge, man. I just lost $35,000. I gotta go get it back somehow. But I'm excited. Great opportunity for us to play some meaningful basketball early in the season."
Prize jump from 2023's $500K highlights stakes: supplemental for Brunson ($34M+ salary) or Towns ($54M), but ~1/3 year for Ariel Hukporti ($1.96M). Two-way players like Kyle Mangas earn $265K (nearly half their ~$636K contracts). Betting: Knicks -2.5, O/U 231.5. Both top-8 offensively, weaker defensively; past meetings often top 230 points.
