The 2025 NBA Cup odds are topped by the defending NBA champions, Oklahoma City. But as last season showed, the best teams in the league don’t always win, as OKC lost to Milwaukee in the final. Most franchises prioritize player load so early in the season, which opens the door to surprising results in a single-game elimination format.
Let’s dig into the 2025 NBA Cup winner odds and examine the favorites, contenders, and sleepers before I share my predictions for the eventual winner!
2025 NBA Cup Winner Odds
| TEAM | ODDS |
|---|---|
| Oklahoma City Thunder | -250 |
| New York Knicks | +450 |
| Orlando Magic | +900 |
| San Antonio Spurs | +900 |
The Oklahoma City Thunder (-250) are lapping the field at NBA betting sites in the NBA Cup odds! OKC has an implied win probability of 71.4% after blowing out the Phoenix Suns in the quarterfinals. The 24-1 Thunder are head and shoulders above the competition, and they seem unbeatable. They were -105 going into the quarterfinal, but are even bigger favorites now!
The New York Knicks (+450) are next with an 18.2% implied probability, while Orlando (+900) and San Antonio (+900) slot in at 10%. At this point, it might be easier if the Knicks, Magic, and Spurs put a team together to try to beat the Thunder!
You can find the 2025 NBA Cup odds at Lucky Rebel by heading to Sports > Basketball > NBA Futures > In-Season Tournament Cup.
NBA Cup Tournament Rules and Format
The 2025 NBA In-Season Tournament rules are straightforward and easy to follow through the two stages. It’s important to note that wins and losses will count toward the team’s regular-season records, except in the NBA In-Season Tournament Championship.
Group Play Rules
Six groups of five teams will make up the Group Play stage. Each team’s NBA In-Season Tournament matchups will consist of four games against each team in the group, with two games at home and two on the road.
A total of eight teams will advance from the Group Stage to the Knockout Rounds. The team with the best record in each group will automatically advance to the next round. Additionally, a wild card from each conference will receive an invitation to the Knockout Rounds.
Wild card teams consist of two clubs that didn’t win their group, but finished with the best record in the Group Play phase. The NBA has set out rules for tiebreakers among teams with the same records:
- Point differential
- Total points scored
- Regular-season record from the 2024-2025 season
- Random drawing
Point differential is the first means of breaking up a tie. Suppose the point differential is the same between teams. In that case, total points, the 2024-25 regular-season record, and a random drawing will be used in the unlikely scenario that there isn’t a resolution based on the first three criteria.
Knockout Rounds Rules
The Knockout Round games are a single-elimination game format in the Quarterfinals and Semifinals. In each conference, the Quarterfinal games will be hosted by two teams with the best records from the Group Play stage.
NBA Cup Tournament Prize Pool
The tournament prize pool will be distributed to players on teams who participated in the Knockout Rounds. Players on teams that advance the furthest will be allocated more of the prize pool.
Following the NBA In-Season Tournament Championship, the NBA Cup will be awarded to the winning team. Additionally, an MVP and All-Tournament Team will be announced by the NBA.
2025 NBA Cup Schedule
On Friday, October 31, the 2025 NBA Cup tipped off with the Group Play stage. The third NBA Cup will be awarded to a team in the NBA In-Season Tournament Championship on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, in Las Vegas.
The 2025 NBA In-Season Tournament includes two stages and a championship game. All 30 teams are eligible to participate in the opening Group Play. Let’s take a brief look at the NBA midseason tournament schedule:
Group Play
Each team in the NBA In-Season Tournament will play five Group Play games on designated “Cup Nights” on Fridays from October 21 to November 28. There will additional “Cup Nights” on Tuesday November 25, and Wednesday, November 26.
Knockout Rounds
The Quarterfinals are scheduled for December 9-10. On December 13, the Semifinals will be played in Las Vegas.
Championship
On Tuesday, December 16, the final two teams will compete for the NBA Cup in Las Vegas.
Favorites in the NBA Cup 2025
Let’s examine the NBA in-season tournament winner odds for the overwhelming favorites.
Oklahoma City Thunder (-250)
The Thunder made short work of Phoenix in the quarterfinals, routing the Suns 138-89 on Wednesday night. OKC was up 38-23 after the first quarter, and won every quarter by 11 points or more. It was a truly dominant performance in which the Suns never had a chance.
Starts with the standard, grows with respect 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/zKw9Hm9cah
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 11, 2025
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 28 points and eight assists, while shooting 11-of-15 from the field, as the Thunder shot 59% as a team. They also hit 55% of their three-point attempts. But the OKC defense was the star of the show, holding the Suns to 39% shooting, and 32% from the three-point line.
Chet Holmgren added three blocks to his 24 points, and the Thunder’s defensive rating is 7.4 points better than second-place Houston! They’ll now face San Antonio in the semifinals on Saturday.
The Thunder can get points from anywhere and when they lock in on defense, good luck scoring on them. OKC’s NBA In-Season Tournament odds of -250 might actually be a bargain right now, that’s how much better they are than everyone else! They’re also ahead of the pack in the NBA championship odds, and winning both the Cup and title this season is absolutely in play.
The NBA Cup Betting Contenders
The Thunder are considerable favorites in the NBA In-Season Tournament odds. One team is looking to meet them in the championship game on Tuesday, December 16.
New York Knicks (+450)
The Knicks booked their spot in the semifinals with a 117-101 win on the road in Toronto. Jalen Brunson led the way with 35 points, and he hit six of his nine three-pointers. But the Knicks’ defense played one of their best games of the season, holding the Raptors to 43% from the field, and 29% from beyond the arc.
our defense was LOCK DOWN in the second quarter 🔒🚫 pic.twitter.com/5U7IkPPxul
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) December 10, 2025
The New York defense has improved in the three games since OG Anunoby has returned from a hamstring injury. He is their best defender, and Anunoby is needed, as Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns don’t do much on that end of the floor.
The Knicks advance to face Orlando, who they beat 106-100 on December 7, and they’re now 2-1 against the Magic this season. If the Knicks’ defense plays like they did against the Raptors, New York has a great shot to make it to the championship game next Tuesday! The NBA Cup odds should favor the Knicks here.
The Sleepers in the 2025 NBA Cup Odds
Next, let’s go down the board and see if we can find more betting value in the NBA Cup odds!
Orlando Magic (+900)
The Magic defeated their state rivals from Miami, 117-108, behind another big game from Desmond Bane. The former Memphis forward had 37 points, and he shot 6-of-9 from three-point land. The Orlando defense was also stellar, holding the Heat to 8-of-33 in their long-range shooting attempts.
WAGIC WIN
SEMI FINAL BOUND pic.twitter.com/PIKDGk4NmR
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) December 10, 2025
Orlando requires Bane to continue his recent form, as Franz Wagner will be out for at least 2-4 weeks with a high ankle sprain. The Magic just got Paolo Banchero back from injury, and they just can’t seem to get their entire team together at one time.
The Magic are fifth in defensive rating, and they’ll need a strong defensive effort to overcome the 2025 NBA Cup odds against the Knicks. Their price of +900 sounds about right, because even if they beat the Knicks, I don’t think they beat either OKC or San Antonio.
San Antonio Spurs (+900)
The Spurs lit up the Los Angeles Lakers in a 132-119 quarterfinal win, shooting 50% from the field and 45% from three-point land. Reigning Rookie of the Year, Stephon Castle was brilliant, pouring in 30 points on 10-of-14 shooting, adding ten rebounds, and six assists. The Spurs also outrebounded the Lakers 50-43.
✍🏽 Love everything about you, Young King. Keep going up! Strive for Greatness – 👑@StephonCastle x @KingJames pic.twitter.com/R2u1KUib54
— NBA (@NBA) December 11, 2025
San Antonio has stayed afloat with Victor Wembanyama on the sidelines, but there are reports that he could be back for Saturday’s semifinal against Oklahoma City. The Spurs require all hands on deck to compete with the Thunder, but “Wemby” could be a little rusty after being out for four weeks.
The Spurs will almost certainly be underdogs against the Thunder in Las Vegas. San Antonio is 9-3 without Wembanyama, but obviously, they’re a better team with him. They should be able to give the Thunder a challenge this weekend!
2025 NBA Cup Winner Prediction and Betting Pick
I had picked the Lakers, but their defense was porous against the Spurs. But I’m not picking against the Oklahoma City Thunder again, even at -250! I thought the Lakers’ offense would have a shot against the OKC defense. While San Antonio is also good offensively, I don’t know if they have the horses to overwhelm the Thunder.
As I said before, -250 feels like a bargain for the Thunder. It’s scary how good they are, and Golden State’s 73-win record is in danger if OKC stays healthy for the rest of the season. Let’s take the Oklahoma City Thunder in our 2025 NBA Cup predictions!
Where to Bet on the 2025 NBA Cup?
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