NBA Announces Sacramento Kings, OKC Thunder NBA Cup Group

Someone has to get the defending champion Thunder in their group, and this year it just so happens to be the Kings. The Thunder were the top-seed in the Western Conference last season, and made it to the finals, where they fell 97-81 to the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Thunder are coming off of an NBA title, but given how they work and play so consistently, don't be surprised for them to give their all to claim the In-Season championship as well. Oklahoma City will be a tough matchup, but the rest of the teams present interesting or favorable matchups for Sacramento.

The Timberwolves had another successful playoff run last season and will be the other difficult matchup going into the season. They finished last season in the sixth seed, but had a record of 49-33 (.598).

Knowing how competitive Anthony Edwards is, the Kings should expect him and the Timberwolves to give them a fight during the tournament games.

Phoenix will be an intriguing matchup, as they prepare for a new-look season after trading Kevin Durant and bringing in Jalen Green. They also are in talks to buyout Bradley Beal, and could get more of a roster overhaul as the season begins to approach.

And the Utah Jazz finished last season with a league-worst 17 wins, and have had another starnge offseason that lacks direction and clarity. They haven't made significant moves to improve, but have the fifth overall pick Ace Bailey joining Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler.

The Group Play games will run from the end of October through November, with the bracket games taking place in December.

This will be the third annual NBA Cup, with the Los Angeles Lakers winning the first rendition, and the Bucks taking last year's tournament. The Kings made the brack during the first season, but fell to the New Orleans Pelicans 127-117 in the quarterfinals.

It was one of their oft-discussed six losses to the Pelicans in the 2023-24 season.

The Kings don't have high expectations coming into the season, but they do have continuity on their side, at least as the roster currently stands.

Everything is pointing to the Kings bringing back a similar roster to last season, which should give them an advantage early in the season, compared to teams that made major roster moves.

The Kings players no each other's tendencies and where they like the ball, something they had to learn on the fly after all of the trades last season.

At the end of the day, the NBA Cup has little to no effect on the season, but it does generate some buzz early on in the season. For a Kings team that has many fans feeling frustrated with where the team is at, and after two straight play-in losses, and run at the tournament championship would at least be a fun storyline for the first half of the season.