With the Oklahoma City Thunder defeating the Houston Rockets, 117-96, and the Milwaukee Bucks downing the Atlanta Hawks, 110-102, on Saturday, the championship game of the NBA Cup is set for Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 8:30 pm (ABC, ET).
(Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images).
Tuesday’s showdown is a culmination of the round robin games and the eight-team single elimination tournament that began Dec. 10. The semifinals and championship game take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
2024 NBA Cup Championship Game Preview
Matchup: No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks vs No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder
- Location:
T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas)
- Date/Time:
December 17 (8:30 pm ET, ABC)
Milwaukee Bucks (Eastern Conference Group B champs)
- Record:
14-11 (8-2 last 10 games, 3-game winning streak)
- Head-To-Head:
Milwaukee has not played the Thunder in 2024-25.
- Road To Cup Final:
Defeated Dallas Mavericks (Wild Card) 118-104 in quarterfinals, defeated Houston Rockets (Group A champs) 111-96 in semifinals.
When Bucks Have The Ball:
Milwaukee is going to have to put its stars in position to score going up against the league’s best defense in OKC. The Thunder will use a combination of 6-foot-4 Luguentz Dort and 6-foot-5 Alex Caruso on the perimeter and center Isaiah Hartenstein in an attempt to slow Milwaukee star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is playing like the best player in the entire NBA cup and the best in the NBA not named Nikola Jokic. Something has to give because OKC has the No. 1 defense in the NBA, giving up 103.7 ppg while scoring 115.6 through 25 games.
Antetokounmpo is averaging 34.5 ppg in the elimination bracket, including 32 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists in an epic semifinal performance vs. Atlanta that included key defensive and hustle plays from the former NBA MVP. For the season, Antetokounmpo is averaging 32.7 ppg, 11.5 rpg and 6.1 apg while shooting over 61 percent from the field. OKC has an incredible team defensive concept, but it still will take a superlative effort to keep The Greek Freak from hitting his averages and making a big impact on this cup title game.
Free Throw Watch
Antetokounmpo is shooting over 11 shots from the charity stripe per game, which is second in the
NBA. Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers is going to design a few plays to put pressure on the officials to call a shooting foul when Milwaukee’s star forward drives to the cup. Antetokounmpo covers ground with the dribble and drives to the rack better than any player in the league. On the flip side, OKC is more of a finesse club, and gets to the line 19.1 times per contest, which is second to last in the league.
Keep the foul shot count in mind when looking to lay down bets. If Antetokounmpo gets over his average and if OKC is under, the Bucks will have a good chance to pull off the mild upset.
Dame Time
The Milwaukee Bucks’ star guard is finding his stride and has scored 28 and 25 points in the two cup elimination games. His reputation for fourth quarter heroics and clutch play is being further cemented in this year’s NBA Cup. He went for 15 points in the fourth quarter in the quarterfinals vs. the Orlando Magic and timely buckets and three steals vs. The Hawks in the semis. Considering OKC’s potent defense and terrific all-around talent, Lillard will need to be over his season average (25.7 ppg) for the Bucks to have a great chance at covering at + 4.5.
Milwaukee is third in 3-point percentage, but OKC excels at slowing down the opposition’s best players. For instance, in the semifinals Houston didn’t have a 20-point scorer for the second time this season and it has only happened three times to Houston and twice against The Thunder. Milwaukee is going to need its 3-pointers to drop at a high clip and get some uplifting production from wing Khris Middleton, who is averaging just over 21 minutes in his four games since returning from long term injury and was 2-of-7 for six points in the semifinal victory.
Oklahoma City Thunder (Western Conference Group B champs)
- Record:
20-5 (9-1 last 10 games, 5-game winning streak)
- Head-To-Head:
The finalists have not played during the regular season.
- Road To Cup Final:
Defeated Orlando Magic (Wild Card) 114-109 in quarterfinals, defeated Atlanta Hawks (Croup C champs) 110-102 in semifinals.
When Thunder Have The Ball:
The league has to be happy about a star matchup in Tuesday’s cup final between Antetokounmpo and OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Last year’s NBA MVP runner-up is averaging 30.3 ppg, 6.3 apg, and 5.5 rpg. He’s been even better in the cup, averaging 35.5 ppg in the elimination bracket. OKC fans are eager to see him on this type of stage against another superstar player because it could lead to great momentum for the team and his own MVP candidacy.
SGA had a 32-point, 8-rebound, 6-assist and 5-steal performance vs. The Rockets in a matchup of two of the West’s three best teams and the league’s two best defensive teams. The Bucks are not quite as good defensively, giving up 113.1 ppg game, which puts them at No. 12 in the league. Milwaukee is especially vulnerable on the perimeter, which is OKC’s strength. Milwaukee has difficulty keeping athletic guards out of the key, so it could be a great opportunity for OKC players such as Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Cason Wallace to step up and have big games.
OKC’s Depth
The Thunder, despite injuries to players such as Jaylin Williams and Chet Holmgren, have a plethora of talented wings and good defensive depth. Even though Holmgren and center Isaiah Hartenstein (12.5 ppg, 12.3 rpg) haven’t played a game together yet, the team’s plus -12.0 point differential is at a historic championship level. Oklahoma is good on the perimeter and on the interior and it does another thing at a championship level: take care of the ball. The Thunder have more steals (304) than turnovers (295) so if they take care of the ball vs. The Bucks they’ll be in business.
Breakout star forward Jalen Williams (20), Hartenstein (21) and Dort (19) went for a combined 60 points in the semifinal win over Houston and if Hartenstein is scoring at that clip vs. The Bucks, they’ll have a good chance of covering. Williams (21.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 5.0 apg) also has a great opportunity to showcase his individual talent on a large stage and as usual will have to guard out of position defensively. It has not slowed him or his team down at all so far this season.
The Bottom Line:
The NBA Cup has created a scenario that the league intended: starters are playing increased minutes than other regular season games. The fans can expect the star players to be in the lineup and for Milwaukee it will be necessary for them to stand out in order to win. The Bucks are now 11-1 in NBA Cup games. They lost in the 2023 semifinals to the Indiana Pacers and are the only unbeaten team in 2024 cup play (6-0).
The line is -4.5 for the Oklahoma City Thunder. The stats and trends favor them covering. OKC is 5-0 in their last five games ATS and have also done well on the road ATS in 2024-25. If the Bucks are to cover or pull off the upset, they cannot afford to be trailing entering the final period. Prior to the game vs. Houston when Milwaukee trailed after three quarters, the Bucks had lost 20 consecutive games when trailing after three quarters dating back to the 2023-24 season. Giannis and company can’t afford to trail versus a team as good as OKC.
The
Over/Under
at 214.5 is worth taking a close look at the Under because both teams will look to keep the defensive intensity very high, won’t be taking many chances with rotations and of course, want to win the game. There is star power, but defense will be the name of the game Tuesday night.
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