Just a couple of years in, the NBA Cup remains Adam Silver’s most dicey project still. The in-season tournament was created to drum up interest during the early part of the regular season. So far, results have been mixed. The format requires a math degree to figure and the incentive is player-oriented, not fan-oriented.

The Oklahoma City Thunder had the full experience last season. They won their group play and qualified for the knockout stage. After they won their quarterfinals matchup, they were one of four teams to travel to Las Vegas for the semifinals.

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Alas, the Thunder fell short. They lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2024 NBA Cup finals. That said, they experienced the downside of the tournament. They played an 83rd game of the season that didn’t count toward the standings and had to immediately play a road back-to-back that required a flight from Las Vegas to Florida. Just a brutal stretch not even worth the monetary award.

That said, Thunder general manager Sam Presti remains a fan of the NBA Cup. In his 2025-26 preseason press conference, he reflected on their experience last season. For most of the league, they’re just your standard regular-season game on a unique court design. But for four teams, it means an impromptu trip to Las Vegas in December.

“I think it’s a work in progress. I think there will be some changes in the future to where the games are played and the semifinals, which I think will be helpful,” Presti said. “Again, though, we have to — if we want to get where we want to go and continue to grow a whole new generation of fans, it may not connect with everybody right now. But I kind of — the way we’ve always looked at it is like, if this is what’s in the best service of the game.”

There’s already been some tweaks made. The concept went from being called the mouthful ‘in-season tournament’ name to the simpler ‘NBA Cup.’ The league will also ditch Las Vegas. Starting in 2026-27, the semifinals will be played at the higher seed’s home. With no promises of the finals staying in Nevada.

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“We’re not messing with the league or the game or the competition to the degree that it takes the integrity of the entire competition away,” Presti said. “Then I think we have to be open to these changes and trust the vision that Adam has.”

Even though most fans despise the NBA Cup at worst and are indifferent toward it at best, Presti can see how Silver is trying to normalize it for future generations. It’s still a huge gamble that could fall apart, but the reward is making the mundane part of the regular season at least watchable for most folks.

“To the credit of our players, when we talk about resting and load management and things of that nature. Like our guys played those games, but you’re never going to find a schedule that goes a week on the West Coast and then a back-to-back on the East Coast,” Presti said. “But you have some tolerance for the league to work through that stuff. No one is ever going to have to do that again. Fortunately for us, we took that on as a challenge. We ripped off a ton of wins in a row. And I think it made us a better team.”

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: How does Thunder GM Sam Presti feel about the NBA Cup?