Introduced in 2023, the NBA In-Season Tournament—now known as the Emirates NBA Cup—is a single-elimination tournament with a group stage that takes place during November and December.
Designed as a way to heighten the excitement and the stakes of the early portion of the NBA season,—while not going head-to-head with the NFL—the NBA Cup group stage games take place only on Tuesdays and Fridays.
And the teams aren’t just playing for bragging rights, because there’s a sizable purse given to the victors.
How much do NBA In-Season Tournament winners get?
All players on the winning NBA Cup team will receive a $500,000 prize. For some of the league’s highest paid stars—players like LeBron James or Kevin Durant—a $500,000 bonus is more or less like getting an additional game check.
However, players on two-way contracts are also included in the winnings and they get $250,000. Obviously that provides a massive incentive, as a $250,000 prize is nearly half their salary.
Breakdown of the NBA In-Season Tournament prize pool
Prize money doesn’t just go to players who win the NBA Cup. The prize pool allocates some cash to every team that makes the quarterfinals, with increasing prizes coming for advancing in the tournament.
Last year’s winner, the Los Angeles Lakers, took home a total of $650,000 in prize money per player ($500,000 for winning the finals, $100,000 for making the semifinals and $50,000 for making the quarterfinals).
How the NBA In-Season Tournament prize compares to other league prizes
Well, nothing compares to winning the NBA Finals. And most players, when asked about the tournament, didn’t mince words that their primary focus was June.
However, as the group stages ended last year and the quarterfinals began, there was a noticeable tone shift with players. It was clear that they cared about winning the first in-season tournament.
In fact, the final game of the 2023 tournament between the Lakers and the Indiana Pacers felt like a playoff game … before Christmas.
Anthony Davis went off for the Lakers, scoring 41 points and grabbing 20 rebounds in the 123–109 victory. His intensity was immediately eye-catching from the jump—perhaps punctuated by playing through a tough hit in the third quarter.
It was just different.
Will players continue to care about the NBA Cup in Year 2 and beyond? We’ll have to wait and see.
Who receives prize money in the NBA In-Season Tournament?
Every player on the roster—including those on two-way contracts—receives prize money (although two-way players get half shares). The head coach receives the same amount as the players do, and assistant coaches get 75% of the head coach’s total.
How the NBA In-Season Tournament prize pool stacks up
While one might initially balk at seeing an NBA player with a 10-figure salary get a $500,000 bonus, the prize pool for the tournament is actually very impressive.
For example, players who win the Super Bowl this season will receive a $164,000 bonus. And with these prizes being flat, it isn’t based on performance. Both the NBA and MLB determine bonuses based on one’s performance in the postseason. A “full share” bonus doled out by the World Series champion Texas Rangers last season was approximately $440,000.
Last season in the NHL, the Florida Panthers got a league payout of $6.5 million for winning the Stanley Cup, and players received roughly $285,000 each.
Will the NBA In-Season Tournament prize pool increase in the future?
While the prize pool has remained the same this year as it was last year, there’s plenty of speculation that the NBA might tinker with winnings in the future.
This speculation is based largely on new TV deals that could emerge—particularly surrounding a suitor like Amazon attempting to purchase exclusive streaming rights for the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals.
Amazon has been pretty aggressive in recent years in regard to sports streaming. And even if Amazon wasn’t interested, there are plenty of other potential streaming destinations.
But if the league were to secure a large payment for broadcasting rights, it seems logical that they would increase the prize pool.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NBA In-Season Tournament Prize Pool: How Much Do the Winners Get?.
