It’s schedule release week in the NBA, as the league is releasing bits and pieces of the schedule before revealing it in full on Thursday. Yesterday was the Christmas schedule. Today? The NBA Cup. The NBA has officially announced the dates for the Suns’ 2026 Emirates NBA Cup games.
The Suns open the cup on Friday, October 30, at home against the Denver Nuggets, followed by road games against the Jazz on November 20, the Rockets on November 25, and the Mavericks at home on November 27.
Per the press release from the Suns:
The Quarterfinals (Friday, Dec. 4 and Saturday, Dec. 5) and Semifinals (Tuesday, Dec. 8 and/or Wednesday, Dec. 9) will take place in NBA team markets before the tournament concludes with the Championship on Friday, December 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
On days during the Knockout Rounds when Emirates NBA Cup games are not scheduled (Dec. 6-7 and Dec. 10), the 22 teams that do not qualify for the Knockout Rounds will each play two regular-season games. The losing teams from the Quarterfinals in each conference will play each other in a regular-season game on Dec. 10.
Suns’ History in the NBA Cup
Last season, Phoenix made it to the knockout round after going 3-1 in group play, which included one of the team’s most memorable wins of the season after they rallied from down eight with 50 seconds left to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves.
However, in the first round of the knockout rounds, Phoenix suffered its worst loss in franchise history, falling 138-89 to the Oklahoma City Thunder without Devin Booker in the lineup.
In the three years of the Cup, Phoenix has a 9-5 record and has made the knockout round twice, but lost both times in the first round.
Unlike the first three seasons, if Phoenix advances to the championship, they’ll play in Butler University’s Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, instead of Las Vegas.
