Latest news with #inSeasonTournament
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Milwaukee to face New York in NBA Cup
Defending NBA Cup champions Milwaukee will be up against New York, Chicago, Charlotte and Miami in the group stage of the next in-season tournament, the league announced on Wednesday. The NBA unveiled the six groups for the third edition of its in-season competition, which will tip off on October 31 with group stage games that will be played on designated "Cup nights" and count as part of the regular season -- as will the quarter-finals and semi-finals. Advertisement Group winners plus one "wild card" team from each conference will advance to the quarter-finals on December 9 and 10. The semi-finals will be played on December 13 in Las Vegas, where the title game will be held December 16. All 30 teams were randomly drawn into groups of five within their conference based on win-loss records from the 2024-25 regular season. The draw offered some intrigue in the West, where the Los Angeles Lakers will battle the Los Angeles Clippers in a group that also includes the Dallas Mavericks -- who sensationally sent Slovenian star Luka Doncic to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis last February. Advertisement The Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans round out that group. The NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder will face the Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz in group play. The Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs comprise the other Western Conference group. Elsewhere in the East, the Boston Celtics are grouped with the Detroit Pistons, Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Orlando Magic. The Cleveland Cavaliers are grouped with the Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards. Advertisement Every team will have two home games and two road games in group play. Those that don't advance to the knockout stage will have contests added to their schedule so that every team plays an 82-game regular-season. The NBA Cup was introduced during the 2023-24 season after years of discussion of an in-season tournament to add interest to the early months of the season. The Los Angeles Lakers won the inaugural edition, beating the Indiana Pacers in the championship game. Last season the Bucks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in the title game -- but the Thunder went on to claim the NBA title. bb/jc
The Australian
08-07-2025
- Sport
- The Australian
AFL: Brisbane Lions star Josh Dunkley backs in-season tournament
Brisbane Lions star Josh Dunkley has backed the idea of an in-season tournament, believing it would not only create excitement but also help reduce the 'competitive advantage' that exists in the AFL. Reportedly discussed last week at a meeting of club chief executives, a lucrative secondary tournament, similar to the NBA Cup concept, is apparently being considered for 2028 when Tasmania enters the competition . It would lead to clubs playing each other only once in the regular season, most likely in addition to Gather Round and Rivalry Round matches. 'It'd be great,' Dunkley said on Tuesday. 'If we can play every team once and then have a little in-season tournament, like the NBA do … it'd be really exciting for the competition.' Dunkley said it would also lead to a 'fairer' regular season schedule that was compromised by all teams not playing each other the same amount of times. Lions vice-captain Josh Dunkley says an in-season tournament would be 'exciting' for the competition. Picture:'When you play everyone once, it's good, it's fair, and you get to see how you go against opposition in one game,' he said. 'At the moment, there are times where we're playing different teams and other teams are playing different teams, and the competitive advantage is always a bit of a question mark for a lot of people. 'For us, it's about playing the best, and everyone, once, and then that mid-season tournament would be pretty cool.' Dunkley also supported the introduction of a wildcard finals round and the return of State of Origin football. '(This year) we saw the Indigenous All-Stars play that game before the season started, and that was really exciting,' he said. 'To be able to do that across the states of origin that you can represent, and go back to your state and enjoy that moment with other players that are from similar areas, that's priceless. 'I'm not sure the time of year that it's played, but if it is played mid-season, it'd be exciting.' Former Western Bulldog Dunkley and the second-placed Lions are chasing a hat-trick of wins when they meet struggling Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night. The Blues are in 12th place on the ladder with just six wins from 16 games, with pressure mounting on coach Michael Voss, who captained the Lions to three successive premierships from 2001 to 2003. Josh Dunkley and Lions are chasing a hat-trick of wins on Thursday night. Picture: Albert Perez/AFL Photos via Getty Images 'I've experienced when you're a bit under pressure at a Melbourne footy club, and it is hard, but you also (feel) there's nothing to lose,' said Dunkley in anticipation of a desperate Blues performance. 'That element of their mental thinking behind the game will be that their backs are against the wall. They've got nothing to lose, so we've got to really prepare for that. 'You get the best footy out of teams when they're thinking like that, and they've got that freedom in their game, so we're going to have to be on edge on Thursday night because they'll be rocking up, and we know that they'll play their best footy.' The Brisbane vice-captain said the Lions would relish another road trip, having lost just once in eight games outside of Queensland this season, as well as winning three successive matches interstate in last year's finals series to clinch the premiership. 'We love getting away together. We talk about our brotherhood, our mateship, and relationships that we have, not only as players but with the staff and the coaches,' Dunkley said. 'It's been nice to be able to have a good record, but we don't really look at that. We look at what we're facing this week, and that's the Blues, who will be red-hot.' Marco Monteverde Sports reporter Marco Monteverde is a Brisbane-based sports reporter for NCA Newswire. He worked in a similar role for The Courier-Mail from 2007 to 2020. During a journalism career of more than 25 years, he has also worked for The Queensland Times, The Sunshine Coast Daily, The Fraser Coast Chronicle and The North West Star. He has covered three FIFA World Cups and the 2000 Sydney Olympics, as well as a host of other major sporting events in Australia and around the world. @marcothejourno Marco Monteverde
ABC News
08-07-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Paul Roos baffled by suggestions of AFL in-season tournament, warns league against mimicking NBA
Australian rules great Paul Roos says he is baffled by suggestions the AFL could potentially introduce an in-season tournament. The AFL is considering a tournament similar to the NBA Cup, with the idea floated in last week's meeting between the CEOs of the league's 19 clubs. The tournament would likely be introduced after Tasmania's arrival in 2028, and the winner could stand to receive $5 million in prize money in addition to a guaranteed finals spot. AFL CEO Andrew Dillon confirmed in a statement last week that the potential in-season tournament was one of a number of ideas "with a focus on creating more content and marquee moments" during the season. The NBA introduced its in-season tournament during the 2023–24 season as a way to add weight to regular-season games played in the early portion of the season, but Roos believes the AFL should steer clear of mimicking the world's best basketball league. "If there's a league you don't want to follow in the world, it's the NBA," he told the ABC AFL Daily podcast. "The NBA ratings have absolutely plummeted. It is unwatchable now. I'm an ex-basketball player and a huge, huge basketball fan, I watched the NBA Finals and no other games at all. "They have destroyed their league by doing dumb stuff like play-in tournaments and mid-season games and changing rules offensively so you can't touch anyone, scores are 150–140, and you'll see the ratings have reflected it." Roos, who currently resides in Hawaii, explained his dismay at the constant Americanisation of Australia's leading sporting codes. "I just don't understand Australian sports administrators' fixation with American sport," he said. "Living over here now, we do not want to go down the path of a lot of what America represents now [in terms of] sport. "It's all about the individual, players changing clubs, it's all about money and all about less time at the club and more time on holidays, and this is where we're heading. "I don't understand it. It's not in my realm of thinking." Roos was the captain of Fitzroy at a time when the club was bleeding money in the early 90s. However, he does not believe the league's poorer clubs need the financial boost the in-season tournament could provide, like the Lions needed before their merger with the Brisbane Bears. "Even the $5 million, let's be honest, the lower clubs are pumped up by the AFL anyway," he said. "You're not going out of business now if you're an AFL club, so what's $5 million? "Just be honest around what it's for. What is the AFL trying to achieve? "We have a great competition, we have fans going to the game left, right and centre, we have ratings through the roof, so the game has never been in better shape. "Why do we want to change something that's not broken just because we've got a three-game gap between ninth and 10th? Is that the reason? That'll change next year. "I don't know what the objective is, that's the concern."
News.com.au
08-07-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Brisbane Lions star Josh Dunkley says introduction of secondary tournament would help reduce ‘competitive advantage' in AFL
Brisbane Lions star Josh Dunkley has backed the idea of an in-season tournament, believing it would not only create excitement but also help reduce the 'competitive advantage' that exists in the AFL. Reportedly discussed last week at a meeting of club chief executives, a lucrative secondary tournament, similar to the NBA Cup concept, is apparently being considered for 2028 when Tasmania enters the competition . It would lead to clubs playing each other only once in the regular season, most likely in addition to Gather Round and Rivalry Round matches. 'It'd be great,' Dunkley said on Tuesday. 'If we can play every team once and then have a little in-season tournament, like the NBA do … it'd be really exciting for the competition.' Dunkley said it would also lead to a 'fairer' regular season schedule that was compromised by all teams not playing each other the same amount of times. 'When you play everyone once, it's good, it's fair, and you get to see how you go against opposition in one game,' he said. 'At the moment, there are times where we're playing different teams and other teams are playing different teams, and the competitive advantage is always a bit of a question mark for a lot of people. 'For us, it's about playing the best, and everyone, once, and then that mid-season tournament would be pretty cool.' Dunkley also supported the introduction of a wildcard finals round and the return of State of Origin football. '(This year) we saw the Indigenous All-Stars play that game before the season started, and that was really exciting,' he said. 'To be able to do that across the states of origin that you can represent, and go back to your state and enjoy that moment with other players that are from similar areas, that's priceless. 'I'm not sure the time of year that it's played, but if it is played mid-season, it'd be exciting.' Former Western Bulldog Dunkley and the second-placed Lions are chasing a hat-trick of wins when they meet struggling Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night. The Blues are in 12th place on the ladder with just six wins from 16 games, with pressure mounting on coach Michael Voss, who captained the Lions to three successive premierships from 2001 to 2003. 'I've experienced when you're a bit under pressure at a Melbourne footy club, and it is hard, but you also (feel) there's nothing to lose,' said Dunkley in anticipation of a desperate Blues performance. 'That element of their mental thinking behind the game will be that their backs are against the wall. They've got nothing to lose, so we've got to really prepare for that. 'You get the best footy out of teams when they're thinking like that, and they've got that freedom in their game, so we're going to have to be on edge on Thursday night because they'll be rocking up, and we know that they'll play their best footy.' The Brisbane vice-captain said the Lions would relish another road trip, having lost just once in eight games outside of Queensland this season, as well as winning three successive matches interstate in last year's finals series to clinch the premiership. 'We love getting away together. We talk about our brotherhood, our mateship, and relationships that we have, not only as players but with the staff and the coaches,' Dunkley said. 'It's been nice to be able to have a good record, but we don't really look at that. We look at what we're facing this week, and that's the Blues, who will be red-hot.'
Fox News
25-06-2025
- Automotive
- Fox News
Bust Or Bracket-Buster Fun? NASCAR Attempts $1M In-Season Tournament
When NASCAR signed its new broadcast deal, siphoning off five-race packages to two entities, it provided the perfect road map for an in-season tournament. To do nothing would have been a lost opportunity, so kudos to NASCAR for putting together its 32-driver in-season tournament that begins this weekend at Atlanta, coinciding with the five-race stretch on TNT. Here's how it works: The top 32 in driver points after Nashville were eligible for the tournament. Seeding is based on best finish over the past three races — Michigan, Mexico City and Pocono — resulting in Denny Hamlin earning the top seed. Ties were broken by the next-best finish. If two drivers had the exact same three finishes, then whoever had the best finish first over the three weeks got the higher seed. NASCAR now has a traditional tournament bracket that will run concurrently with the next five races — all regular-season events run as normal with the addition of the tournament as somewhat of a sideshow. In Atlanta, the No. 1 seed (Hamlin) is matched against the No. 32 seed (Ty Dillon), the No. 2 seed (Chase Briscoe) faces No. 31 (Noah Gragson) and so on. Whoever has the best finish at Atlanta in each of the 16 matchups advances to the next round at the Chicago street winner of No. 1 vs. No. 32 gets matched against the winner of No. 16 vs No. 17 at Chicago, the No. 2 vs. No. 31 winner gets the No. 15 vs. No. 18 winner and so on. After Chicago, eight drivers remain for Sonoma, four for Dover and the final two facing off at Indy. There is no reseeding, drivers already know potential opponents based on where they are seeded in the bracket. There are plenty of things to wonder about whether NASCAR is doing this the right way. Did the seeding by best finish over the last three races make sense? William Byron, the series points leader, enters as the 18th seed. Kyle Larson, who is second in the standings, is the 10th seed. Either doing it by overall points or points the last few races could make more sense, although there certainly are some intriguing first-round matchups, including Michael McDowell vs. AJ Allmendinger — two drivers who are solid drafting track and road-course racers. The winner could have a strong chance at making the Final leads one to wonder if having three wild-card type races — Atlanta and two road courses at Chicago and Sonoma — is a recipe for quite an unconventional Final 4. NASCAR is paying the winning driver $1 million. Not the team but the driver. Does that really make sense when all we hear is how it is a team sport? NASCAR will likely argue that the more money they can pay the driver, the more incentive for a driver to take this tournament seriously. Just remember: This is an attempt and doesn't have to be the same for 2026. NASCAR can learn lessons this year. This tournament certainly should grab the attention of fans during the summer beyond the standard playoff bubble chatter. People will fill out brackets and watch, hopefully creating buzz on social media. Gambling sites can use it to offer other ways for people to bet on the race. If someone's favorite driver exits early, there remains something to dig into beyond just who will win the race. Some might feel the race should be good enough. But as the NBA in-season tournament has shown, having something additional during the regular season isn't a bad thing. It will be interesting to see the fan reaction and whether drivers get engaged in this tournament. For now, don't bother me. I'm busy filling out my bracket. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
