NBA Cup Needs Time, Tradition to Earn Fans’ Interest

LAS VEGAS — In the days leading up to the Emirates NBA Cup final between the Thunder and Bucks, the energy around T-Mobile Arena has been tame. Most sports fans in the area surrounding the NBA Cup site were rocking Falcons and Raiders gear for Monday Night Football.

The NBA envisions its new in-season tournament as a flagship event early in the regular season, but through two iterations, it has yet to capture the interest of fans. Declining viewership, low ticket prices, and a lack of buzz show that.

However, the Cup cannot be declared an abject failure through two years. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said European soccer tournaments inspired the NBA Cup. A prime example, then, would be one that shares a primary sponsor: The Emirates FA Cup in England.

Perhaps the simplest reason the FA Cup has turned into a meaningful soccer tournament for teams, players, and fans alike is because of tradition, as the men’s FA Cup has been around since the 1871–1872 season. Time and tradition is the common thread among famous sports tournaments that are not necessarily tied to the grand prize, like the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup in golf or the Davis Cup in men’s tennis. 

Meanwhile, newer tournaments like the Laver Cup in men’s tennis have also not had glowing receptions from the audience, as many have questioned their purpose.

Player Buy-In

One thing the NBA Cup has going for it is that players clearly care about winning. The prize of more than half a million dollars per player on the winning team has enticed them to win—but players and teams have expressed the importance of winning and using the tournament as a stepping stone.

“This is the closest environment you can get to playoff basketball right now,” Bucks wing Gary Trent Jr. told Front Office Sports. 

The buy-in from players may be the most important starting point for the NBA right now, especially as its All-Star Game—another midseason tentpole event, which the league announced Tuesday will feature a new format in February—has experienced a steep dip in viewership due to the contest’s lack of competitiveness. The game has drawn fewer than six million viewers in each of the last two years when it used to hover around eight million in the 2000s and more than 10 million in the 1990s. It should be noted this is not a problem unique to basketball, as the NFL and NHL have struggled mightily with the interest and format of their own All-Star events.

Bucks guard Damian Lillard, an eight-time All-Star, even said that potential NBA All-Star Game changes could work if it provided some kind of “incentive” for players similar to the NBA Cup.

In the meantime, the NBA Cup can lean on the success of the added business it has secured from this tournament. Aside from securing a name sponsor in Emirates, the tournament was a key factor in its $77 billion media-rights deal and partnership with Amazon Prime Video. 

It has also provided added programming for teams around the league. The Bulls have yet to qualify for the knockout rounds, but told FOS the NBA Cup has helped them secure additional sponsorship opportunities with partners like Motorola while also tripling the team’s social media impressions compared to its average for themed nights.