The New York Knicks took a major PR gamble last season after winning the 2025 NBA Cup, but refusing to hang a banner for the victory, as the Los Angeles Lakers had the season prior. Owner James Dolan defended the decision by saying that the Knicks were planning on raising a NBA championship banner instead, which was a bold claim at the time. 

But the Knicks proved Dolan right in June with their historic Finals victory, and the winning culture that the Knicks established by improbably winning the NBA Cup, just like they improbably won the NBA Finals, continues on with the NBA Cup schedule now out for next season.

The Knicks are in Group Stage B, one of the tougher groupings in the league alongside the Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers. The winner of the group will advance to the Knockout stage, as well as one wildcard from each conference.

The group stage for the Knicks kicks off against the Philadelphia 76ers, with their lineup bolstered by the additions of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown in the offseason. With how talented both rosters are, this game could be a matchup of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference by the time the game is played, and could be a preview of a possible Eastern Conference Final.

The Indiana Pacers may have been one of the worst teams in the NBA last season, but there were. lot of factors working against them that led to that unfortunate distinction and a lot reasons why the Pacers of the 2026-27 season could be much different.

A presumed return of Tyrese Haliburton from injury is the biggest factor and a full season with Ivica Zubac should make the Pacers more of a challenge than might be expected. The Knicks and Pacers already have a tense history in recent years that should make their Group Stage matchup all the more interesting.

The Knicks didn't have any trouble with the Cleveland Cavaliers during the Eastern Conference Finals, but Cleveland does still have a talented roster led by Donovan Mitchell that will be eager for some payback after suffering a sweep against the Knicks that sent them packing in the playoffs.

The Miami Heat made the most exciting addition to their roster that any team could have made by trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo and pairing Bam Adebayo with Antetokounmpo forms one of the most intimidating front court duos in the NBA on paper. 

Pitting the Heat against the Knicks will certainly be an exciting game and attaching the stakes of the NBA Cup to their matchup will only add to the intensity. 

The NBA Cup is at its core, a novelty that the NBA added to add some extra intensity to the early part of the season and give the players a chance at winning an extra prize before the long grind of the season truly sets in.

But the Cup does serve a genuine purpose at assessing teams' viability as playoff contenders. 

As last season's Cup proved, the tournament can act as a microcosm of the playoffs themselves. The final two teams in last season's tournament, the Knicks and San Antonio Spurs, were the two teams that played in the actual NBA Finals, proving that the Cup can reveal a team's potential, even if it happens so early in the season. 

How a team handles pressure in October can indicate how they'll handle pressure in June and as the Knicks proved, there can be a connection between success in both of those high stakes environments. 

Now the Knicks have a real opportunity on their hand to become the first-ever repeat NBA Cup champions and as they proved throughout last season, New York is capable of anything at this point.