NBA Announces Phoenix Suns' NBA Cup Group Play Schedule

The Phoenix Suns are on the doorstep of entering season four of NBA Cup play.

The Suns have a 9-5 record in three seasons in the annual tournament, including two trips to the knockout round the ended in quarterfinal losses.

Phoenix knew their group stage opponents for some time during the offseason for the upcoming tournament. Now, there are dates attached to the names.

October 30: Denver Nuggets

November 20: @ Utah Jazz

November 25: @ Houston Rockets 

November 27: Dallas Mavericks

The matchup against Denver and superstar center Nikola Jokic comes within the first week-and-change of the regular season. Denver swept the 2025-26 season series 3-0 - including a 125-123 victory by the Nuggets in late March that spoiled a strong performance by Suns guard Jalen Green.

Three weeks separate the first and second game of group stage play, where the Suns will travel to take on an intriguing Jazz squad. Utah is now led by rookie guard Darryn Peterson, as well as a high-level frontcourt that features All-stars Jaren Jackson Jr. and Lauri Markkanen.

The matchup with the Rockets is perhaps the most compelling of the four games. This will mark another return trip that Green and forward Dillon Brooks to Houston. It will also be another game that former Phoenix superstar Kevin Durant gets to face-off against franchise player Devin Booker in.

As far as the basketball side of things are concerned, Phoenix and Houston are similarly built. Both teams are moving towards prioritizing athleticism and defensive chops in the roster building process around a superstar shotmaker. Ime Udoka is a structured, close-to-vest coach, while Jordan Ott is an innovator that isn't afraid to make changes, making the coaching battle a war of attrition as well.

Dallas is a fascinating close to the slate, as a team headlined by second-year phenom Cooper Flagg and All-Star Kyrie Irving should be considered more competitive than the perception that follows them is at. This will be a fascinating matchup that tells Suns fans just how far along the team is.

Phoenix will likely need to go 3-1 at the very least in order to qualify for the knockout stage that follows. This will require the Suns to take down one of Houston or Denver - both of which they will be fighting to usurp in the standings as well.

The rest of Phoenix's schedule is set to be released on Thursday.