Predicting if OKC Thunder can advance out of group play in 2025 NBA Cup

A day before the entire 2025-26 regular season schedule drops, the league announced the 2025 NBA Cup group games. The Oklahoma City Thunder were placed in West Group A for this year's in-season tournament.

The other four teams in the group are the Minnesota Timberwolves, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz. There are six groups of five teams throughout the NBA. Three for each conference. Each team will play each other in their group round-robin style from Oct. 31 to Nov. 28.

After the group stage standings are finalized, the six group winners and two wildcard teams. The 2025 NBA Cup semifinals and championship will be played in Las Vegas from Dec. 13-16. A financial bonus for the entire roster is on the line.

The Thunder finished just shy of bringing home the NBA Cup last season. They lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the tournament finals in Las Vegas in an 83rd game of the regular season..

Now that the group play schedule is out, let's predict if the Thunder can advance to the eight-team knockout stage:

Friday, Nov. 17: at Kings

It's always a bit funky when the Thunder play in Sacramento. The Kings may be a mess, but they have enough talent to serve an upset. That said, the NBA champions are far and ahead of a team that didn't even make the playoffs last year. Domantas Sabonis is a double-double machine, but the Holmgren-Hartenstein frontcourt should be enough to slow him down.

Prediction: Thunder win

Friday, Nov. 21: at Jazz

This should be easy. The Thunder and Jazz are on opposite sides of the NBA highway. The Thunder are the NBA champions and the best team in the league. The Jazz hit the rebuild button and should have another season where they contend for the worst record. This should be an easy win for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as they pat their point differential.

Prediction: Thunder win

Wednesday, Nov. 26: vs. Timberwolves

A rematch of the Western Conference Finals. This should be the Thunder's most competitive game of group play. There's a reason why it'll be broadcast on ESPN. The Thunder are the better team, but the Timberwolves are good enough to sneak away with a win. That said, Gilgeous-Alexander has usually dominated Minnesota. Expect that to continue next season as the Thunder get an impressive home win.

Prediction: Thunder win

Friday, Nov. 28: vs. Suns

Another team that the Thunder are better than. It's that simple sometimes. The Suns gave up on their title ambitions when Kevin Durant was traded. Now, they're trying to retool around Devin Booker. Lu Dort, Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso will shut down Phoenix's franchise player. This should be another easy home win for OKC, which was nearly unbeatable in its home gym last season.

Prediction: Thunder win

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Predicting if Thunder can advance out of group play in 2025 NBA Cup