The Dallas Mavericks are set to take on the Golden State Warriors tonight at 9 p.m. in the first portion of the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup.
The Emirates NBA Cup will feature two rounds of play beginning with group play, which includes all 30 teams split into groups based on their records during the 2023-24 NBA season.
Following the conclusion of this group play, the first-place team from every group and two “wild cards” will advance into the knockout rounds.
These knockout rounds will consist of single-elimination games leading to an eventual matchup between two teams in the finals, with the winning team receiving the NBA Cup championship trophy and each player from that team receiving $500,000, per Sports Illustrated.
The Mavericks are set to begin group play against the Warriors, followed by games against the New Orleans Pelicans, Denver Nuggets, and Memphis Grizzlies later in the season.
Tuesday’s matchup will also be the first time the Mavericks have traveled to Golden State since signing forward Klay Thompson in the offseason, who became an NBA legend during his 12-year career with the Warriors.
Thompson helped lead the Warriors to four NBA Championships and scored the sixth-most points in franchise history during his tenure.
Thompson’s impressive career in the Golden State also included five All-Star appearances, two All-NBA Third Team nominations, and one appearance on the All-Defensive Second Team.
Golden State is reportedly preparing to honor Thompson when he makes his return and fans in attendance will receive a captain’s hat as a gift, which is a nod to Thompson becoming known as “Captain Klay” after boating to home games while on the Warriors, per NBA.com.
“I don’t think I’ll really know until I get there, to be honest,” Thompson said when asked about how he would react to the welcome, per NBA.com.
“It’d be good to see all the people I grinded with, that’s for sure, especially the training staff because we had some … we got to know each other very well over those rehab stints — very well.”
Thompson said following the Mavericks’ most recent game that the “chapter is over” with Golden State, further explaining that he is now focused on winning games in Dallas.
“I’m in the midst of trying to win here. There is no point in missing anything when we have such a great opportunity here to be great. There’s no point in looking back,” he said, per Andscape.
“I got to look forward. I got to try to give my best self here.”
