A Trophy — and a Check — on the Line
Winning the NBA Cup is not just about lifting a trophy in the middle of the regular season. For the players on the winning team, it also means receiving a significant individual cash prize, a factor that carries very different weight depending on a player’s contract, career stage, and financial reality.
In a league marked by huge salary disparities, the NBA Cup prize can be especially meaningful for young players, rotation players, or those on minimum contracts. For them, a few weeks of high-stakes games can translate into the equivalent of several months of salary. That reality makes the financial component impossible to ignore — even if it is not always openly acknowledged.
Different Mindsets Inside the Locker Room
Asked about the financial incentive ahead of the NBA Cup Final in Las Vegas between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks, players offered a wide range of perspectives.
For OG Anunoby, the answer is straightforward. The Knicks forward made it clear that money is not what drives him. His focus remains entirely on winning the game, and he admitted he hasn’t even thought about how he would use the prize.
Josh Hart, on the other hand, embraces the money factor with honesty and humor. He described the prize as a major motivation and openly admitted he would spend it — joking about buying luxury watches and calling it “house money,” a bonus meant to be enjoyed rather than saved.
That comment carries extra context. Earlier this season, Hart was the victim of a robbery at a Manhattan hotel, where three luxury watches and jewelry worth approximately $185,000 were stolen. In that light, his remarks about “getting some watches back” take on an almost ironic edge.
Young Players, Real Impact
On the Spurs’ side, Stephon Castle acknowledged that he has thought about the money, but stressed that winning comes first. He prefers not to project too far ahead until the job is done.
Devin Vassell echoed a similar sentiment, saying he hasn’t given the prize much thought yet, though he mentioned the idea of using it to buy Christmas gifts for his family — a reminder of how personal these decisions can be.
Veteran Harrison Barnes offered a broader, generational perspective. According to him, the financial incentive is a powerful driver for younger players, who are genuinely excited by the opportunity. For more established veterans, however, the bigger value lies in the experience itself — playing meaningful games, in a different environment, under real pressure.
Even Jokes Reveal the Stakes
Sometimes, the money factor surfaces through humor. Knicks wing Mikal Bridges joked about wanting the same massive SUV owned by teammate Mitchell Robinson. When Robinson laughed and said it wouldn’t be possible, Bridges smiled and suggested that with an NBA Cup win, they might just “make it possible.”
Lighthearted moments aside, they reflect how the prize money has become part of the locker-room conversation.
More Than $500,000: How the Prize Has Grown
The figure most often mentioned by players is $500,000 per player, the amount originally announced when the NBA Cup launched in 2023. In reality, the prize has evolved.
Under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, NBA Cup bonuses are indexed to Basketball Related Income (BRI), meaning they increase slightly each year as league revenues grow. For the current edition, the individual prize for players on the winning team is approximately $530,000, with smaller but still significant payouts for finalists, semifinalists, and quarterfinalists.
A Tournament That Keeps Gaining Weight
Now in its third edition, the NBA Cup continues to establish itself as more than a midseason experiment. The growing financial incentive goes hand in hand with rising competitive intensity, giving early-season games a meaning they rarely had in the past.
At the NBA Cup Final in Las Vegas, one thing is clear: not every player is motivated by money in the same way — but no one is indifferent to it.
