Emirates NBA Cup 2026 – West Group B: Teams, Schedule & Predictions

Last year, Memphis went 3–1 in Cup group play and still went home — beaten on point difference. That is the kind of group West Group B is: five teams, four games each, and margins so thin that every basket in November could matter in December. A heavy favorite sits at the top, a brand-new superstar pairing threatens it, and three wild cards are hunting the upset that flips the math.

Below: a 60-second ranking of all five teams, the five games that will actually decide the group, compact files on every roster and coaching staff, how the tiebreakers could bite these five teams specifically, a forecast, and answers to the questions fans ask most. For the tournament hub, start at the nbacuplive.com homepage.

The Group in 60 Seconds

1. Oklahoma City Thunder — the group is theirs to lose. 64 wins, a seven-game conference-final loss, the deepest roster in the West, and the tournament favorite.
2. Minnesota Timberwolves — the most interesting team here. Anthony Edwards plus LaMelo Ball could be spectacular or shaky. Either way, must-watch.
3. LA Clippers — the chaos pick. Brand-new core around Darius Garland and Brandon Ingram, real talent, zero track record together.
4. Memphis Grizzlies — the trap. Young, hungry, and weirdly good at this tournament format.
5. New Orleans Pelicans — the spoiler. Rebuilding under a new coach. Dangerous on any single night, unlikely across four games.

To see how the other five groups stack up, visit the NBA Cup 2026 groups page.

Five Games That Decide the Group

Ten games are on the schedule. These five will likely decide who moves on — and in what order.

Nov 25 — Timberwolves at Thunder (ESPN, 7:30 PM ET)

Game of the group

Minnesota’s new backcourt gets its loudest test: Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball walk into Oklahoma City, on national TV, against the team everyone expects to win the tournament. A win puts the Timberwolves in the group-title conversation; a loss starts the wild-card math early.

Nov 13 — Thunder at Clippers (10:30 PM ET, League Pass)

The new-look Clippers get their loudest home test. A win here would announce the post-Kawhi era as real — and throw the wild-card race wide open.

Nov 6 — Timberwolves at Pelicans (8:00 PM ET, League Pass)

The classic trap game. New Orleans at home, nothing to lose, against a Minnesota team still learning to share the ball. This is exactly the kind of night that decides tiebreakers in December.

Nov 6 — Thunder at Grizzlies (8:00 PM ET, League Pass)

Memphis’s measuring stick. The post–Ja Morant Grizzlies, with rookie Cameron Boozer, get the defending West’s best at home on opening Cup Night.

Nov 27 — Grizzlies at Timberwolves (8:30 PM ET, League Pass)

The finale. If the wild-card race is tight, this one could come down to point difference — the same tiebreaker that knocked Memphis out last year despite a 3–1 record.

Team Files

Five teams, five files. The essentials on each roster and bench — then every name in one table at the end.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Minnesota Timberwolves

LA Clippers

New Orleans Pelicans

Memphis Grizzlies

Every Roster, One Table

All 103 names as listed on the official team pages. Positions use the official labels (G = guard, F = forward, C = center); two-way tags come from training-camp announcements.

How the Tiebreakers Could Hit This Group

Forget the generic explainer — here is how the tiebreakers could actually bite these five teams. When teams finish level, it goes: head-to-head, then point difference, then total points scored.

If Minnesota beats everyone except Oklahoma City… the Timberwolves finish 3–1 and miss the group title. Then they need the wild card, which means their point difference gets compared against the runners-up in West Groups A and C. A comfortable win over New Orleans on Nov 6 matters as much as the loss in Oklahoma City.

If the Clippers split their four games… 2–2 drops them into a multi-team logjam where nobody owns a tiebreaker and point difference rules everything. Their November 13 home game against the Thunder is the swing night: keep it close and the math stays alive; get blown out and the group is gone.

If Memphis repeats last year’s 3–1… remember what happened: +14 wasn’t enough because another team posted +31. The Grizzlies would need to win big, not just win — which makes their two home games (Nov 6 vs Oklahoma City, Nov 25 vs the Clippers) must-win-by-margin nights.

Group Forecast

Track how it unfolds on the live NBA Cup standings page.

Follow the Group

Don’t miss

Two nights matter most: Timberwolves at Thunder on ESPN (Nov 25) and the Nov 27 finale, Grizzlies at Timberwolves, where the wild-card math could come down to the last possession. Everything else streams on NBA League Pass — the streaming guide for Prime, ESPN, and NBC covers every option.

Be there in person

Cup Nights run at all five arenas from Oct 30 to Nov 27 — see where to buy NBA Cup tickets. The final is December 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, the first ever held outside Las Vegas.

Track it live

There’s also prize money on the line. Keeping an eye on the neighboring group too? See the West Group A preview.

What to Watch First

October 30: the opener — the new-look Clippers visit Minnesota, and we get our first look at the Edwards–Ball pairing under real lights. November 25: the showdown — Timberwolves at Thunder on ESPN, Minnesota’s biggest test of the young season. November 27: the finale — Memphis at Minnesota, with the wild-card race potentially still undecided. Three nights, one group, and a very good chance the tiebreakers get involved.