The in-season tournament was supposed to be an experiment. Somewhere along the way, it turned into the Emirates NBA Cup, a trophy players care about, fans are warming up to, and TV networks can sell in the dead of winter.
Now Adam Silver sounds ready to level it up again.
[Before the Knicks closed out the Spurs for this year’s Cup,](https://wildcatbluenation.com/karl-anthony-towns-knicks-emirates-nba-cup-no-banner) Silver went on Amazon’s broadcast and floated the idea of future NBA Cup championship games being played in “some storied college arenas.”
There’s a building in Lexington that fits that description a little too well.
> On Amazon Prime, Adam Silver just said future NBA Cup championship games could be played at "some storied college arenas."
>
> — Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) [December 17, 2025](https://twitter.com/MedcalfByESPN/status/2001097384311324711?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
Why Rupp Arena makes too much sense for the NBA’s in-season showcase
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Rupp Arena is exactly what the league is talking about. It’s big enough to handle NBA production. It has decades of history baked into the walls. And it sits in a city where basketball isn’t just entertainment, it’s identity. You want a neutral-site game that still feels like a basketball cathedral on TV? Rupp is as good as it gets.
Logistically, it’s not impossible. The NBA Cup lives in a window where Kentucky is usually stacking home buy games and non-conference tuneups. Swapping out the floor for a one-off showcase is a headache, but it’s the kind of headache big arenas solve all the time. Rupp already flips between concerts, college games, and special events. This would just be another high-profile turn.
The interesting part is how it would get done. Any serious bid is going to run through JMI, the group that already helps Kentucky maximize Rupp and Kroger Field with things like concerts and large-scale events. If the NBA is really serious about dropping its midseason showcase into college towns, it’s going to be talking to people like that — the ones who know how to monetize the building without stepping all over the main tenant.
From Kentucky’s side, it’s easy to see the appeal. You get national exposure for the arena and the city. You pour a different revenue stream into the athletic department without asking fans to buy more season tickets or pay higher prices. And you remind future recruits that this place isn’t just where college stars play; it’s where pros come to chase trophies too.
Would there be some gymnastics with the schedule? Absolutely. John Calipari’s era taught everyone how tight Rupp’s calendar can get, and Mark Pope’s teams are going to want every advantage they can get in the Cup window. But if Adam Silver wants “storied college arenas,” and the NBA wants one of the loudest, most knowledgeable fanbases on the planet in the building, Rupp checks every box.
The idea is still just that, an idea. But picture this: an NBA Cup final in Lexington, Rupp packed, Kentucky fans watching NBA stars battle for a trophy on the same floor they’ve seen generations of Wildcats walk across.
If the league is really serious about taking the Cup on the road, there’s no way that conversation doesn’t end up in the Bluegrass.