The Lakers and Clippers will be in the same group for the opening round of the 2025 NBA Cup.

The crosstown rivals were placed in West Group B alongside the Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans for the third iteration of the NBA’s In-Season Tournament, the league announced Wednesday.

All 30 teams were randomly drawn into groups of five within their conference based on win-loss records from the 2024-25 regular season.

The Lakers will be the top seed in West Group B and the Clippers will be the No. 2 seed. The Grizzlies will be No. 3 seed, the Mavericks are slotted at No. 4 and the Pelicans will be No. 5.

Group-play games for the 2025 NBA Cup will take place on Fridays from Oct. 31-Nov. 28. Quarterfinal games, to be played at the arena of the higher-seeded team, will take place Tuesday, Dec. 9, and Wednesday, Dec. 10. The semifinals will be played Saturday, Dec. 13, in Las Vegas and the final is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 16, also in Las Vegas.

Each team will play one game against each of the four opponents in its group – two games at home and two on the road.

Eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals: the team with the best standing in group-play games in each of the six groups and one wild-card team from each conference. The wild card will be the team from each conference with the best record in group-play games that finished second in its group.

The Lakers will host the Clippers and Mavericks, and travel to the Grizzlies and Pelicans. The Clippers will host the Grizzlies and Pelicans, and travel to the Mavericks and Lakers.

The game and broadcast schedules for group play will be announced in August.

— Khobi Price

Summer League opens

Opening night at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas has turned into an annual spectacle, and this year will be no different.

Cooper Flagg’s debut is coming — against Bronny James and the Lakers, no less.

Flagg, the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, and the Dallas Mavericks will open summer play today against the Lakers. The Lakers, always a huge draw in Las Vegas, have 2024 second-round pick Bronny James — the son of NBA scoring king LeBron James — on their summer roster.

The game at UNLV’s Thomas and Mack Center will be packed. Plenty of NBA players and personnel will be there. Some courtside tickets are being listed on the secondary resale market at more than $3,000 a pop. All this, mind you, for an exhibition game where the outcome is almost certain to be forgotten within a few days.

“I’m excited,” Flagg said. “I’ve been in the gym with the guys, and I’m excited to just get out there, get back on the court, play some 5-on-5.”

It will be a circus atmosphere for Mavericks-Lakers and Day 1 of the full-fledged, 30-team Summer League — other smaller summer leagues in Utah and California wrapped up this week.