SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 30, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Jazz will debut a new purple court next month for the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament.
The NBA on Monday unveiled the colorful courts all 30 teams will play on during group play and the quarterfinal round of the first-year event, leading up to the semifinals and NBA Cup championship game in Las Vegas in December.
Group play tips off Friday with a doubleheader featuring the New York Knicks at Milwaukee Bucks, followed by the NBA champion Denver Nuggets hosting the Dallas Mavericks.
The Jazz open group play Friday, Nov. 10, on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Utah will debut its purple court Tuesday, Nov. 15, against the Portland Trail Blazers. Following a Friday, Nov. 17, game at the Phoenix Suns, the Jazz will close out group play Tuesday, Nov. 21, against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Delta Center.
The NBA In-Season Tournament courts all are colorful, visually setting the games apart.
“The unified look represents the first time that the league has implemented an alternate court for all 30 teams and the first time that any NBA team has played on a fully painted court with no woodgrain details,” league officials said in a news release.
https://x.com/NBA/status/1719020363252629808?s=20
The courts share the following design details:
- Fully painted, edge-to-edge
- A larger-than-life NBA Cup at center court
- Contrasting color from lane-to-lane, creating a 16-foot wide “runway” across the court
- NBA Cup silhouettes in the lanes
- Team logos across the NBA Cup at center court and on the baselines
The single-elimination knockout rounds begin with the quarterfinals Dec. 4-5 and also will be played in team markets. The semifinals (Dec. 7) and championship (Dec. 9) will be held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Commissioner Adam Silver unveiled plans for the NBA In-Season Tournament in July, calling the new event “a perfect fit for our game.”
“New traditions take time,” Silver said. “But all throughout sports we are seeing new innovations, and now is the time for this NBA In-Season Tournament.”
League officials say the November-December tournament will offer players a financially incentivized competition to win in the hopes of engaging fans in a new way and boosting interest early in the NBA season.
In addition to the opportunity to win the NBA Cup, players on teams advancing to the knockout rounds will earn prize money depending on how far they progress.
