OKC’s dynamic defense has been crucial to its run to the Emirates NBA Cup Semifinals.
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The second-ever Emirates NBA Cup is heading to Las Vegas, with the semifinals set for Saturday.
One game features the two top teams in the Western Conference (through Wednesday), while the other is the sixth and seventh-place teams in the East. But no matter where they stand overall, all four have made it to Vegas and have the opportunity to win the NBA Cup.
OffRtg: Points scored per 100 possessions (League Rank)
DefRtg: Points allowed per 100 possessions (League Rank)
NetRtg: Point differential per 100 possessions (League Rank)
Pace: Possessions per 48 minutes (League Rank)
Here are some numbers to know regarding each of the semifinalists.
(All stats are through Dec. 11.)
East 1. Milwaukee Bucks (13-11 overall, 5-0 in NBA Cup)
OffRtg: 114.0 (10) DefRtg: 112.9 (14) NetRtg: +1.1 (15) Pace: 99.0 (16)
After a 2-8 start, the Bucks have won 11 of their last 14 games. They’re the only undefeated team in the 2024 competition and the only team to reach the NBA Cup Semifinals in both years.
1. Giannis Antetokounmpo has averaged 18.9 points per game in the restricted area.
That would be the most for any player in the 29 seasons for which we have play-by-play data, topping Antetokounmpo’s record of 18.1 ppg in the restricted area last season. As a team, the Bucks average only 33 ppg in the restricted area, so Antetokounmpo accounts for 57% of that.
2. Khris Middleton has 13 assists to Antetokounmpo.
That’s not a lot, but Middleton and Antetokounmpo have only played 61 minutes together. So that’s 7.7 assists per 36 minutes on the floor together, more than double the rate that any other teammate has assisted the league’s leading scorer. Middleton already has as many assists to Antetokounmpo as Taurean Prince, who has played 445 more minutes alongside him. Nobody feeds the two-time Kia MVP like the player who’s been his teammate for his entire career.
Most assists to Giannis Antetokounmpo, 2024-25
| Teammate | MIN | AST | Per 36 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damian Lillard | 476 | 49 | 3.7 |
| Khris Middleton | 61 | 13 | 7.7 |
| Taurean Prince | 506 | 13 | 0.9 |
| Pat Connaughton | 145 | 8 | 2.0 |
| Andre Jackson Jr. | 294 | 8 | 1.0 |
MIN = Minutes on the floor w/ Antetokounmpo
Per 36 = Assists per 36 minutes on floor together
3. The Bucks have gotten only 21.1% of their total points from fast breaks (11.5%, fourth lowest) or second chances (9.6%, second lowest).
That’s the league’s lowest rate. Though they have, arguably, the league’s best weapon in transition, the Bucks are a half-court offensive team. Only the Wolves have taken a lower percentage of their shots in the first six seconds of the shot clock (per Second Spectrum tracking). Since their centers mostly shoot jump shots, the Bucks rank last in offensive rebounding percentage, so they don’t give themselves many second chances.
East 3. Atlanta Hawks (14-12, 4-1 in NBA Cup)
OffRtg: 111.3 (20) DefRtg: 113.8 (18) NetRtg: -2.5 (18) Pace: 104.4 (3)
The Hawks have five losses to the Wizards, Bulls and Blazers, but also have six wins over the Cavs (x 2), Celtics, Knicks (x 2) and Bucks.
1. The Hawks are one of three teams with a winning record and a negative point differential.
They’re 0-4 in games decided by 20 points or more, but 8-4 in those decided by single digits. And they’ve won their last four games that were within five points in the last five minutes, scoring 64 points on 49 clutch possessions. Trae Young leads the league in clutch assists (17) and clutch free throws (25-for-28).
2. Dyson Daniels has averaged 6.3 deflections per game and 6.7 deflections per 36 minutes.
Those would be the highest rates in the nine seasons that deflections have been tracked, with the per-game number being 1.9 more than any other player has averaged. In his third season and just 21 years old, Daniels is a defensive menace who will likely be tasked with defending Damian Lillard on Saturday. He’s a big reason why the Hawks held Milwaukee to just a point per possession (one of the Bucks’ four worst offensive performances of the season) in their first meeting last week.
3. The Hawks are the only team with a better record when trailing at the half (7-6) than when leading at the half (6-6).
They were down seven at the half (and trailed by as many as 12) in New York on Wednesday, but the Hawks are the team for which the halftime score has meant the least. They have the most losses (they’re 11-6) in games they’ve led by double-digits and are tied for the most wins (they’re 7-10) in games they’ve trailed by double-digits.
The Hawks are headed to Vegas for the Emirates NBA Cup 2024 Semifinals, where they'll take on the Bucks. Shaq has thoughts.
West 1. Oklahoma City Thunder (19-5, 4-1 in NBA Cup)
OffRtg: 115.4 (8) DefRtg: 103.4 (1) NetRtg: +12.0 (1) Pace: 100.4 (10)
The Thunder are the best team in the Western Conference and lead the league in point differential (plus-12 points per game) by a healthy margin.
1. The Thunder have allowed 9.2 fewer points per 100 possessions than the league average (112.6).
That would be the biggest differential in the 29 seasons for which we have play-by-play data, topping the mark of the 2003-04 San Antonio Spurs (8.3 fewer than average). The Thunder have played a relatively easy schedule regarding opposing offenses, with four more games against teams that rank in the bottom 10 on that end of the floor (nine) than rank in the top 10 (five). But their win over the fourth-ranked Mavs on Tuesday was Dallas’ worst offensive performance of the season (104 points on 100 possessions). Statistically, they’re the best defensive team of the play-by-play era.
2. The Thunder have committed 7.4 fewer turnovers per game than their opponent.
That is, by far, the best differential for any team in the 48 seasons for which turnovers have been counted. The next-best differential this season is 2.9 fewer per game (Philadelphia). The Thunder lead the league in both turnover rate (11.7 per 100 possessions) and opponent turnover rate (19.1 per 100), with the latter being the highest opponent rate for any team in the last 26 seasons.
Best turnover differential since 1977-78
| Team | Season | GP | TO/G | Opp TO/G | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma City | 2024-25 | 24 | 11.8 | 19.2 | -7.4 |
| Denver | 1987-88 | 82 | 14.5 | 19.6 | -5.1 |
| Toronto | 2022-23 | 82 | 11.7 | 16.7 | -5.0 |
| Denver | 1985-86 | 82 | 16.3 | 21.2 | -4.9 |
| Seattle | 1993-94 | 82 | 15.4 | 20.3 | -4.9 |
3. They’re one of four teams that rank in the bottom 10 in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentage.
Rebounding continues to be an issue, though Isaiah Hartenstein has helped there. Oklahoma City has grabbed 52.4% of available rebounds with Hartenstein on the floor and just 46.3% of available boards with him off it. The team grabbed 79.5% of available defensive boards against Dallas on Tuesday, up from 55.3% in their loss to the Mavs (without Hartenstein) a few weeks earlier.
West 2. Houston Rockets (17-8, 4-1 in NBA Cup)
OffRtg: 111.9 (15) DefRtg: 105.1 (2) NetRtg: +6.8 (5) Pace: 99.5 (14)
For the second straight season, the Rockets are one of the most improved teams in the league.
1. The Rockets have allowed 7.7 fewer points per 100 possessions than they did last season (112.8, 10th).
That makes them the league’s most improved defensive team. But they also were the most improved defensive team last season, allowing 5.8 per 100 fewer than they did in 2022-23. In two seasons under coach Ime Udoka, they’ve gone from 29th to 10th to second in defensive efficiency. This season, they’ve seen the league’s second-biggest drop in opponent field goal percentage in the paint (leading the league at 52.1%) and its third-biggest drop in opponent free throw rate.
2. They’ve averaged 5.5 more shooting opportunities (field goal attempts or trips to the line) than their opponents.
That’s the league’s biggest differential. While the Rockets don’t have nearly the turnover differential that the Thunder do (they rank sixth with 1.9 fewer turnovers per game than their opponent), they lead the league in rebounding percentage and have grabbed 3.2 more offensive boards per game than their opponents. The Rockets are the opposite of the Bucks, ranking first in the percentage of their points (31.1%) that have come from fast breaks (15.8%, second) or second chances (15.2%, second). They do it in different ways, but both West semifinalists thrive by winning the possession game.
3. The Rockets average just 295 passes per 24 minutes of possession, according to Second Spectrum tracking.
That ranks last in the league. The Rockets have balanced scoring, with seven players averaging between 11.2 and 19.2 ppg, but that doesn’t come via a lot of ball movement. They rank last in assist rate (54.5% of field goals having been assisted) with their three leading scorers — Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and Fred VanVleet — all having been assisted on less than half of their buckets.
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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