NBA Announces Home Arena Semifinals for Emirates Cup Starting 2026-27 Season

NEW YORK— The National Basketball Association announced today that starting with the 2026-27 NBA season, the Emirates NBA Cup Semifinals will take place at the arena of the higher-seeded team in each conference.

Currently, the Emirates NBA Cup Semifinals and Championship are held at a neutral location, specifically the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for the upcoming season, and this will remain in place until the end of the 2025-26 NBA season. Beginning with the 2026-27 season, only the Championship game will be conducted at a neutral site.

Additionally, during today’s meeting, the NBA Board of Governors approved a modification to the Coach’s Challenge rules. From the 2025-26 NBA season onward, when reviewing an out-of-bounds violation following a Coach’s Challenge, the decision regarding whether a foul in close proximity should have been called will be made by the official at the Replay Center rather than the crew chief on the court. This change aims to streamline the replay review process.

Last season was the first instance where NBA referees could assess whether a nearby foul should have been called in conjunction with a Coach’s Challenge for an out-of-bounds situation, but the crew chief on the floor was responsible for that determination. Moving forward, however, this decision will belong to an official at the Replay Center.

This change to the Coach’s Challenge rule received unanimous support from the NBA Competition Committee and the league administration.