The NBA announced Tuesday that the 2026 NBA Cup Championship game will be held at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, a historic venue with deep ties to basketball and Hollywood.
This marks the first time since 1953 that a regular-season NBA game will be played at the 98-year-old arena, often called "Indiana's Basketball Cathedral." Hinkle Fieldhouse, located on the campus of Butler University, has hosted numerous significant basketball events, including NCAA Tournament games and was the home of the NBA's Indianapolis Olympians from 1949 to 1953.
Hinkle Fieldhouse opened in 1928 and has hosted numerous events beyond basketball, including speeches from six U.S. presidents, circuses, and ice shows. The arena gained widespread recognition as the filming location for the championship scene in the classic 1986 film "Hoosiers," which was inspired by the "Milan Miracle" of 1954 when Milan High School upset the favored Muncie Central High School for the state title.
In addition to its pop culture significance, Hinkle Fieldhouse was also the site where Crispus Attucks High School, led by future NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson, won consecutive state basketball titles in 1955 and 1956, becoming the first all-black high school to achieve consecutive championships.
This move marks the first time the NBA Cup Final will be held outside of Las Vegas, which has hosted the tournament's championship game for the past three years. The league hopes that playing the championship in such an iconic basketball environment will further elevate the event's status.
"Hinkle Fieldhouse offers a special setting to capture the excitement and drama of the Emirates NBA Cup Championship," said Kelly Flatow, NBA Head of Global Events. "Playing the championship in an iconic basketball environment like this will further establish it as a signature moment on the NBA calendar."
The NBA Cup was first won by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023, followed by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2024 and the New York Knicks in the most recent season. The Knicks went on to win the NBA Finals later that season, becoming the first team in NBA history to win both the NBA Cup and the NBA Finals in the same year.