Last season, the Los Angeles Lakers claimed the inaugural In-Season Tournament Championship trophy with a 123-109 win over the Indiana Pacers. They now have a chance to defend that title with a gauntlet of matchups in the rebranded Emirates NBA Cup, where they have been placed in West Group B.
Lakers News: Road to Defending NBA Cup Trophy Revealed
Nov. 15: Lakers at Spurs
7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
The Lakers open up their IST title defense against Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. LA won last year’s regular season series 3-1. Their lone loss to San Antonio came in December—when Anthony Davis was out and Devin Vassell dropped a career-high 36 points. This time around, the Spurs look noticeably different. They drafted Stephon Castle, Harrison Ingram and Juan Nuñez and added veterans Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes, among others, this offseason. The Lakers will be challenged by the Spurs’ added length in the frontcourt, and will also have to hold off any energetic bursts from their young players.
Nov. 19: Lakers vs. Jazz
10:30 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass
The Lakers and Jazz meet up once again in the Emirates NBA Cup. Although the purple and gold took care of business in the group stage, the regular season matchups came with mixed results. Similar to the Spurs, the Lakers won the season series against the Jazz 3-1, with their only loss coming without LeBron James. Their last matchup was one to remember, as LA prevailed in an overtime thriller, 135-133.
Even though the Jazz are likely destined for a bottom-tier finish, the Lakers should not take them lightly. Lauri Markkanen—who had been a Laker trade target before signing a max extension—has proven he can get hot night in and night out. Aside from Markkanen, the Jazz have a plethora of other offensive weapons in Collin Sexton, John Collins, Jordan Clarkson and Keyonte George. They also drafted three rookies—Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier and Kyle Filipowski—who could all slide into the rotation if needed.
Nov. 26: Lakers at Suns
10 p.m. ET, ESPN
The Lakers and Suns present a marquee matchup in the second-to-last game of group play. Phoenix continues to have title aspirations behind their “big 3” of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, and this time, they used their offseason to shore up the depth around them. Aside from re-signing most of their own free agents, the Suns brought in Tyus Jones, Mason Plumlee, Monte Morris and TyTy Washington Jr. Like the Jazz, the Lakers and Suns met in last year’s In-Season Tournament, with the Lakers prevailing in both the group stage and quarterfinals by a mere three points. The regular season series, however, was a different story, as Phoenix comfortably won three of the four meetings. The Suns will arguably be LA’s biggest test throughout group play, as the Lakers attempt to take down a major big three with the talent to back them up as well.
Nov. 29: Lakers vs. Thunder
10 p.m. ET, ESPN
West Group B play will end with the Lakers facing the OKC Thunder, who earned the No. 1 seed in last season’s playoffs. The Lakers won the season series 3-1, but these games were far from blowouts, with LA having to come from behind on multiple occasions. The keys to their regular season wins were big performances from Davis, James and D’Angelo Russell, with any one of them able to take over seemingly at the push of a button. LeBron scored 40 points on Dec. 23; Davis had 27 points and 15 rebounds on Jan. 15; and Russell erupted for 24 points (including five three-pointers) on Mar. 5.
As with nearly every other team in the West, the Thunder made some notable additions this offseason. Their biggest one—quite literally—was prying Isaiah Hartenstein from the Knicks in free agency. They also swapped Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso and drafted Nikola Topic despite his torn ACL. All of those weapons surrounding Chet Holmgren and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander make the Thunder a key roadblock for the Lakers in their journey to win the Emirates NBA Cup.
