Lakers to hang banner for in-season tournament championship
The Los Angeles Lakers are going all in on their in-season tournament championship.
After defeating the Indiana Pacers on Saturday for the inaugural NBA Cup, the Lakers announced plans Monday to hang a banner at Crypto.com Arena to commemorate the achievement. The banner will hang alongside the franchise's 17 NBA championship banners and retired jerseys including those of Magic Johnson, Kareem-Abdul Jabbar and Kobe Bryant.
But it won't look like their NBA championship banners.
Per the Lakers, they'll “unveil a unique, add-a-year in-season tournament banner, recognizing the inaugural 2023 win." They didn't provide other details of the banner itself. But it sounds like they're leaving room to honor any future in-season championships on the same banner rather than hanging new ones.
It all sounds like an appropriate compromise that honors the novel achievement while differentiating it from the more prestigious accomplishments acknowledged in the rafters. The Lakers are the first to do this, so they're setting the template for future NBA Cup celebrations.
The Lakers will unveil the banner Dec. 18 before their home game against the New York Knicks. They'll do so alongside a ceremony honoring LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who were both named to the All-Tournament Team alongside Pacers guard Tyrese Halliburton, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant.
James earned MVP honors after averaging 26.4 points, eight rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.6 steals while shooting 56.8% from the field and 60.6% from 3-point range in seven tournament games that were all Lakers wins.
