Lakers to raise banner for In-Season Tournament win, but with a twist

Last updated: 2023/12/11 at 11:28 PM

BigP Published December 11, 2023

The Los Angeles Lakers are raising their 18th championship banner — sorta.

Following their win in the In-Season Tournament, the Lakers will raise a banner to commemorate the win, the team announced Monday.

However, the banner will come with a pair of caveats. First, the banner will be in a different shape and color than the Lakers’ 17 NBA championship banners. Second, the Lakers will only use the one banner to celebrate any future In-Season Tournament wins.

As of Monday, the exact design of the banner is unknown. But the team will officially unveil it ahead of its next home game, which is against the Knicks on Dec. 18.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis helped the Lakers win the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament on Saturday, outlasting the Pacers, 123-109, in the title game. Davis put up a remarkable 41 points and 20 rebounds in the win, marking the fifth time in his career that he’s scored 40 points and grabbed 20 rebounds.

But James won the tournament’s MVP award, scoring 26.4 points with eight rebounds and 7.6 assists per game. James scored 30 points and dished out eight assists in the Lakers’ semifinal win over the Pelicans, playing just 23 minutes in the 133-89 blowout win.

Both James and Davis were named to the All-NBA In-Season Tournament team, joining Tyrese Haliburton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant. Davis scored 23.3 points while grabbing 14.6 rebounds per game, adding 2.9 blocks per game in the tournament as Los Angeles won all seven of its games.

The Lakers will resume regular-season play on Tuesday, when they face the Mavericks. It’s the first game of a three-game road trip before they head back home for their banner ceremony.

Los Angeles is 14-9 this season, sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference standings, but just four games back of first. The Lakers currently hold the sixth-best odds to win the NBA title.

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