The Los Angeles Lakers are the most successful franchise in NBA history, having won 17 titles, tied with the Boston Celtics. The Lakers are very selective about the parts of their history they showcase, not even hanging banners for divisional or conference titles like most other franchises in the NBA.
They’ll continue this trend, as they will not be adding an In-Season Tournament banner if they beat the Pacers in the Final.
“I’m told the Lakers currently have no plans to change their stance on only hanging banners for NBA championships. They don’t hang banners for Western Conference titles, Pacific Division titles, and (for now) potential NBA In-Season Tournament titles, only NBA titles.”
I’m told the Lakers currently have no plans to change their stance on only hanging banners for NBA championships. They don’t hang banners for Western Conference titles, Pacific Division titles and (for now) potential NBA In-Season Tournament titles, only NBA titles.
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) December 8, 2023
People have been talking about the importance the Lakers have given to the In-Season Tournament as a factor that legitimizes the high level of competition we’ve seen this season. While the tournament probably played a part in increasing energy and engagement, most teams target winning as many games as they can. This is a regular-season achievement in many ways, and the Lakers are not known to reward themselves for that.
A division title would be harder to win than an In-Season Tournament, primarily due to a division title being handed out after 82 games have been played. The added competition of the In-Season Tournament is a great addition to the league’s middling regular-season action from the start of the season until Christmas. However, it cannot be held to the same standard as winning an NBA title.
LeBron James Not Getting ‘Too Crazy’ Over In-Season Tournament Success
After the Lakers beat the Pelicans in the semi-finals behind a classic LeBron James performance, the King spoke to the media. He told everyone to not get carried away because we’re still in December, with their success in the tournament just being a result of them wanting to maximize their wins whenever they can.
“It’s still December, I’m not getting too crazy about the whole thing. I understand that this thing has been great, but it’s still December. It is another game for us to get better. We wanna try and win the game because we’re a team that wants to get better every time we go out there. We have another opportunity to do that.”
For a team that’s lost 9 games on the season, it must be nice to have not lost any of them in the In-Season Tournament. The Lakers left their group 4-0 and have picked up wins over the Suns and Pelicans since then. They’re 7-9 in games outside the In-Season Tournament, so the competition element helped the Lakers perform better in these games. This is also great preparation for the playoffs.
Now that the Final won’t be counted in the regular-season standings, it’ll be interesting to see how the Lakers approach the game. Nobody wants to lose anything, especially a game that’s for a tangible trophy. It’s not the Larry O’Brien, but it’s something to fight for.
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