The Los Angeles Lakers have an opportunity to become the first team to win the NBA Cup twice, as they won the inaugural cup back in 2023. In order to do that, though, they’ll have to get through the San Antonio Spurs.
The Lakers will host the Spurs in a cup quarterfinal contest on Wednesday night and the winner will advance to the conference semifinal.
Unfortunately for the Spurs, they’ll be shorthanded for the contest, as star center Victor Wembanyama will miss his 12th consecutive game with a calf injury. He has been officially ruled out of the contest.
LeBron James will play in NBA Cup game vs. Spurs
Meanwhile, the Lakers will have their own star frontcourt player available, as LeBron James isn’t listed on the official injury report for the game and thus is expected to play. James playing in games isn’t a given this season as he’s nursing various injuries and the Lakers want to try to keep him relatively fresh for the long haul, but he’ll be in action against San Antonio.
In his most recent game action against the 76ers in Philadelphia on Sunday, James turned back the clock. He scored a season-high 29 points, including 10 straight for the Lakers in the fourth quarter that helped propel L.A. To a win. In the process, James passed Robert Parish to move in second on the NBA’s all-time regular season wins list.
“It’s super humbling,” James said of the accomplishment after the game. “… To be able to be in the position to play the game that I love and still be able to do it at a high level. … Obviously I didn’t get to an opportunity to see Robert Parish when he was at the height of his game, he was in the ‘80s. I did see later when he was with the Bulls, but, you know what he meant to the game in that era especially, all those championships they were winning.
“… Being a historian of the game and being able to appreciate it, that’s what’s most important for me, appreciating the ones who came before me because they laid down the stones, they laid down the path and I’m trying to do the same thing for the next generation."
On the season, James is averaging 16.1 points, 7.6 assists and 4.7 rebounds in 33.1 minutes per game.