It’s not yet the finals but this hasn’t stopped fans from trooping into the T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday night. The Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors had their first preseason game for 2018 last Wednesday. Although this was more of an exhibition game, the arena was still packed with people taking a glimpse of what the future in the NBA could look like and this involved a striking image of Lebron James in his new colors, purple and gold.
Lebron in the Los Angeles Lakers
When Lebron signed in to the Los Angeles Lakers, there were many opinions of varying degrees. But for the Lakers organization as well as the fans of the franchise all over the world it was an exciting news and one they’ve welcomed very much. To them, this is a huge step in taking the Los Angeles Lakers back to the playoffs and quite possibly the NBA Finals. The team’s playoff presence and absences in many succeeding NBA Finals hasn’t come unnoticed, especially after a successful run with Kobe Bryant still in the team. While Lebron’s signing to the Lakers brought a lot of speculations as to his reason behind it, James’ makes it clear that the number one reason for his decision was his family.
Growing Rivalry Between the Lakers and the Warriors
With Lebron James now in the west, basketball fans are all excited for the two team’s rivalry, especially when only one team from the western conference can go into the finals. However, Lebron dismissed any issues with rivalry after an interview, stating “What rivalry?”
Whether there is a rivalry now or in the near future as the basketball season begins, fans will yet to see it. Clearly though, there wasn’t any rivalry in the preseason game last Wednesday. Both teams gave their all and both teams are excited for what’s up ahead in the season.
Star Studded Arena
It was an exhibition game in the T-Mobile Arena Wednesday night and fans came to see a star-studded court. Sharing the same court were Lebron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. Lebron even got to play with Lonzo Ball for the first time. Both players played it easy though. Ball just got back from a knee injury and was replaced after 2 minutes and 13 seconds of play by Rajon Rondo.
Lebron also took it easy with the rest of the team, making sure the reserves had enough court time on the second half. He played only 17 minutes in the first half, but it was a spectacular play and didn’t disappoint fans in any way. James even got a standing ovation from the crowd after hitting a 30-footer at the buzzer, giving the Los Angeles Lakers the halftime lead. He scored 15 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in the first half. The night concluded with Lakers winning the game at 123-113.
Both Klay Thompson and head coach of the Warriors, Steve Kerr, have expressed their excitement with Lebron James’ presence in the west. According to them, both teams have always played on an intense level while Lebron was still playing in the eastern conference. The intensity now that he’s in the western conference just got a little hotter and everybody who’s a fan of the NBA is looking forward come the start of the season.