The 2020-21 NBA season is quickly approaching, as the COVID-19-shortened offseason will cause the Los Angeles Lakers to be back on the court less than two months after they secured the franchise’s 17th championship. The Lakers still have to add a couple of players on veteran minimum contracts (Hello, Jared Dudley), as they just recently added more pieces to their rotation in Markieff Morris and Marc Gasol. The front office and the organization will get no rest once the roster is fully assembled, as training camp opens on December 1st.
Right after that, the Lakers will officially be back on the court on December 11th, which was announced as the start of the preseason a month or so ago. The NBA officially released the schedule of their preseason that will run until the 19th, and the Lakers will be kicking off their preseason against some familiar foes in the Los Angeles Clippers. Below are the dates and times of the Lakers’ four preseason games as well as the full preseason slate per Shams Charania and The Athletic.
Friday, December 11th: Home vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 7:00 p.m. PST
Sunday, December 13th: Home vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 6:30 p.m. PST
Wednesday, December 16th: Away vs. Phoenix Suns – 6:00 p.m. PST
Friday, December 18th: Away vs Phoenix Suns – 6:00 p.m. PST
Full NBA Preseason schedule: pic.twitter.com/QIpc6lWdO9
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 27, 2020
The NBA’s choice to pair the Lakers with the Clippers and Suns was almost certainly based on location, as the NBA will be trying to fend off positive COVID-19 tests by trying to lessen travel. They’ll be doing this in the regular season with MLB-type series scheduling, and since preseason games don’t matter in the long run, the teams might as well play teams that are at least somewhat close.
The Lakers will obviously then play Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and the Clippers since they’re across the hall. After that, the Lakers will take a little trip to the desert to play the newly imagined Suns who will have Chris Paul to pair with Devin Booker.
Basketball tips-off with the preseason in two weeks!
