Before the Lakers departed on a 1,750-mile flight from Los Angeles to the Midwest for Thursday’s exhibition against the Milwaukee Bucks, LeBron James took to social media to question the necessity of the trip.
“Can someone please explain to me why we’re getting on a [plane emoji] and heading to Milwaukee for 1 pre-season game!?!?” James posted to X on Wednesday.
The Lakers will play a six-game preseason slate this month, and none of the games are at home.
The team scheduled the games on the road because of planned renovations to Crypto.com Arena. The building is completing the third phase of its major renovation program since undergoing a rebrand from Staples Center to Crypto.com Arena in 2021.
The NHL’s Los Angeles Kings also will be displaced from their home ice until Oct. 24, when they open the regular season against the San Jose Sharks.
The result has been the purple-and-gold going on a barnstorming tour before the curtain rises on the NBA’s regular season on Oct. 22, when the Lakers host the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Lakers played their first two preseason games in Palm Desert, California — about a two-hour bus ride from their practice facility — this past weekend.
Following the Milwaukee trip, the Lakers will play their final three preseason games over a span of four days: vs. the Golden State Warriors in Las Vegas (Tuesday); at the Phoenix Suns (Oct. 17); and at the Warriors (Oct. 18).
“Not an ideal preseason for us,” Lakers first-year coach JJ Redick said Tuesday when asked about the travel schedule.
In past years, the Lakers would normally play a few preseason games at home, a couple on the road against Western Conference opponents and a few others in non-NBA cities in the broader L.A. region to give fans in places such as San Diego and Ontario, California, a chance to see the team in person.
While the NBA is responsible for putting together the 82-game schedule for all 30 teams, the league does not control the preseason schedule and allows each team to handle it on its own. There is no minimum number of preseason games required, but the maximum allowed is six.
The Bucks made the flight to Los Angeles last preseason as part of a three-game road trip through Memphis, L.A. and Oklahoma City and scheduled it so the team could spend nearly a full week in Southern California between the Grizzlies and Lakers games.
The Lakers are returning the favor to play in Milwaukee this preseason, as part of a prearranged trade-off as a home-and-home series, sources told ESPN.
Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell said he understood how travel could be taxing on James and Anthony Davis after the pair spent the offseason competing internationally, but he added the bulk of the roster is looking forward to getting back on the court — wherever that may be.
“I think for guys like AD and Bron who played all summer in the Olympics, they’ll be load managing those guys,” Russell said this week. “But the rest of us are still hungry. We want to go out there and play every game and put the Laker uniform on and see how the crowd responds to whoever is out there on the floor. Get some energy from that.
“So, for me, I look forward to having a good time.”