Throughout a season, there are games that fans of teams circle on the calendar as having more weight than others. It could be a marquee matchup, a game against a rival, or an opponent they’ve played before
that’s given their team trouble.
So, when the Lakers faced the Spurs in the NBA Cup quarterfinal, the game certainly had a bit more importance than a regular-season contest.
When you factor in that the Spurs are almost certainly a Western Conference playoff team, the game suddenly has even more sizzle.
However, that might just be fan and media perception and not what the players are feeling.
After the Lakers fell to the Spurs, ending their NBA Cup run, LeBron James had no interest in taking this game as an indicator of what could happen come playoff time.
“It’s December what? 10th?” LeBron rhetorically asked. “You’re talking about the playoffs? No, I can’t, I can’t do that. It’s not ok. Not in my mindset. I can’t think about what we can do in the playoffs in December. What I can say is that the habits that we built throughout the regular season, each month, if we are in a position to make it to the postseason and be able to get to that point, we have to build it now. But as far as talking about what type of damage we can do in the postseason in December, it’s not right for the basketball Gods, not for me.”
Most NBA players, and even coaches, take a day-by-day approach to the season. It’s rare that they ever speak about looking ahead or focusing on anything other than what is directly in front of them.
So, while fans and even LeBron’s agent Rich Paul, might wonder if the Lakers have enough to make the Western Conference Finals, that doesn’t seem to be the focus for James and the team.
And it shouldn’t be. LeBron has played in just eight games this year and the team needs to focus on gelling and getting as good as they possibly can, not thinking about anything postseason related when there’s more basketball in front of them than behind.
If the Lakers maximize their potential, the rest will take care of itself.
The front office will make decisions on possible changes, but for the players on the court, it is important to keep the main thing, the main thing and that entails racking up as many wins as possible.
For now, that means preparing for another game against the Suns and getting back in the win column.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.
