More often than not, NBA teams do everything they can to combat distractions. Monday, the Lakers I couldn’t have been more excited to have one.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis had to evacuate their homes. JJ Redick lost his. Reconstruction hasn’t even begun, another round of winds keeping red swaths of the city on alert.
But Redick, one of the most public faces of these fires, knew this would be an opportunity to think about something else, however temporary.
“I think a group works best when they draw strength from each other. And the way my players, my staff and the organization supported me, rallied around me (clearly, rallied around the city) and loved my family, there’s a real strength in that. And that’s the kind of force reception. So it’s our job to give strength, hope and joy,” Redick said before the game. “Sports are many things and sports can certainly provide an escape and a distraction and hopefully sports, and tonight, can provide some joy as well.”
Read more: Lakers coach JJ Redick vows to help rebuild Los Angeles after losing his home in a fire
Through that lens, this was all a success: Fans were immersed in the moments James and Davis tried to figure out Victor Wembanyama’s 7-foot-3 frame after fires postponed the Lakers’ final two games.
The distraction of the outside world, the actual game, however, again exposed some of the Lakers’ problems within basketball, a team again attacking them with more physicality and harshness, the Spurs deflating the crowd and surging to a level 126-102 victorythe third consecutive loss for the Lakers.
Davis and James combined to score 48 on 20-of-29 shooting, but the Lakers’ supporting cast struggled. Austin Reaves was targeted by the Spurs offense after they moved Davis away from the rim. They pushed and shoved Rui Hachimura and Max Christie.
And the Lakers offered little fight in return.
The loss came when their offense fell apart in the fourth quarter as the team scored just 13 points.
The problems, however, came at the end of the third, the Lakers led by 10 points before San Antonio bombarded them with 10 points in a row without Redick or the bench calling a timeout.
In addition to their first game after wildfire postponements, the Lakers went ahead with a planned celebration of their past.
At halftime, the team retired Michael Cooper’s No. 21, the crowning achievement after Cooper’s career earned him a spot in the Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2024.
Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Jamaal Wilkes, Norm Nixon, Byron Scott and Pat Riley were among the former Lakers who were present at the ceremony.
Cooper had been part of some of their celebrations; This was his turn.
“I’ve always tried to play the game the right way. And it’s such a good feeling to have people recognize it,” Cooper said. “Even though I’ve always been on a team with a lot of mega stars, I was sometimes overshadowed, but that didn’t bother me because it was about the work we were doing and winning championships. So for my turn, coming to the plate and getting up here and being alone on the podium with everyone watching is very, very cool. Because again, like I said, this came out of nowhere.”
That celebration was one of the last moments of well-being of the night. But it wasn’t the last.
As the Lakers players left the court deflated, Redick headed to midcourt where Wembanyama and Chris Paul gave their jerseys to Redick’s sons, Knox and Kai. The children lost several treasured memorabilia in the Palisades fire.
It was a reminder that returning to basketball on Monday was still difficult. But at least he was back to something.
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This story originally appeared on Los Angeles Times.