The Los Angeles Lakers have been a much worse road team during the 2024-25 season, so their first game of group play in the Emirates NBA Cup was going to be a challenge when they took on the San Antonio Spurs.
The Lakers are the defending NBA Cup champions and hadn’t lost a group play game dating back to last season, but this time around they really had to work to keep that streak alive. After a back-and-forth fourth quarter where the two teams traded the lead, Los Angeles was able to hang on and win 120-115 to pick up their first win of group play.