5-time NBA champion says ‘no real fans care’ about Lakers’ success in NBA Cup

The Los Angeles Lakers have started their NBA Cup schedule off on the right foot this season, continuing a trend from last season when they were flawless in the tournament.

Between seven games in the NBA Cup last season and two so far this season, L.A. holds a 9-0 all-time record in the event.

But for all of the success that the Lakers have enjoyed so far while competing in the NBA Cup, former Los Angeles guard Ron Harper thinks that true fans don’t care about how the team fares in the tournament.

At 2-0 in the event this season, the Lakers have the top record of any team in the Western Conference’s Group B. In their first NBA Cup contest, Los Angeles beat the San Antonio Spurs by five points on Nov. 15. Big man Anthony Davis scored a season-high 40 points on 14-of-26 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 shooting from deep in that game.

In their latest NBA Cup game, the Lakers came out on top against the Utah Jazz on Nov. 19, and Los Angeles rookie Dalton Knecht was the star of the game. He dropped 37 points — the most scored by any rookie in a single contest this season — and connected on a whopping nine 3-pointers.

But ultimately, there are plenty of Lakers fans who hold the belief that any season that doesn’t culminate in the team winning the NBA Finals is a failure.

The Lakers perennially deal with such high expectations, seemingly in part because of how successful the franchise has been over the years. Los Angeles has won 17 titles as an organization, and the Boston Celtics are the only NBA team with more titles at 18.

The iconic Lakers franchise also has the most NBA Finals appearances of any of the league’s 30 squads with 32.

Los Angeles’ most recent NBA title came in 2020, when the playoffs were held in the Orlando, Fla. bubble. The Lakers were led by stars LeBron James and Davis but also had a great supporting cast around them.

Unfortunately, the team hasn’t reached the NBA Finals since then, and the Lakers’ stint in the 2024 NBA Playoffs came to an end at the hands of the Denver Nuggets in the first round.