NBA Lakers and Clippers home games will resume Monday after weekend games were postponed amid wildfires


The NBA announced that home games for both the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers would resume on Monday, after both teams postponed games originally scheduled for Saturday due to the wildfires raging in Southern California.

The Lakers will host the San Antonio Spurs on Monday at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, while the Clippers will host the Miami Heat at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, south of the Palisades fire.

The Clippers said at practice Sunday that the league had given the green light for Monday’s game. The Spurs said they were told Monday’s matchup against the Lakers would be played as scheduled.

Saturday’s games in Southern California, in which the Lakers were initially scheduled to host the Spurs in the first of two consecutive games between the two teams and the Clippers’ home game against the Charlotte Hornets, were postponed in response to fires. The Lakers also had a game previously scheduled for Thursday against the Hornets delayed.

NBA POSTPONES SATURDAY’S LAKERS-SPURS, CLIPPERS-HORNETS GAMES IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DUE TO INDUSTRIAL FIRES

Los Angeles Lakers NBA basketball head coach JJ Redick, right, is hugged by guard Austin Reaves, left, before speaking to the media about the Pacific Palisades wildfire at a conference press in El Segundo, California, on Friday, January 10, 2025. (AP)

“I pray this nightmare ends soon!” Lakers star forward LeBron James wrote on social media platform X on Saturday.

The Spurs had to change hotels due to fire concerns after arriving in Los Angeles, while the Heat arrived Saturday night as planned.

The Lakers and Clippers are also scheduled to host games on Wednesday, when the Lakers host the Heat and the Clippers play the Brooklyn Nets.

“When people lose their homes, kids lose schools, lose lives, it’s very difficult to get close to basketball because life is bigger than basketball,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue told reporters. “Hopefully we can bring some kind of joy with the return of play tomorrow and some unity and try to put some smiles on people’s faces in difficult times.”

LEBRON JAMES SENDING ‘SO MANY PRAYERS’ AS LOS ANGELES WILDFIRES CONTINUE

Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard watches during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Jayne-Kamin-Oncea)

Clippers guard Terance Mann plans to search a storage unit that holds useful items he intends to donate.

“I just want to donate a lot of clothes, some money, shoes, anything I can,” he said. “I’m going to help people, donate, drive and do what I can to help.”

Some members of the Clippers organization were forced to evacuate their homes during the fires. The team was on the road when the fires started, and star forward Kawhi Leonard left the team in Denver to help his family in Pacific Palisades evacuate.

Lakers coach JJ Redick said his family’s rental home in Pacific Palisades burned down Tuesday night, destroying most of their belongings.

“I wasn’t prepared for what I saw,” Redick said Friday. “It’s complete devastation and destruction. I had to go another way to the house, but I went through most of the town and everything was gone. I don’t think you can prepare for something like that. Our house is gone.”

Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick recounts how he and his family lost their home in the deadly Pacific Palisades wildfire during an NBA basketball news conference at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, California, on Friday, January 10, 2025. (AP)

The Lakers announced a donation campaign for their upcoming games starting Monday. The team has urged fans to bring new items included in the package to support the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank’s relief efforts.

The team’s UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo will be used as a drive-thru donation center starting Tuesday, with essential non-food items listed as priorities, but packaged foods are also accepted.

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association, which is the players’ union, announced Friday a $1 million donation for immediate relief to the American Red Cross, World Central Kitchen and other organizations working to provide assistance to victims and recovery efforts.

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