NBA postpones Saturday’s Lakers-Spurs, Clippers-Hornets games due to fires
The NBA announced on Friday night that Saturday night’s Lakers-San Antonio Spurs game at Crypto.com Arena and the Clippers-Charlotte Hornets matchup at Intuit Dome will be postponed because of the ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
The league said in its statement that the dates for the rescheduled games will be announced at a later time.
“The NBA and the Clippers and Lakers organizations have been in communication with local officials in Los Angeles and Inglewood about the ongoing situation in the Los Angeles area and the game postponements ensure no resources will be diverted from the wildfire response efforts,” the league said in its statement. “The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association are donating [$1 million] for immediate relief to the American Red Cross, World Central Kitchen and other organizations to support those affected by this disaster and are working with the Lakers and Clippers on ways to support longer term assistance and rebuilding efforts.”
The Lakers’ next scheduled game is Monday night against the Spurs at Crypto.com Arena, while the Clippers are slated to host the Miami Heat the same night.
Saturday will be the second consecutive Lakers game that has been postponed because of the fires. The Clippers’ home game against the Hornets is their lone postponement so far.
The NBA announced that Saturday's Lakers-Spurs and Clippers-Hornets games have been postponed:
— Khobi Price (@khobiprice.bsky.social) 2025-01-11T03:53:04.514Z
The Lakers’ home game against the Hornets scheduled for Thursday night was also postponed, with the makeup date for that rescheduled game also being announced at a later time.
Lakers coach JJ Redick’s rental home in Pacific Palisades was one of the structures lost to the Palisades Fire.
After the team’s practice on Friday in El Segundo, which Redick said gave him “something to look forward to”, he expressed his desire to play Saturday’s game while also saying the Lakers would work with the Spurs, the NBA and the city of Los Angeles to do “what’s right.”
“We certainly want to do everything we can within the safety parameters of what’s going on in the city,” Redick said. “We obviously want to give people hope and we want to give – I don’t want to say a distraction. Maybe an escape. We talked about it as a group before practice. It is our responsibility – everybody in this building – to lead on this and to help people. You never know what that’s going to look like. Between myself, [Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka], I know the Buss family – Jeanie specifically – we’re prepared to do whatever it takes to help Los Angeles.”