Lakers NBA Cup Quarterfinal Opponent Revealed

The 14-4 Los Angeles Lakers will face the 13-5 San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, Dec. 10, during the NBA Cup quarterfinals.

The game will start at 7:00 p.m. at Crypto.com Arena, giving the Lakers homecourt advantage in their matchup.

The Lakers defeated the Dallas Mavericks 129-119 during the group stage of the NBA Cup on Friday to secure a spot in the knockout round.

Luka Doncic scored 35 points, along with 11 assists and five rebounds. Austin Reaves also made a fair contribution, scoring 38 points.

The Lakers were behind at halftime, but they stepped up in the final two quarters to secure the win.

A Six-Game Winning Streak

Following the Lakers' victory on Friday, the team improved to 14-4 for the season and extended its six-game winning streak.

Head coach JJ Redick discussed the NBA Cup result and how it will influence the game plan during the days leading up to the next phase.

“Really pleased that we were able to go undefeated in our group,” Redick said, per Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. “More importantly, we’ve got a back-to-back coming up and a really hard road trip.

"We’ve gotta take care of business in the next two games, and then we’ve gotta go be great on the road like we’ve been for most of the year outside of two games. And the Cup is in some ways, a distant memory for the next 12 days or whatever it is.”

The NBA Cup is still a new concept, but it is growing into a meaningful tournament. It rewards teams in the middle of the season with an additional revenue source and provides an extra incentive to compete.

The title will never matter as much as an NBA championship, but Redick highlighted the motivation for the team in the tournament.

“I really enjoyed it as a broadcaster, covering it, talking about it,” Redick said before the Mavs game.

“Didn’t get an opportunity to compete for the Cup last year. So we’re excited. I mean, $53,000 is a lot of money. It’s just, it is, so I’m sure there’s some extra motivation. Coaches do get to split a share. I think the head coach might get a full share. So it’s motivation for sure.”