The Los Angeles Lakers won their 17th NBA title after a season like no other. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic first halted the games for more than four months back in March and then forced the league into a bubble located in Orlando’s Walt Disney World to resume the campaign.
And even though L.A. overcame the challenges of the bubble setting to be crowned champions, they were stripped of the chance to celebrate the long-awaited title with fans on the streets of Los Angeles due to the worsening coronavirus situation.
The L.A. Dodgers suffered the same fate after winning their first World Series in 32 years. But Lakers owner Jeanie Buss told Jim Hill of CBS Los Angeles the two franchises could make up for the missed celebrations by organizing a joint championship parade at some point in the future:
“My dream would be to have a co-parade with the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers as well. And all of the fans in Los Angeles can celebrate together, but not until it’s completely safe.”
Lakers All-Star LeBron James first advocated for all-L.A. celebrations with the Dodgers after they beat the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 6 of the 2020 World Series.
The Lakers have recently announced that no fans will be allowed inside Staples Center for their home games at the beginning of the 2020-21 season. The NBA was reportedly hoping the teams could have some fans in the stands for the new campaign’s tipoff.
The possibility, however, was said to be dependent on each market’s coronavirus situation and safety guidelines.
NBA avoided revenue losses of up to $1 billion thanks to December start
The NBA and NBPA were involved in long negotiations over the start of the new season but eventually agreed on a Dec. 22 tipoff.
And according to reports, the league avoided gigantic revenue losses, estimated to be between $500 and $1 billion, thanks to resuming the games at the end of 2020.
Lakers fre agent Jared Dudley claimed both the players and league owners saved $250 million in profit by approving the pre-Christmas return date.
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