The loss of Kobe Bryant is starting to be felt by the Los Angeles Lakers not only in the win-loss column, but also in the team’s ability to attract a national audience. As one of the few teams in the NBA that gets many nationally televised games on an annual basis, the franchise is use to massive exposure on a national level every single season regardless of the players on the team.
Unfortunately for the Lakers, this season is a special circumstance with Bryant only playing six games thus far and Dwight Howard signing with the Houston Rockets in the off-season.
Ironically enough, the first Lakers game to be flexed this season is a rematch with Howard’s Rockets on Jan. 8.
According to ESPN’s Arash Markazi via Twitter:
The Lakers-Rockets game time on Jan. 8 will be changed to 7pm local time and will no longer be televised by ESPN.
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) December 27, 2013
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