The joy was not complete for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers as they unveiled the NBA In-Season Tournament championship banner with… a defeat against the New York Knicks.

A week after clinching the NBA In-Season Tournament championship in the tournament’s inaugural edition, the Los Angeles Lakers celebrated this achievement in a unique way.

The purple and gold team raised the championship banner to the rafters of the Crypto.com Arena on the morning of December 19 (Vietnam time), a celebration ceremony equivalent to winning the NBA championship.

The unveiling ceremony of this banner was brief but still quite solemn, taking place just before the match between the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks.

Both teams paused warm-ups for about 5 minutes. A video summarizing the Lakers’ undefeated journey with a 7-0 record was shown on the big screen. Afterward, the championship banner of the NBA In-Season Tournament by the Los Angeles Lakers officially appeared.

The NBA In-Season Tournament championship banner by the Los Angeles Lakers is designed with black borders and gold accents. In the middle is the text “In-Season Tournament Champions,” accompanied by the team logo, the championship year 2023, and an image of the trophy.

Compared to other championship banners in the Crypto.com Arena, this banner is smaller but has a more distinctive shape to stand out.

“I think this achievement is a positive highlight for the club. Of course, the tournament will continue to develop and expand, but no one will forget the first championship team. I am proud and very proud of the players,” head coach Darvin Ham shared.

But the joy was not complete for the Los Angeles Lakers as they lost to the New York Knicks 109-114 on the day of unveiling the championship banner.

LeBron James had a triple-double but still could not lead his teammates to victory.

Anthony Davis scored 32 points along with 14 rebounds. LeBron James had a triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists, and Austin Reaves scored 20 points. Unfortunately, these efforts were not enough for them to celebrate the victory.

On the opposing front, Jalen Brunson continued his impressive form with 29 points. He combined with Julius Randle’s 27 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Knicks to their third win in the last 5 games.

Leading the New York Knicks, Jalen Brunson brought sorrow to the Lakers on the day of unveiling the NBA In-Season Tournament championship banner.

Despite performing quite inconsistently in the Regular Season, the LA Lakers played extremely well in the NBA In-Season Tournament.

Before entering the cup competition, they only had 3 wins in the first 8 games in early November and fell to the bottom half of the standings. But when entering the In-Season Tournament, the Lakers created a 7-game unbeaten streak to climb to 4th place in the Western Conference.

Now that the cup competition has ended, LeBron James and his teammates show signs of instability again. Adding to the defeat right after unveiling the championship banner against the New York Knicks this morning, the Lakers have lost 3 out of their last 4 games.