EL SEGUNDO — Before the Lakers embarked on their 1,700-plus mile flight to Milwaukee for Thursday’s preseason matchup against the Bucks at Fiserv Forum, star forward LeBron James questioned why the game was scheduled in the first place.
“Can someone please explain to me why we’re getting on a [plane emoji] and heading to Milwaukee for [one] pre-season game!?!?” James posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.
The Thursday matchup will be the Lakers’ third of six preseason games, with all their exhibitions being played away from their home arena of Crypto.com Arena.
The downtown L.A. venue is going through the final phase of a three-year renovation plan, affecting more than just the Lakers’ preseason schedule.
The NHL’s Kings will play their first seven regular-season games on the road before their home opener on Oct. 24 – two days after the Lakers’ regular-season home opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 22.
The Lakers are coming off losses to the Timberwolves on Friday night and the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night, with the Lakers hosting both games at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert – about a two-hour bus ride from the team’s El Segundo practice facility.
After Thursday’s matchup, the Lakers will get a couple of days off before playing their final three preseason games in four days:
• vs. the Golden State Warriors at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Tuesday;
• at the Phoenix Suns at the Footprint Center on Oct. 17;
• at the Warriors at Chase Center on Oct. 18.
“Not an ideal preseason for us,” Lakers coach JJ Redick responded after Tuesday’s practice when asked about the preseason travel schedule.
The Lakers would typically play a couple of exhibitions at their home arena in addition to a couple of road games against Western Conference opponents and hosting matchups at a neutral site in the Southern California area – such as Palm Desert or Anaheim – or even Las Vegas.
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Unlike the regular season, teams are mostly responsible for creating their preseason schedules.
ESPN reported that the Lakers’ preseason trip to Milwaukee is part of a prearranged deal of a home-and-home series.
The Bucks traveled to Los Angeles last fall for an exhibition as part of a three-game trip that included matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder, but they scheduled the matchups in a way that allowed them to be in Southern California for nearly a week.
The Lakers’ trip will be much quicker.
LAKERS AT BUCKS
When: Thursday, 5 p.m. PT
Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee
TV/radio: Spectrum SportsNet, 710 AM