LOS ANGELES – When ABC announcer Mike Breen announced the closing seconds of the Lakers’ victory in the NBA final in October, he exclaimed, “Number 17 pennant will soon be on the rafters.”
He was right about the hanging section. What Breen didn’t know was that when the Lakers open the season against the LA Clippers on Tuesday, no one will see the flag make its new home at Staples Center.
For opening night, the Lakers will wear a black cape covering the 2019/20 Championship flag, with the message “Stay tuned, Lakers family” printed in gold capital letters.
It will remain covered until the coronavirus pandemic clears and fans can return to the building for the games.
“We’re not going to reveal a flag because we want to wait for the fans to do that,” Lakers president Tim Harris told ESPN. “When you win a championship, the championship has a lot of owners in quotes. A championship belongs to the team, it belongs to the players, it belongs to the fans.”
“And then the things that belong to a championship, the assets that belong to a championship, it’s like your own group is the keepers of the trophy. And the rings when you win a championship belong to the players. And the flag as if you win a championship. championship belongs to the fans. That’s how I see it. “
The last time the Staples Center hosted a fan game was March 10. In late November, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health issued an injunction banning all public and private gatherings of people outside the same household.
‘Clearly we have won the trophy. And [el martes] We’ll deliver the rings in the evening, ”Harris told ESPN. ‘And we want, if we can, to wait with all hope until we have the opportunity to reveal the pennant with its owners, who are the fans, right there with us.’
As for the black cape, Harris explained, “It’s something that says, ‘We’re going to wait for you.’
The ring ceremony will continue without the normal conditions associated with the gold and purple championship celebrations.
“We started thinking, ‘How are we going to do this? How are we going to organize this event if we don’t have fans?’ If you’re on a TV show, ”Harris said.
“For the flag, we’re missing part of that. We’re missing part of it, and that’s the people who make up a big part of it, the fans. So we’ll wait.”