Los Angeles Lakers Receive Their Championship Rings
The Los Angeles Lakers organization may already have 16 championship rings. But Tuesday night (December 22), they doled out the bling to LeBron James and Anthony Davis to cement their legacy with the legendary franchise.
Prior to playing their opening regular season game that night, the players from last year’s squad received their rings. Unfortunately for them, there weren’t any fans physically in the stands to celebrate with them.
Jeanie Buss, the Lakers president, told the fans watching on TV that everyone was feeling their absence. "We miss you,” she said, according to CNN. “But someday soon we will be together."
The team was presented with their rings by family on the Staples Centre videoboard. LeBron was able to see the students from his I Promise School in Akron congratulating him as one of the bright moments.
While winning a championship was a big goal achieved by the Lakers, it’s been a unique year for the franchise. Aside from the coronavirus pandemic that forced all NBA teams to play in a bubble in Orlando, the team lost one of its greats after Kobe Bryant, as well as his daughter Gianna, passed away in January.
For a special tribute, each ring was adorned with a Black Mamba snake circling every player's uniform number, and a detachable top revealing all retired Laker jersey numbers, specifically highlighting Bryant's 8 and 24.
Other numbers also retired by the Lakers include Magic Johnson's 32, Wilt Chamberlain's 13, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's 33 and Shaquille O'Neal's 34.
The Lakers also took to the court to play their first game of the new season, which they lost 116-109 to the L.A. Clippers.
