
After a thrilling win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night, during which LeBron James became the league's oldest player to record three straight triple doubles, it would be understandable if James's mind was laser-focused on the next task at hand, defending the club's 2023 NBA Cup title. The Lakers begin NBA Cup play on Friday with a group-play game vs. the San Antonio Spurs.
But for a moment during his postgame presser, James's mind was elsewhere. The Lakers star was thinking of his friend and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who on November 4 stepped away from the team indefinitely after suffering a mild stroke.