Lakers' annual preseason game in Las Vegas brings enthusiasm to potential NBA market

LAS VEGAS — While the biggest sports news circulating throughout Southern Nevada on Tuesday began with Davante Adams being traded from the Las Vegas Raiders to the New York Jets, it didn’t seem to matter to the announced crowd of 16,907 inside T-Mobile Arena.

The Los Angeles Lakers were in town for their annual preseason visit, facing the Golden State Warriors, and per usual, there was plenty of electricity.

A couple of warm-up dunks by LeBron James followed by his patented pregame chalk toss set things off.

James' failed attempt at a windmill dunk less than three minutes in produced some reaction from the crowd before his two-handed stuff at the 7:15 mark of the first quarter drew a roar of approval.

The NBA had returned, even if for one night.

"Las Vegas has proven to be an excellent sports town,” coach JJ Reddick said after his Lakers (1-3) lost 111-97 to Golden State (5-0). “I know that whether it’s been the hockey team, WNBA team, the NFL team, there’s a nice following. There’s obviously a lot of things to do. It’s a place that people like to come visit.”

Nestled courtside behind the Warriors bench was Los Angeles Sparks star Dearica Hamby with daughter Amaya and teammate Rae Burrell, while undefeated super lightweight Emiliano Vargas had a seat directly behind James on the Lakers' bench.

“It’s incredible, you know, they don’t get this experience often outside of Aces basketball, so to say,” Hamby said during halftime. “So I think the city shows up when they get the opportunity to support basketball in Las Vegas.”

Burrell, who was born and raised in Las Vegas, said she remembers growing up with non-residents thinking her hometown was nothing more than the famed Strip and the historic “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign.

“But it was really The Strip - and sports,” Burrell said. “If you were in sports, you kind of knew everybody in Vegas. So just seeing it all come to life and all these teams getting added, I know the city is just so excited.”

It dates back even further than Burrell’s childhood, as the marriage between the NBA and Las Vegas arguably started during the 1983-84 season, when the Utah Jazz scheduled 11 “home” games at the then-newly built Thomas & Mack Center on UNLV's campus. On April 5, 1984, with the Lakers in town to play the Jazz, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the greatest scorer in NBA history at the time, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain’s 31,419 points.

The Lakers then began playing preseason games in Las Vegas in 1988. In 2007, when the NBA All-Star Game was hosted in Las Vegas, the late Kobe Bryant was named MVP after leading the Western Conference to victory.

The NBA Summer League has been a staple in Las Vegas since 2007, with games also played on UNLV's campus.

“Vegas, we just love our sports. Even during the national anthem, you heard the (NHL’s Golden) Knights fans sing the part where they yell ‘NIGHT!’ I mean, it’s just amazing," Burrell said. "There’s just always so much support in Las Vegas. So, just having preseason games and in-season tournament games in Vegas, adding that stuff, just shows the support that is in Vegas. So I think it’s just amazing, and I think it’s just getting better and better.”

Though a formal process is years away at the earliest, NBA commissioner Adam Silver mentioned Las Vegas and Seattle when talking about expansion in July.

With the league’s impending expansion, which would make the NBA a regular night out each season, Warriors star Draymond Green doesn’t see the allure of Las Vegas wearing off.

“It’ll never wear off,” Green said. “It has not worn off since (Frank) Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr, back in the 60s. Basketball or football or baseball or anything else is only going to add to that. I think what you see with Vegas is a shift from the entertainment that Vegas has once seen, to sports.

"You got all the sporting events coming. Boxing has been doing it for years. Dana White, the job that he has done with UFC - absolutely incredible. The job Mark Davis has done with the Las Vegas Raiders and with the Las Vegas Aces - amazing. ... This is an amazing place. I don’t think you’ve ever heard many people complain about having to come to Vegas. And so I don’t think it loses its allure at all. I think, actually, the legend grows.”