A new NBA season looming also means the Lakers will be competing for the Emirates NBA Cup soon. The schedule has already been released, and this season, like last year, games will be happening on Tuesdays and Fridays starting in mid-November.

Last season, the pursuit of the In-Season Tournament title and the half-million dollar purse for each player drove Los Angeles to dominate the tournament and raise the inaugural cup.

They added a new banner to Crypto.com Arena and showed they could dominate some of the NBA’s best teams when locked in.

This year, they have a similar roster but a new coach, JJ Redick. What are his thoughts about the NBA Season Tournament? Will the Lakers give their all and focus on winning it again in 2024?

Redick talked about the tourney before the team’s preseason loss against the Warriors.

“I would like our team to win every single game we play, including preseason games,” Redick said. “I thought the In-Season Tournament was awesome last year as a fan. I called a bunch of the Friday night games for ESPN. I was out here for the semifinals and did some studio work the next day. I appreciated it as a fan.

“I think the feedback from players and teams was pretty good. They’ve altered the schedule a little bit this year just to give a little bit more time in between the games. I think that potentially could help with the teams that do end up playing all the way to the championship game.”

It comes as no surprise that Redick supports the idea of the In-Season Tournament. He is a self-proclaimed basketball sicko and given how competitive he is, of course, he wants to win any competition the Lakers will be involved in, including the In-Season Tournament.

Some fans scoff at the idea of taking the Emirates NBA Cup seriously. That all that matters is the NBA title and there is no correlation to success in the NBA Cup and your title chances.

I’m afraid I have to disagree.

First of all, the group play games are regular season games. So they absolutely matter and with so many fans and media members complaining about unserious play during the NBA regular season, this competition counters that giving these games more importance.

After advancing past those games, I see fans worrying about the extra game and the distraction of focusing on something other than the regular season. Still, testing yourself among the best current teams in the league is a good thing.

Last year, the Pacers played in the In-Season Tournament title game against the Lakers and also advanced to the Western Conference Finals.

The Milwaukee Bucks were torched in the semifinals of the In-Season Tournament, and it was one of the reasons head coach Adrian Griffin was fired. The defeat, some felt, showed that they weren’t ready to win it all despite their winning record.

These games have consequences; they elevate competition. For a team like the Lakers trying to establish an identity and figure out how close they are to sustainable excellence, how they perform during this competition is a good test.

Knowing that they are taking these games seriously and giving their all means if they perform poorly, we know that’s where their standard of play is.

And if they dominate, they can assess if they have enough to compete for a bigger trophy later this season or if a trade or two is needed to get over the hump.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.