With or without the NBA Cup win in the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament, LeBron James’ bank account would remain stacked. But the Los Angeles Lakers superstar still gave it his all in leading his team to the top of the tournament, as he also had his two-way LA teammates in mind.
LeBron James wanted the NBA Cup so bad for his Lakers teammates
Two-way Lakers players were rewarded with $250,000 each, while full-time LA players pocketed $500,000. Prior to the title game against the Indiana Pacers, Alex Fudge and D’Moi Hodge, two of the three two-way Lakers assets, felt how serious the future Hall of Famer was at getting everybody on the team paid with the best possible money once it’s all said and done in Las Vegas (h/t Andscape’s Marc J. Spears).
“I knew LeBron was going to do it. He told me before the game and said, ‘This is for you [Alex] Fudge. This is for you for D’Moi [Hodge]. This is for everybody,” Fudge, a Lakers forward on a two-way contract to play offense and defense, told Andscape after the game. “I trusted him and now we’re here. Just knowing that he is thinking about us is a blessing. Not too many people are like that. That just says who LeBron is.”
It was Anthony Davis, though, who had the greatest performance versus the Pacers, as the Lakers big man went off for a monster double-double of 41 points and 20 rebounds in the 123-109 LA victory. James, meanwhile, was not too shabby either, producing 24 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists.