2023–24 Los Angeles Lakers season
The 2023–24 Los Angeles Lakers season is the 77th season of the franchise, its 76th season in the National Basketball Association (NBA), its 64th season in Los Angeles, and its 25th season playing home games at Crypto.com Arena. This is the Lakers' second season with Darvin Ham as head coach, with Ham joining the team as the Lakers coach on June 3, 2022, before the end of the 2021–22 season.
| 2023–24 Los Angeles Lakers season | |
|---|---|
NBA Cup champions | |
| Head coach | Darvin Ham |
| General manager | Rob Pelinka |
| President |
|
| Owners | Jerry Buss family trust (majority) Jeanie Buss (controlling owner) Philip Anschutz, Edward P. Roski, and Patrick Soon-Shiong (minority) |
| Arena | Crypto.com Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 47–35 (.573) |
| Place | Division: 3rd (Pacific) Conference: 8th (Western) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Spectrum SportsNet |
| Radio | ESPN LA 710 (English) 1020 Radio AM (Spanish) |
Prior to the start of the season, LeBron James announced that he would switch his jersey number back to #23 after wearing #6 (which he also wore with the Miami Heat) the previous two seasons. On August 24, 2023, the Lakers announced that a statue of Kobe Bryant would be unveiled in front of Crypto.com Arena on February 8, 2024.
The Lakers held a perfect 7–0 record in the inaugural In-Season Tournament, winning the inaugural NBA Cup on December 9 by defeating the Indiana Pacers. The Lakers improved to the 4th seed in the Western Conference after their In-Season Tournament run, having a 14–9 record. However, they struggled immediately after the run, going 3–10 from the rest of December all the way until January 5, 2024 and eventually falling to 17–19 and the 9th seed. On March 2, 2024, in a game against the Denver Nuggets, James became the first player in NBA history to record 40,000 career points.
With a 124–108 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on April 14, the Lakers qualified for the NBA play-in tournament for the second straight year and third overall. The win capped off a record of 23–10 since February 1, which also contributed to their play-in berth. They defeated the Pelicans in a rematch 110–106 to advance to the playoffs for the second straight year. The Lakers will rematch against the defending champions Denver Nuggets from the 2023 Western Conference Finals in the first round.