The Lakers’ highly anticipated contest vs. the Mavericks on Friday night will look a bit different than the NBA Cup games that came before it—and not just because Dallas forward Anthony Davis is expected to play.
Rather than playing on the Lakers’ colorful Cup court, the contest will be held on the team's normal hardwood, specifically because the NBA’s court vendor determined that the Cup court is unplayable and must be sent back to the vendor for repairs, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
The Lakers will not play on the NBA Cup court tonight when they host the Mavericks, according to the team. Techs from the league's court vendor determined that the court is unplayable for tonight. It will be sent back to the vendor for repairs.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 28, 2025
Lakers forward Rui Hachimura said he could feel the issue “right away” as he was warming up.
“That was bad,” he told reporters Friday morning. “It just felt weird. Just like oily, slippery. Everybody was on the floor, falling, every second.”
The Lakers' NBA Cup court is typically bright yellow with a purple border, and was used for the first time during the team's 135–118 win over the Clippers on Tuesday. Both L.A. star Luka Dončić and coach JJ Redick voiced concerns about the surface after that game.
“Adjust the courts, please. It’s just slippery. It’s dangerous,” Dončić said Tuesday. “I slipped. I slipped a lot of times, and you could see a lot of players slipped. And that's dangerous, man.”
“Sometimes courts just don't dry well when there's condensation on it,” Redick added.
The Lakers share an arena with the NHL’s Kings, who had a game on Monday. The rink was then converted to the NBA Cup court for Tuesday's game.
But the playing surface won't be the only thing to watch for tonight. As mentioned above, Mavericks forward Anthony Davis is expected to play his first game against the Lakers in Los Angeles since his trade in February, while Dončić will be playing his former Mavs for the first time this season.
Additionally, although the Lakers already clinched their spot in the NBA Cup quarterfinals with Tuesday's win, they can lock in home-court advantage for the knockout round should they prevail on Friday. The improved cup court should be ready in two weeks, in time for that possible home contest.
Tip-off is slated for 10 p.m. ET on Prime Video.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Why the Lakers Aren't Playing on NBA Cup Court vs. Mavericks.
