GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
The Stars
LeBron James was sculpted by the gods to be a superhuman athlete. He is and forever will be one of the most physically impressive athletes to have ever played professional sports. Steph Curry is not the biggest, fastest, or most athletic NBA player. He built himself through sheer will, determination, and dedication. We’ve had enough idols. Steph shows us what’s possible if you commit to your own path! For better or worse: LeBron mastered the game as it was. Steph changed the NBA and the way basketball at ALL levels is played. The Golden State Warriors’ greatest star, the greatest shooter of all time, has had the greater impact on the game. P.S. “Crypto.com Arena” is a terrible name.
The Coach
The Warriors’ Steve Kerr is a five-time NBA champion as a player and a four-time champion as an NBA head coach. Total = 9 rings. The Lakers’ Darvin Ham has one as a player (2004) and a second as an assistant coach (2021).
The Arena
Warriors have a brand new, state-of-the-art arena: Chase Center, which they don’t have to share with another team, unlike 25-year-old Staples/Crypto.com Arena.
The Core
The Warriors’ core three — Steph, Klay, and Dray — were drafted and developed in-house. The Lakers don’t really have a core (not even LeBron and AD). The Lakers current system is to buy superstars and vets to purchase a ring.
The Fans
The Warriors’ fanbase has been filling the arena since the Dubs were terrible. The Lakers’ fair-weather audience asks, “What have you done for me lately?” Lakers fans are there to be entertained and will boo whenever unsatisfied with the team’s performance. Warriors’ core fans were filling the arena when nosebleed seats were $5 at Oracle. We’re “loyal to [the] soil” — as E-40 would say.
Alex Cowling ’12 is the LMU women’s basketball all-time scoring leader. She was a three-time First Team All-WCC selection and was inducted into the LMU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
The Colors
Purple, a color associated with royalty; and gold, symbolizing abundance and accomplishment. The Lakers’ colors and jerseys have remained consistent since 1967. Our so-called rivals to the north have had seven jersey changes in that time, going from yellow to blue, white, navy, orange, and back to blue. Sounds like an identity crisis.
The Brand
The lights, glitz, glamour, stars, Hollywood, Downtown, Laker girls. They all feed into the best brand in sports; but the biggest component of the Lakers’ brand is something that predates me, Kobe, Shaq, Magic, Kareem, Jerry West, and WINNING. With 31 Hall-of-Famers, the Lakers brand is excellence; the standard for success is championships. We expect it.
The Celebrities
Don’t get me wrong, I love me some E40. But between him and the Silicon Valley nerds who show up to Warriors’ games, their roster of who’s who is nothing compared to the Lakers’: Jack, Denzel, George Lopez, Will Ferrell, Leo, Flea, and Anthony Kiedis.
The Big Men
Three of the greatest four centers of all time: Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq. Many other all-time great big men also were key: George Mikan, Bob McAdoo, Pau Gasol, and now AD. I’d pay to see Draymond stay out of foul trouble against any of them.
The Retired Numbers
Lakers 13, Warriors 6. I guess that makes sense though since the Lakers have 2.5x as many championships.
The Championships
17, and 12 since our first in L.A. in 1972. Need I say more?
Patrick Hoffman ’17 is a client solutions manager at Meta. He was a marketing manager for LMU Athletics and supervisor of Intramural Sports as an undergraduate. He lives in Los Angeles.