Los Angeles Lakers Knocked Out of Emirates NBA Cup After 132-119 Quarterfinal Defeat to Spurs
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LOS ANGELES — Dec. 10, 2025 — The Los Angeles Lakers’ run in the inaugural Emirates NBA Cup ended Wednesday night with a 132-119 loss to the San Antonio Spurs at Crypto.com Arena.
The quarterfinal setback sends San Antonio to this weekend’s semifinals in Las Vegas, where the Spurs will meet the Oklahoma City Thunder, who earlier eliminated the Phoenix Suns. Los Angeles, now 17-7 overall, will instead add a regular-season contest against the Suns on Sunday at 5 p.m. PT.
Despite playing without injured rookie center Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio controlled the game from the opening period. Guard De’Aaron Fox scored five early points, and forward Keldon Johnson fueled a 39-30 first-quarter advantage as the Lakers struggled on the defensive glass.
Luka Doncic, the NBA’s first-quarter scoring leader, kept Los Angeles close with 11 points in the opening frame, but frustration mounted in the second quarter. Doncic and head coach JJ Redick each drew technical fouls while the Spurs reeled off an 8-0 run and built an 18-point margin. LeBron James cut the halftime deficit to 70-58 with a highlight-reel dunk over Luke Kornet.
San Antonio began the third quarter on a 10-2 burst and never relinquished control. Marcus Smart briefly narrowed the gap with back-to-back three-pointers, yet a missed attempt led to an and-one at the other end, pushing the Spurs ahead 104-87 entering the fourth.
Smart’s long-range shooting trimmed the deficit to eight in the final minutes, but Los Angeles could not generate defensive stops as San Antonio closed out the victory.
Source: Lakers Nation
