Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will return to Crypto.com Arena for the first time as Lakers opponents on Friday night.
This will be the first time the two players will face the Lakers in Los Angeles after the trade to the Washington Wizards.
Back in the summer, Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope joined the Wizards as part of the trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Lakers.
Both players spent four seasons with the Lakers (2017-2021), claiming the 2020 NBA championship. And ahead of Friday’s clash, they both reflected on their past with the franchise.
“I don’t really play the ‘what if’. I’m cemented as a winner, and I’m cemented as a Lakers champ’ion. For me, it’s not about ‘what if.’ It’s time to move on. It’s time to improve my game,” Kyle Kuzma said, via NBA.com.
“It’s going to mean a lot. Me and Kuz are already trying to picture what it’s going to be like. We know it’s going to be a lot of emotions because of the championship run we had with the team and our friends that are still there.
There’s going to be a lot of emotion and a lot of fun. No hard feelings. I’m at peace. I’m happy where I’m at,” KCP added.
Kuzma and KCP will do their best to help the Wizards defeat the Lakers on Friday. Washington is coming off a road loss to the LA Clippers on Wednesday (109-115) and desperately needs to return to the winning track.
Currently at 29-35, the Wizards are 11th in the East, 1.5 games behind 10th-placed Atlanta Hawks (31-34). For their part, the Lakers are ninth in the West (28-37) and 1.5 games ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans (27-39).
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