Lakers to skip White House visit due to league’s COVID-19 protocols

The Los Angeles Lakers will not visit the White House this year to celebrate their 2020 NBA championship due to COVID-19 protocols and scheduling issues, a source told ESPN. 

The Lakers, who are scheduled to play the Washington Wizards on April 28, may visit the White House in the future, the source said. 

The Lakers also didn’t have a championship parade due to COVID-19 concerns and have not unveiled their championship banner, opting instead to wait for fans to be able to return to their arena.

Los Angeles is the fourth straight NBA team to not visit the White House since Lakers forward LeBron James and his former team the Cleveland Cavaliers did so in 2016. James said in January that “it would be great” to visit the White House under President Biden. 

Other championship teams skipped White House visits under former President Trump. 

After finishing its 2019-2020 season in a bubble, the NBA has struggled with cancellations, postponements of games and team outbreaks of the coronavirus, similar to other sports leagues.