As head coach of the Lakers, it was only natural for Luke Walton to close out the ceremony on Wednesday as the Lakers unveiled their future home: the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo.
“We are, as a coaching staff, very, very excited about moving in here,” Walton said. “The new building is three times the size of the one we’re in now. It’s got state-of-the-art everything, from a film room to a training center to a weight room.
“No more single-person metal ice tubs. We’re gonna have a 15-person ice tub, an underwater treadmill — everything is just gonna be brand new and fantastic.”
The facility, which will open summer 2017, will feature two full-size courts, including one with 750-person seating capacity that will serve as the site of D-Fenders home games. There will also be an on-court smart board and video displays to help coaches teach their players.
Off the floor, the Lakers will be able to take advantage of a new weight and conditioning room, as well as plyometric training areas.
Recovery is also a huge focus, as the training room will feature multiple whirlpools, a pair of plunge pools, a resistance pool and twin cryogenics chambers.
For D'Angelo Russell, this equipment upgrade echoes the team personnel that he feels sets the standard of quality.
“Knowing you have the best guys around to help prepare you for the next practice or the next game is a blessing,” he said.
Much of the focus for the facility includes making Russell and co. feel like they have a second home, which can be seen in the additions of a barber shop, indoor-outdoor lounge, player kitchen and training table. Plus, there will be a theater/screening room and a player quiet room that is adorned with blue-light spectrum lighting.
“To me, it speaks to the commitment to winning,” Walton said. “Obviously as basketball coaches and players, you can get it done wherever you need to with whatever you have — a small gym or small training (facility). And the Lakers have proven it. They’ve won championships in the old training site.
"But that’s not enough for them. They know they want to continue to be at the top of the list of organizations, so they are out here building this beautiful new facility for us, and it’s gonna be incredible to be in there.”
Staying in El Segundo was a priority for the organization, especially given its proximity to Los Angeles International Airport, making road trips more convenient.
The facility will host the franchise's basketball operations and corporate headquarters, which are currently housed in separate sites since one building was not big enough.
That won't be a problem in the 120,000-square foot, two-story center that Co-Owner and Team President Jeanie Buss envisions as the ideal site for the team to forge its future.
“Moving into this new facility is going to allow (the young players) to create their own identity,” Buss said. “I’ve said to Brandon Ingram: ‘Please don’t worry about all the pictures on the walls and the history of the Lakers. You be you. People are excited to see who you are and what you bring. Don’t feel like you have to replicate anybody that’s been here before.'
"Certainly moving into this new facility will allow them to do that — to take on their own identity.”