LeBron, Raiders Owner and VGK PA Announcer Among Star-Studded Courtside Fans As Las Vegas Aces Wipe Out Liberty, 100-65

Aces center Liz Cambage had a strong first half, while rookie guard Jackie Young is below.

 

By Alan Snel

LVSportsBiz.com

 

Photos by LVSportsBiz.com photographer J. Tyge O’Donnell

 

LeBron James craned his neck to look upward at the Mandalay Bay Events Center scoreboard and watched the replay of Las Vegas Aces center Liz Cambage muscling her way through the New York Liberty defense to score a power lay-up. Score at the time in the third quarter: Aces 74 Liberty 42.

The Cambage drive to the hoop must have reminded James of his powerful drives to the basket. The Aces’ crowd size Friday night was not overwhelming in big numbers, but it did have the likes of NBA stars James, Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul sitting courtside.

LeBron and friends

And there was Raiders owner Mark Davis in his usual courtside seat.

Hell, even Vegas Golden Knights star PA announcer Bruce Cusick — the Affable One from Minnesota — was courtside, too.

Raiders owner Mark Davis with Tommy White of the Laborers Local 872 union, which is working on the Raiders stadium construction.

“We are becoming a big basketball town. The NBA Summer League is around the corner,” Aces coach Bill Laimbeer said after the Aces wiped out the Liberty to even their record at 3-3 after the first six games of a 34-game season.

“Winning will help. The crowds are very into it,” Laimbeer said. Our players couldn’t be happier.”

Aces coach Bill Laimbeer

The crowd size looked like it was in the 3,000 range and the Aces announced the attendance at 4,110.

LVSportsBiz.com spoke to Davis, the Raiders owner, about the death of Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, who died Thursday night at age 75 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.

“He was a visionary and on the broadcasting committee that did the TV contracts,” Davis said at halftime of the Aces game. “I talked with his daughter. It’s a sad thing.”

Alan Snel

Alan Snel brings decades of sports-business reporting experience to LVSportsBiz.com. Snel covered the business side of sports for the South Florida (Fort Lauderdale) Sun-Sentinel, the Tampa Tribune and Las Vegas Review-Journal. As a city hall beat reporter, Snel also covered stadium deals in Denver and Seattle. In 2000, Snel launched a sport-business website for FoxSports.com called FoxSportsBiz.com. After reporting sports-business for the RJ, Snel wrote hard-hitting stories on the Raiders stadium for the Desert Companion magazine in Las Vegas and The Nevada Independent. Snel is also one of the top bicycle advocates in the country.