Los Angeles Lakers Without Cable: Easy & Cheap Ways to Watch Basketball Online

There are few sports teams that are as legendary as the Los Angeles Lakers. Fans have remained loyal to this dynamic team since the beginning of their NBA run. And now it’s easy to watch them online without cable!

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Some of the most impressive players have worn Lakers jerseys, and the team has several championships behind them. It’s no surprise fans love them as much as they do.

A few years ago, you would have needed cable to keep up to date on sports. But now you can watch all Los Angeles Lakers games online without cable.

Streaming any NBA team is easier than you might think! Keep reading to learn how to watch the Los Angeles Lakers without cable!

What Are the Los Angeles Lakers TV Channels?

For fans in its large media market, Lakers games are mostly shown on Spectrum SportsNet. This channel will air the vast majority of Lakers games this season.

To get Spectrum SportsNet, you need DIRECTV STREAM. This will provide you with access to all the 70+ Lakers games being aired locally if you’re within the broadcast region.

If you live outside southern California, you can get an out-of-market package from DIRECTV STREAM instead.

Roughly half of the Lakers’ regular season games will also be aired on national channels.

To watch NBA games airing nationally without cable, you’ll need NBA TV, ABC, TNT, and ESPN. These channels will broadcast the following number of Lakers games:

• ABC – six games.
• ESPN – 11 games.
• NBA TV – 12 games.
• TNT – 11 games.

These channels are all available on DIRECTV STREAM as well.

Get DIRECTV STREAM Free for 5 Days

What Streaming Service Is the Lakers Game On?

Streaming services were created so viewers could watch everything they could on cable, but for a cheaper price and without a contract. And it means everything – from special events to the NBA playoffs.

The most difficult problem is often choosing the service you want.

Like most NBA teams, the majority of Los Angeles Lakers games are broadcast on a Regional Sports Network (RSN). Unlike most teams though, the Lakers’ RSN is only available from one streaming platform: DIRECTV STREAM.

The alternative is to stick to nationally broadcast games. Because the Lakers are such a popular team, this could be a good solution, since almost half their games will be broadcast on national channels. This means you can watch almost half the Lakers’ season with Sling TV for as little as $51/mo.

Some streaming services offer a free trial and are all contract-free. If you can’t decide which service is right for you, you’ll be able to try them all out until you find one you like.

Sign up for each service takes minutes. You can then stream from almost anywhere, as long as you’re connected to the internet. Available streaming devices include Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, mobile devices, computers, gaming consoles, and more.

Stream the Lakers With DIRECTV STREAM

Anyone concerned about cutting the cord should consider DIRECTV STREAM, as it offers the kind of packages you’d expect from a cable or satellite company.

Get DIRECTV STREAM Free for 5 Days

It’s base plan is $79.99/month for over 75 channels, including everything you would expect from cable, such as all your local channels.

But DIRECTV STREAM is much better than that. It offers a modern, easy-to-navigate interface, and you get a cloud DVR with unlimited storage, plus the ability to stream on as many devices as you have bandwidth for.

Subscribers in the LA area who upgrade to the Choice package for $108.99/month will also get Spectrum SportsNet – home of the Los Angeles Lakers. This will allow you to watch every game!

See our DIRECTV STREAM review for more information.

Lakers With Sling TV

Sling TV is a great and inexpensive way to watch the LA Lakers. While it doesn’t offer any RSNs (such as Spectrum SportsNet), it does provide the channels that air nationally televised games, so Sling has you covered.

Save $25 on Sling TV Now

Sling Orange provides you with more than 30 channels, including TNT, ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN3. This last channel also provides all the games that air on ABC.

The Orange plan is $40.00/month, and you can get the Sports Plus add-on for an extra $11/mo, which includes NBA TV.

You can also combine your plan with NBA League Pass for $15/mo. This allows out-of-market fans to watch almost all the Lakers games.

All Sling plans come with 50 hours of cloud DVR storage and support almost all streaming devices currently available.

Get complete details in our Sling TV review.

Stream the Los Angeles Lakers without Cable on Fubo

Fubo (formerly FuboTV) offers over 150 channels starting at $79.99/month.

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

The base plan lets you watch games on ABC, ESPN, and NBA TV (with an add-on). And you can get NBA League Pass to watch most Lakers games if you’re out-of-market.

An on-demand library featuring a three-day replay is included. You can also enjoy content from TV Everywhere apps.

Keep track of what you want to watch later with your cloud-DVR, featuring 1,000 hours of storage, and stream on up to 10 devices at once.

For more info, check out our Fubo review.

Watch the Los Angeles Lakers Online on Hulu Live

Hulu + Live TV doesn’t offer Spectrum Sportsnet or NBA TV, but it does provide ABC, TNT, and ESPN. This makes Hulu Live one of the better ways to watch the Los Angeles Lakers online without cable.

Try Hulu + Live TV for 3 Days Free!

Packages cost $76.99/month, which combines over 85 live channels with Hulu’s classic on-demand service, Disney+, and ESPN+, for one complete entertainment-packed package.

For more, see our Hulu + Live TV review.

Other Ways to Watch the Los Angeles Lakers Live Stream

Since only DIRECTV STREAM offers Spectrum Sportsnet, a majority of the Lakers games for local fans aren’t available without this service.

If you’re outside of the Spectrum Sportsnet region (Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan areas, the Coachella Valley, the Central Coast of California, Las Vegas, and Hawaii), you can sign up for NBA League Pass to watch the local games out-of-market.

Alternative options include:

• Antenna: A number of Lakers games appear on local networks, which you can watch for free with a digital antenna.
• YouTube TV – It may not offer Spectrum Sportsnet, but YouTube TV provides more than 100 channels, including the four other channels that air Los Angeles Lakers games. Plans start from $72.99/month. Visit our full YouTube TV review here.

If you’re a sports fan, we have tons of articles explaining how to watch sports online without cable! Leave us a comment if you have questions about how to watch the Los Angeles Lakers online.

Devices to Live Stream the Lakers

All the streaming services mentioned above support most of the streaming devices in use today, including the following:

Other widely (but not universally) supported devices include other smart TVs, such as LG and Vizio, as well as gaming devices such as Xbox and PlayStation.

Check with your streaming service to find out which specific devices and platforms are compatible.

2023-24 Los Angeles Lakers Schedule

Unless otherwise indicated, games will be available on Spectrum Sportsnet and NBA League Pass.

Wrapping Up

The Lakers are, understandably, one of the most popular teams in the NBA. And you can follow their whole season without cable by streaming online.

We recommend DIRECTV STREAM for fans in the LA area. New customers get a 5-day free trial with DIRECTV STREAM.

Otherwise, Fubo is our top pick with NBA League Pass. Fubo allows you to try out its service with a free trial.

Sign Up for a Free Fubo Trial

FAQs

How can I stream tonight’s Los Angeles Lakers game?

For those within the LA area, DIRECTV STREAM is your only option for streaming local broadcasts of Los Angeles Lakers games, as this is the only streaming service that offers Spectrum SportsNet to those within its broadcast region. DIRECTV STREAM costs $108.99/month.

Fans located elsewhere – not in the southern portions of California and Nevada, or in Hawaii – can purchase an NBA League Pass subscription through Fubo to watch out-of-market broadcasts of the same games.

If the game is being nationally broadcast, it will be on either TNT, ESPN, ABC, or NBA TV. See our schedule (above) to find out which one.

What channel can I watch tonight’s Los Angeles Lakers game on?

All Los Angeles Lakers games that are not slated for exclusive national television coverage will be broadcast on Spectrum SportsNet.

Since the team’s brand is so significant, it receives extensive national coverage though, and for the 2023-24 campaign, national Lakers fans can still watch almost half of the team’s games.

The team will play 11 times each on TNT and ESPN, 12 times on NBA TV, and six times on ABC.

What radio station will be broadcasting tonight’s Los Angeles Lakers game?

The Los Angeles Lakers have an extensive radio network that covers much of Southern California, as well as Fresno, Honolulu, and Gallup, NM.

Its flagship station is 710 ESPN LA, while Spanish-language broadcasts can be listened to on KWKW 1330 AM.

NBA League Pass Audio provides fans anywhere access to those same broadcasts. Its annual cost is $9.99.

Where did the Los Angeles Lakers play before moving to LA?

The Lakers used to play in the Land of 10,000 Lakes: Minnesota. They were the Minneapolis Lakers from 1947 until moving west to LA in 1960.

While in their former home, they played in the Minneapolis Auditorium and the Minneapolis Armory. After their move to the City of Angels, they played in the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena (1960-67), the Forum (1967-99), and Staples Center (since 1999).

In 2021, the Staples Center became the Crypto.com Arena, which is where the Lakers continue to play their home games.

How many NBA championships have the Lakers won?

The Lakers have been one of the NBA’s storied franchises, tied for the most NBA titles with the Boston Celtics, with each team having won 17 championships.

These 17 championships have been won during the Lakers’ time in both Minnesota and Los Angeles, winning five in their former home and 12 since relocating to California.

Their most recent title was claimed in 2020, the team’s first championship in 10 years.

They almost made it all the way again last NBA season (2022-23), but lost their chance in the NBA Finals to the Denver Nuggets.

Can I watch Los Angeles Lakers games on my phone?

If you are in an area where you can access Spectrum SportsNet through a DIRECTV STREAM subscription, you can watch local games broadcast on that channel through the streaming service’s app.

Those elsewhere can do the same thing with NBA League Pass and the NBA’s app.

Everyone can watch the Lakers games shown on ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV through apps from DIRECTV STREAM and other streaming services that provide those channels.

What is the starting lineup of the Los Angeles Lakers?

The 2023 starting lineup of the Los Angeles Lakers is Dennis Schroder (point guard), Malik Beasley (shooting guard), Jarred Vanderbilt (strong forward), Troy Brown Jr (power forward), Mo Bamba (center). LeBron James is not currently on the starting lineup because of a foot injury.

How do I watch the Lakers’ conference rivals?

Here are all the Western Conference teams with their local channels:

• Dallas Mavericks — Bally Sports Southwest
• Denver Nuggets — Altitude Sports
• Golden State Warriors — NBC Sports Bay Area
• Houston Rockets — AT&T SportsNet Southwest
• LA Clippers — Bally Sports San Diego / Bally Sports SoCal
• Los Angeles Lakers — Spectrum SportsNet
• Memphis Grizzlies — Bally Sports Southeast
• Minnesota Timberwolves — Bally Sports North
• New Orleans Pelicans — Bally Sports New Orleans
• Oklahoma City Thunder — Bally Sports Oklahoma
• Phoenix Suns — KTVK/KPHE
• Portland Trail Blazers — Root Sports Northwest
• Sacramento Kings — NBC Sports California
• San Antonio Spurs — Bally Sports Southwest
• Utah Jazz — KJZZ

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Frank Moraes

I am a Senior Content Editor at Hotdog.com, specializing in sports streaming and regional programming issues. With a PhD in Atmospheric Physics from the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and extensive experience in remote sensing technology, including early video streaming, I bring a unique technical perspective to the streaming industry.

My expertise in sports coverage, particularly for out-of-market games and regional sports networks, stems from years of hands-on experience as an early adopter of streaming services and my work addressing fans' viewing challenges. As a longtime cord-cutter and subscriber to multiple streaming platforms, I combine my technical knowledge with practical user experience, making me a leading expert in the field of sports streaming and entertainment technology.

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