This Is It... for Traffic Downtown
Bring your Metro map, it's going to be rough downtown.
If you plan to visit downtown LA Tuesday night, you might want to print this -- it's a Metro transit map.
The Michael Jackson documentary premieres at the Nokia Theatre on the same night that the Lakers and Clippers open the season next door at Staples Center.
But if you must drive, expect delays -- as in, long periods of no movement.
"This Is It" will debut during the grand opening of the Regal Cinemas LA Live Stadium 14 Theatre. All 14 theaters will show the movie.
The Lakers-Clipppers game is expected to draw about 19,000 people. A ceremony to present the Lakers with their 2009-10 NBA Championship rings will start at 7:15 p.m.
About those rings. Forward Lamar Odom called the ring ceremony "really cool" because the Lakers won the championship in Orlando, Fla.
"To be able to relive the moment in front of our home crowd is special," Odom said.
Besides the 12 returning players from last season's championship team, one player from each of the Lakers' previous nine championship teams in Los Angeles will also participate in the ceremony, part of the celebration of the team's 50th season in Los Angeles.
The past players set to participate are Jerry West (1971-72); Norm Nixon (1979-80); Jamaal Wilkes (1981-82); James Worthy (1984-85); Michael Cooper (1986-87); Magic Johnson (1987-88); A.C. Green (1999-2000); Rick Fox (2000- 2001); and Robert Horry (2001-2002).
