On Saturday night, the Los Angeles Lakers returned to the hardwood with a road game against the Golden State Warriors in the first game of the preseason.
There were a few new faces on each squad, but the starters hadn’t seen much action in the regular season. The Lakers left a lot to be desired after their 125-108 loss to the Warriors.
Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent joined Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell, and the rest of the starting five for the Lakers since James and Austin Reaves were unable to play. While Draymond Green recovers from an ankle injury, the Warriors unveiled a new lineup including Chris Paul and Stephen Curry in the backcourt, and Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, and Kevon Looney in the frontcourt.
Davis, taking advantage of Golden State’s lack of size, got the Clippers out to a fast start on both ends of the court, much like he did in last year’s playoffs against the Warriors. In addition to an early scoring surge from Klay Thompson, the Warriors finished the first quarter up 29-23.
The Lakers were shorthanded due to the absence of two players, thus their bench squad started the second quarter slowly. With the Lakers unable to score, the Warriors extended their advantage to double digits for the first time, 50-32, despite Davis sinking back-to-back 3-pointers. L.A.’s opening 26 points came courtesy of Davis and Russell.
After a timeout, Russell found Jaxson Hayes for an alley-oop, and Vanderbilt hit a 3-pointer to help the Lakers close the gap. The Lakers’ halftime deficit was reduced to 61-54 after another three-pointer by Vanderbilt and a basket by Russell.
After two outstanding halves, Darvin Ham chose to bench Davis and Russell in favor of Christian Wood and Max Christie in the third quarter. Some of the other players on both sides got major second-half minutes because the Warriors rested their starters.
Hachimura, Vincent, and Christie capitalized for Los Angeles by making three-pointers during that stretch, but the Warriors were hot from deep as well. Christie showed promise with solid two-way play in the third quarter, but the Lakers slipped up in the final 10 minutes and fell behind, 95-83, heading into the fourth.
Cam Reddish went down with an ankle injury early in the fourth quarter, effectively ending his night. This is the one thing you really want to avoid happening in the preseason.
Reddish’s injury and Taurean Prince’s fouling out allowed the Lakers to play some of their younger players down the stretch, including Christie, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Maxwell Lewis, Colin Castleton, and D’Moi Hodge. They looked hopelessly outclassed as the Warriors widened their advantage and clinched an easy victory.
