Golden State Warriors thump Los Angeles Lakers in NBA season opener
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Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers is trapped by Jonathan Kuminga (left) and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors in the fourth quarter of their NBA opener, which the Warriors won 119-109 at Crypto.com Arena on Oct 21, 2025.
PHOTO: AFP
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LOS ANGELES – The Golden State Warriors emphatically signalled their intentions for the new National Basketball Association (NBA) season on Oct 21, romping past Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers 119-109 in a clash of Western Conference rivals.
Jimmy Butler scored 31 points, Stephen Curry added 23 and the Warriors broke open a close game with an 18-4 run to start the third quarter and never looked back.
Golden State withstood a 43-point performance from Doncic. The Slovenian star, acquired in a blockbuster trade last February, added 12 rebounds and nine assists.
It was not enough, and Lakers superstar LeBron James
James, entering an unprecedented 23rd season, was sidelined for the first opening night of his career as he deals with sciatica.
“It’s always different when he’s not there,” Warriors veteran Draymond Green said. “Obviously, we’ve had battles with Luka. Luka is an incredible player, but Bron is Bron.”
The NBA’s all-time leading scorer, chasing a fifth title, likely will be available before November and after the opening performance, it looked as if the four-time champion’s season debut cannot come too soon for the Lakers.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Butler’s performance – which included a perfect 16 for 16 from the free-throw line – was key, and just what the Warriors were looking for when they acquired him last February.
“He really complements Steph and Draymond as well,” Kerr said. “Not only the free throws but the ball security. We’ve been a high turnover team for a long time. We need his ability to settle down.
“And when you get to the line like that, it puts a ton of pressure on your opponent.”
The Warriors emerged from a tight first quarter with a 28-22 lead. Butler led the way with 12 points.
Green was slapped with his first technical foul of the season midway through the first quarter for chirping at officials from the bench.
Curry scored just three points in the first quarter but came up with three steals as the Lakers turned the ball over nine times.
The Warriors had pushed their lead to as many as 10 points in the third, but the Lakers clawed back, taking a one-point lead after a pair of three-pointers from Rui Hachimura to energise the Crypto.com Arena crowd.
They went up 54-53 on a three-pointer by Doncic before Butler closed the first half with a pair of free-throws to make it 55-54 Warriors at the break and Golden State had all the answers in the second half.
“It’s good to get a win to start the season,” Green said, but added that with a long campaign stretching ahead “it don’t really mean much”.
“We were fighting upstream most of last year and we don’t want to do that this year. So it’s important to get off to a good start.”
Earlier, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder launched the defence of their NBA crown with a thrilling season-opening 125-124 triple-overtime victory over the Houston Rockets on Oct 21.
Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning NBA and NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, drew a crucial foul with 2.3 seconds remaining before nailing two free throws to settle an epic duel with a new-look Rockets side spearheaded by Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s winning free throws settled a triumphant occasion for Oklahoma City, who had earlier been presented with diamond-encrusted championship rings to mark last season’s NBA Finals victory. AFP
