Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic headline Warriors-Lakers opener without LeBron James
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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry during a pre-season game with the Los Angeles Clippers.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
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LOS ANGELES – Even without LeBron James, there will be plenty of star power on the court when the Golden State Warriors visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct 21 for the second half of the NBA’s opening night double-header.
In focus will be the Warriors’ Stephen Curry, who begins his 17th National Basketball Association season, and the Lakers’ Luka Doncic, who heads into his first full season in Los Angeles after a trade from the Dallas Mavericks in February.
James’ record-breaking 23rd NBA season will be delayed up to a month as he recovers from injury. Doncic and budding star Austin Reaves will have to carry the load for the Lakers moving forward, while Gabe Vincent is expected to start in place of James.
Set to make their Los Angeles debuts will be centre Deandre Ayton, guard Marcus Smart and forward Jake LaRavia. “Honestly, I think we have a great team,” Doncic said.
“We have what we need to compete for the championship. I’ll try to win every game no matter what, and we got some new great guys on the team. We’re going to go for it.”
The Lakers were the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference play-offs last spring, but they were eliminated in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves. That prevented a semi-finals matchup with the No. 7-seeded Warriors, who upset the second-seeded Houston Rockets.
The Timberwolves also knocked out the Warriors before falling in the conference final. Curry came away from the series-opening victory with a hamstring injury. He did not play again as Golden State proceeded to lose each of the next four games.
Healthy again and ready to lead the way at age 37, he will get plenty of help from more star power in Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green.
But with Butler at age 36 and Green at 35, Golden State are dealing with an ageing infrastructure, as it were. Butler missed the last three pre-season games with an ankle injury while Moses Moody (calf) will not play on Oct 21. But Butler is expected to feature.
“I’ve taken advantage of the off-season and we’ve had a really good (training) camp overall,” Curry said.
“As long as we come Tuesday with as many guys ready to go as possible, hopefully we get off to a good start. I feel good, and I think we’re excited.”
Jonathan Kuminga, 23, and Brandin Podziemski, 22, give Golden State much-needed fresh legs, but both missed time with injuries in the 2024-25 NBA season. Kuminga missed the pre-season finale with his own ankle injury and Podziemski came away with a left hip bruise in the game.
More experience was added in 39-year-old big man Al Horford, with the Warriors hoping to tap into his wisdom and play-off familiarity.
For now, the plan is to limit Horford to 20 minutes per game and avoid back-to-backs.
A primary concern for the Warriors is with turnovers, after committing at least 20 in each pre-season game.
“We definitely had a turnover problem throughout the pre-season, but I’m confident that when the lights go on Tuesday, our guys will be locked in,” said Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. REUTERS
