Getty LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers look on during the second half of a game against the Golden State Warriors.
With three dominant showings over the Warriors already in the preseason, head coach Frank Vogel isn’t taking any risks and looks to be giving a number of players, including the entirety of the expected starting lineup, the night off. Sitting at 3-2 so far in the preseason, the Lakers have given fans a mixed bag as sandwiched in between their dominance of the Warriors were two unfortunate losses to the Brooklyn Nets in China.
The Lakers kick off the regular season on October 22nd in an “away game” against the Clippers at Staples Center.
LeBron James & Anthony Davis Among Lakers’ Starters Ruled Out vs. Warriors
The Lakers are resting LeBron, AD, Dwight, JaVale, Danny Green, Avery Bradley, Rondo and Quinn Cook tonight vs GSW per Frank Vogel.
With Davis coming off an injury scare and James actively waging war on father time, it makes sense why Vogel would want to not risk any injuries to his two superstars. Despite the two lacking significant time together on the court to learn one another’s games, entering the year with a clean bill of health is infinitely more important. As they say, “the best ability is availability”.
In brief stints together during the preseason, James and Davis have looked like an unstoppable duo. The improved floor spacing surrounding the two gives them ample room to attack the basket or run their deadly pick and roll sets.
Rajon Rondo, Danny Green, Quinn Cook, Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee, and Avery Bradley all getting rest means the Lakers plan to give their deep bench a look and likely help formulate some decisions as far as who, in particular, they want to focus on developing down with the South Bay squad. Zach Norvell and Kostas Antetokounmpo are both on two-way deals and guaranteed to see time with South Bay while Devontae Cacok is on an Exhibit 10 deal and has a decent payday coming his way for signing with Sout Bay.
The Lakers haven’t disclosed the terms of their deals with Marcus Allen or Demetrius Jackson, though in the case of Allen he is a veteran of South Bay and the Lakers’ Summer League team and almost certainly expected to be brought back into the fold.
So Just Who is Playing Tonight Against the Warriors?
It seems as if the Lakers are going to be getting a heavy dosage of Alex Caruso tonight and that is most definitely not a bad thing. Caruso has had some excellent performances so far in the preseason and finds a way to contribute across the board when his shot (which can be streaky) isn’t falling.
Jared Dudley should also find himself getting a few more minutes as the veteran got a late start in the preseason and is looking to get himself ready for the “regulator” role off the bench. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the lone Laker to appear in every game last season, continues his iron man routine as he rounds out the guaranteed NBA contract players suiting up for the evening.
Outside of those two, the majority of players on the court will be either two-way contracts (Kostas & Norvell) or players fighting for big minutes on the South Bay squad (Allen, Cacok & Jackson).
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LeBron James & Anthony Davis Among Lakers’ Starters Ruled Out vs. Warriors