New addition Collin Sexton is yet to make an appearance for the Los Angeles Lakers in the preseason. Head coach JJ Redick describes his situation as day-to-day, with the guard managing a lower-leg injury.
Sexton and new center Walker Kessler have been the major absentees from preseason, and fans will hope they recover fully on time before the regular season starts. According to The Athletic’s Dan Woike, that worry will be overshadowed by what the players will bring to the floor when available.
“They think they’re going to be pretty competitive defensively,” Woike wrote. “There’s belief in [Matisse] Thybulle, [Ziaire] Williams, [Quentin] Grimes and [Jake] LaRavia as half-court defensive players and they think Sexton can be a menace over 94 feet (they’re going to pressure a lot).”
Sexton is one of the direct guards behind Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. He has missed four preseason games and his status for the final game against the Denver Nuggets is uncertain.
Lakers View New Addition As a “Menace”
Sexton, 27, signed for the Lakers as an unrestricted free agent having spent the 2025-26 season with the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls. He agreed to a two-year deal worth around $19.2 million.
Sexton is no longer the All-Star-caliber player he was in his early days with the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the Lakers know they did not sign that player but one that can help the roster in the long run.
His explosive scoring, perimeter shooting and pace will be valuable to a roster that already has two elite guards. Sexton will also add some physicality and defense to the backcourt.
Sexton played 68 games last season and 63 and 78 games the two seasons before that. As such, there will be no serious alarms raised over his health at this early stage.
How Sexton Can Elevate the Roster
Sexton will be backup to Doncic and Reaves and a decent one at that. He is already familiar with the bench playing role during his stints in Charlotte and Chicago. He started only 22 of the 68 games he played last season with a career-low 23.7 minutes almost similar to his first year with the Utah Jazz also as a bench piece.
Sexton will bring extra scoring presence to the team and bench scoring as well which the Lakers seem to have been lacking in recent years. The team always seems flat-footed in offense without Doncic, Reaves or LeBron James.
In the last playoffs, both Doncic and Reaves were injured with the latter only returning much later in the second round. The team had to be carried on by 41-year-old James and that is the kind of situation they want to avoid moving forward as the veteran is no more.
Sexton averaged 15.4 points per game across his two stints last season which included 17.5 points in 26 games for Chicago. He did average 26 minutes per game which will likely be down in L.A. as the two main guards will play significant minutes.
Lakers Signed Former 24 PPG Defensive ‘Menace’ to Beef Up Backcourt