The Lakers (4-1) will kick off their quest for another NBA Cup title on Friday against the Golden State Warriors (2-3). Both Pacific Division teams are in West Group C for the group stage.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Golden State Warriors
When: 7 p.m. PT, Oct 30
Where: Chase Center
Watch: Prime Video
It’s been just a week since these two teams faced off in the season opener and now they’re back in the spotlight to headline the first day of the NBA Cup. After dominating the Warriors in the season opener,
the Lakers have kept building momentum while the Warriors have been up and down.
And oh, Yaxel Lendeborg has not stopped talking about Luka Dončić. I mean, seriously, it’s like there’s a new quote from him about Luka that makes the rounds every single day.
How quickly things change.
Going from LeBron James vs. Stephen Curry headlining these Lakers-Warriors matchups to now it being Dončić vs. the rookie from Michigan. It’s an interesting shift for a matchup that has lost some of its juice over the past few seasons. Maybe this NBA Cup game will add more to the fire.
Speaking of the NBA Cup, the Lakers and Warriors are in the same group as the Spurs, Blazers and Kings. All these teams will face each other for the next month and the squad that’s on top of the Group C standing advances to the knockout round. They can also advance as the wild card team by having the best record among all second-place finishers in the conference.
Given how the Lakers have performed in the NBA Cup over the last two years, it would be nice to see them go far this season for a change. Perhaps it won’t be too hard to motivate them given the additional money that could come with winning these games. That’s why some of these NBA Cup games add much-needed juice this early in the regular season.
If the Lakers-Warriors season opener was any indication, Friday’s rematch should be even more thrilling. The purple and gold should expect a better Warriors team coming in with a two-game winning streak. Golden State has really benefited from Lendeborg’s early success and on top of that, Curry — who just scored 44 points in their recent victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves — is still one of the most dangerous players.
The Lakers’ defense will have to be prepared. It’ll be interesting to see if head coach JJ Redick continues to give Jared Vanderbilt playing time after he played 21 minutes in the victory against the Clippers. Vando was a has a plus-minus of +22 and had seven rebounds. The Lakers also nabbed a season-high 48 rebounds, which hopefully is a sign of improvement moving forward.
Beyond controlling the boards, the Lakers must once again capitalize on their advantages over the Warriors. LA has more offensive firepower, a better bench and, frankly, the best superstar on the floor and it has to look that way on Friday. The Lakers can’t let Lendeborg or Brandin Podziemski make a significant impact.
Golden State will be more comfortable knocking down those 3-pointers at home and playing loose. It’ll be up to the Lakers to control the game as they did so in the first matchup.
Let’s see if the Lakers can do that and start their NBA Cup campaign with a statement win on Friday.
Notes and Updates
- If you need a refresher course on the NBA Cup, here’s the perfect thread for it:
- In the season opener match between these two teams, Walker Kessler scored 26 points and was a perfect 12-12 from the field. It’ll be ideal if the Lakers can get a monster performance from their big man again.
- For the Lakers’ injury report, Ziaire Williams (left foot injury management) is questionable.
- Cameron Carr (right oblique strain) and Adou Thiero (left knee injury management) remain out.
- As for the Warriors, Gui Santos (left knee tendinitis) is doubtful while Kristaps Porzingis (not with team), Moses Moody (left patellar tendon repair) and Jimmy Butler III (right ACL repair) are out.
You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.
