The Lakers are down to one last preseason game which will be against the Denver Nuggets on Friday. The purple and gold will be back on their home floor for this one.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Denver Nuggets
When: 7:30 p.m. PT, Oct 16
Where: Crypto.com Arena
Watch: ESPN, Spectrum Sportsnet
Just like that, the Lakers are just one preseason game away from the real thing that is the regular season.
The preseason has provided plenty of early clues about what lies ahead for the Lakers this season. Clues like
which lineups work and don’t, what some of the role players can bring to the table alongside Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves and even how the overall Lakers game experience — from the new PA announcer to broadcast — team — will look like this season.
But if there’s one thing that we haven’t seen yet in the last four games, it’s a complete Lakers team on the floor.
We saw perhaps the biggest signing of the offseason, Walker Kessler, finally take the floor in Tuesday’s game against the Golden State Warriorsin Las Vegas. Kessler, who had 16 minutes of burn, recorded 11 points and nine rebounds.
Besides Kessler’s sensational defense, the highlight was witnessing him already running plays with Reaves, who had himself a night with 28 points and seven assists.
The Lakers may have come up short after resting their key players in the second half but this one was still arguably their most entertaining preseason game yet. Now the question is, will the fun continue in Friday’s dress rehearsal against the Nuggets?
Hopefully we see even just a few minutes of Dončić, Kessler and Reaves together on the floor. If those three indeed suit up, it’ll be interesting to see who takes the last two slots in the starting five as well as head coach JJ Redick’s substitution patterns.
Speaking of Redick, yes, it may be preseason but it’s hard to imagine him not having a game plan against Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets. Note that this will also be the Nuggets’ last preseason game, so it’s fair to assume that they’ll treat this one like a dress rehearsal as well. All of Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon played minimal minutes in their previous game so they could possibly suit up and do the same on Friday.
It may be preseason, but it sure will be nice to see how these two projected playoff teams in the Western Conference match up. Remember, the purple and gold have won four of their last six matches against the Nuggets since Dončić arrived in Los Angeles. Facing a reenergized Nuggets team is a great test for the Lakers ahead of the season opener.
Let’s see if LA can get that win on Friday.
Notes and Updates
- Collin Sexton has yet to play in any preseason game as he continues to recover from a lower leg injury. There is optimism that he could play on opening night.
- One thing to look at for in Friday’s game is how the Lakers perform in the rebounding department, something they worked on in practice on Thursday.
- We have an exciting new feature in our app this season. It’s easier than ever to chat in our game threads. Each game, this post will become a live chat and will be easy to find at the top of the Lakers community page, so be sure to download the app and give it a try this preseason.
You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.
