Lakers News: Injury Report Ahead Of Lakers-Kings Preseason Opener
You'll get your first opportunity to check out the new-look 2022-23 Los Angeles Lakers tonight at 7:30 p.m., when L.A. hosts De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and the rest of the new-look Sacramento Kings at Crypto.com Arena in its first preseason game of the year.
But you're not going to get to see everybody, and you certainly won't get to see the optimal rotations new head coach Darvin Ham intends to deploy during the regular season, which commences on October 18th for L.A. against the reigning champion Golden State Warriors, and (sorry) will be a one-sided romp.
Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times has your injury scoop.
Star big man Anthony Davis, who as recently as Saturday declared his intentions to play, is now listed as being merely "probable" due to low back tightness.
Three new free agency signings, however, will not be so lucky. Swingmen Troy Brown Jr. and Lonnie Walker IV, plus returning point guard Dennis Schröder, are all set to be unavailable tonight.
Brown, who has been limited during training camp with a low back injury, will be held out. Walker, who completed his first full team practice on Saturday after also seeing limited run due to a left ankle sprain, is also going to be sat. Schröder is still working out visa issues in his native Germany and should join the Lakers later this week.
Los Angeles is hoping for a more successful preseason showcase than it had in 2021-22, when an 0-6 finish served as an ominous warning of the misery to come.
Yes, preseason games don't officially "count," but they can still operate as litmus tests for the forthcoming season. A good team doesn't necessarily need to win every preseason game, but it shouldn't lose all of them, either. Remember when the "Now This Is Going To Be Fun" Lakers went 0-8 in the 2012 preseason, fans were told not to worry, and then they subsequently started the regular season 1-4? Head coach Mike Brown was canned after that awful start, and the team failed to live up to expectations the rest of the season.
Plenty of other new Lakers are set to make their debuts in the purple and gold, however: Patrick Beverley, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Max Christie, two-way players Scotty Pippen Jr. and Cole Swidler. Training camp invitees Matt Ryan, Dwayne Bacon, and Javante McCoy will also be available.
Returning centers Thomas Bryant and Damian Jones have already been Lakers in prior seasons, of course, and 2021 signing Kendrick Nunn did suit up for some preseason games last year before injuring that balky knee.
