Lakers Sign Anton Watson With Training Camp Around the Corner

The Los Angeles Lakers added a familiar face to the mix as JJ Redick prepares to open training camp later this month.

Oct 5, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Anton Watson (28) warms up before the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The start of training camp for the Los Angeles Lakers is right around the corner, with head coach JJ Redick set to get his new group back on the practice floor after media day on Sept. 28.

Ahead of the start of training camp and the NBA preseason that follows, the Lakers need to fill out their training camp roster, and they started that process on Thursday night.

Lakers Sign Forward Anton Watson to Exhibit 10 Contract

The Lakers announced on Thursday night that they have signed forward Anton Watson, who played 50 games with the then-South Bay Lakers last season. The deal is likely an Exhibit 10 contract intended for training camp.

Lakers have signed forward Anton Watson pic.twitter.com/1uGXCwvoGc

— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) September 18, 2026

Presumably, Watson will be an addition to the training camp roster, which allows NBA teams to carry a maximum of 21 players. 

That said, Watson is likely one of many players that the Lakers will sign over the next week or so before training camp gets underway.

The Gonzaga product also played on the Lakers’ Summer League in Las Vegas. He suited up for five games, averaging 6.4 points, 1.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 blocks per game, while shooting 31.6 percent from the floor and 20 percent from beyond the arc.

Obviously, these numbers aren't all that impressive, especially in the shooting department, but clearly he's in the team's good graces and could end up landing on the Coachella Valley Lakers' roster once again.

Lakers Preparing for Training Camp & NBA Preseason

Sep 25, 2025; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, left, speaks during a press conference to preview the 2025-26 season at UCLA Health Training Center. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Following the signing of Watson, things will start to ramp up in terms of the Lakers' activity, filling out the training camp roster, with five preseason games to follow.

As mentioned earlier, the Lakers can carry 21 players on their training camp roster and currently have 17 with the addition of Watson.

The Lakers brass will have to get the roster down to the maximum of 15 players before the start of the 2026-27 NBA season on Oct. 21 when the team hosting Stephen Curry and the visiting Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena.

Before the season opener, the Lakers will get pretty familiar with the Warriors, as they'll face Golden State twice during the preseason. First matchup on Oct. 6 at the Chase Center in the Bay Area and the second being in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Oct. 13.

As for the Lakers' training camp roster, there's a chance few familiar faces from Summer League might be added into the mix along with Watson, but it remains to be seen what the team wants to do ahead of the first preseason game against the Sacramento Kings on Oct. 5.

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