All Lakers Expert Predictions For Saturday Night Fight At Golden State

Your new-look Los Angeles Lakers will hope to nab a win on the road against the Golden State Warriors tonight. Both teams will be missing their lone 2023 All-Star this evening, which should make things interesting.

The action tips off at 5:30 p.m. PT on ABC and ESPN2.

With all these new faces available (and some older faces less-than-available), who will start for LA tonight?

Alex: Darvin Ham finally, mercifully, will not be able to start 6'1" Patrick Beverley at shooting guard. Why this future buyout prospect was considered so essential to LA's first five when he couldn't really shoot and was forced to defend much taller players on the opposing team is a mystery to me. That said, especially with LeBron James out, I think Ham will still start a slightly smaller shooting guard than he needs to. I predict Ham will start Dennis Schroder still for some reason, move new addition D'Angelo Russell over to shooting guard (at least he's 6'4", but he also cannot defend a lick), another newbie, Malik Beasley, at small forward, 6'6" Troy Brown Jr. at power forward (he should start Rui Hachimura or Jarred Vanderbilt tonight because they are actual power forward height, but he won't), and Anthony Davis at center of course.

Noah: It can really go so many different ways. I think the only locks are D’Angelo Russell and Anthony Davis. But to match up with the Steph-less Warriors, the Lakers are going to need wings. So I’m going to go with:

PG: D’Angelo Russell

SG: Malik Beasley

SF: Austin Reaves

PF: Rui Hachimura

C: Anthony Davis

But I wouldn’t put it past Darvin Ham to start Russell at the 2 and Dennis Schröder at the 1 because, you know, he loves his multi-guard lineups.

Which Warrior should LA watch out for most in defensive coverages?

Noah: Jordan Poole. 100%. This guy can shoot the lights out, and he always seems to do better with an audience. It’s ABC Primetime. Warriors, Lakers. No Steph. No LeBron. Poole is going to be looking to get over 30, and the Lakers need a plan to slow him down. If he has a quiet night, the Lakers can win.

Alex: I wanted to pick someone else to be different but this is the right call. With Stephen Curry out, look for Jordan Poole to control a lot of the team's playmaking (and Draymond Green, of course, but he can't shoot). Sealing him off at the point of attack would be a big help to LA. It'll be fascinating to see which Laker Darvin Ham sticks on Poole. Beasley or Austin Reaves may be the best fit.

Which new Laker will score the most points in his debut?

Alex: D'Angelo Russell is going to have the green light among guards tonight, and should get a bunch of buckets. He also put up 29 points on the Dubs just 10 days ago in leading Minnesota to an OT win.

Noah: It’s got to be D-Lo. He’s going to play the most minutes of the new guys, and will likely have the ball in his hands all game long with LeBron on the sideline. He’s playing in his first game with his former team — against another former team — so I see him putting up tons of shots and lighting up the scoreboard.

Will LA cover tonight's spread (the Warriors are currently 5.5-point favorites)?

Noah: I think the Lakers are not only going to cover, but win. I was a little surprised that the line jumped that far when LeBron was ruled out. I guess the oddsmakers are giving the new Lakers some time to gel, but unfortunately, the Lakers don’t have that time. They need to win, and they need to win now. And I like the new-look Lakers without LeBron more than the same-old Warriors without Steph.

Alex: No. I think they'll lose big against a sharpshooting Dubs club. With both teams missing their best player and the Lakers' roster being so different, the Warriors role players will pick up Steph's slack. That said, LA needs to pick up all the wins it can get, as a 25-32 record after tonight would prove detrimental to its postseason aspirations.

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