Warriors-Lakers Summer League Semifinals Preview, Top Players, Prediction

The Golden State Warriors will take on the Los Angeles Lakers in the Las Vegas Summer League semifinals on Saturday.

The winner will play the winner of the Grizzlies-Rockets semifinal that takes place earlier on Saturday.

The Lakers were the only team to go undefeated in their four Las Vegas Summer League matchups, while the Warriors were one of nine teams to go 3-1. The Dubs advanced to the semis because they had the third-best scoring margin among the 3-1 teams.

The Warriors haven't won a Las Vegas Summer League championship since 2013, when they were led by Draymond Green and Championship Game MVP Ian Clark.

Here are the top players and a prediction for Saturday's game.

Top Players

Yaxel Lendeborg

Through two Las Vegas Summer League games, Lendeborg was being labeled a standout rookie by just about everyone.

He wasn't as sharp in the third game, and in the fourth he went just 1-of-9 with three points.

Still, he's averaging 13.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists in Vegas.

It will be interesting to see if his motor is revved up for this game. He's seemingly coasted as times, but there will be a bigger spotlight on this game than there was on the others.

Lendeborg has admitted that he's not in great shape due in part to having to take a month off after suffering MCL and ankle injuries during the NCAA tournament. He's the biggest wild card of this matchup. He could be motivated and have a 21-point, 10-rebound, six-assist line like he did in the first game in Vegas, or he could coast to another lower-offensive-impact game.

Cameron Carr

I had Carr 12th on my final Warriors big board, so I was surprised to see him fall all the way to the 24th pick.

The Lakers are pleased that he did. The 6'5" rangy wing is averaging 18.3 points per game in Vegas.

Carr has already admitted that he's motivated from being overlooked by many teams in the draft. Outplaying Lendeborg in a summer league semifinal would give him a first taste of "I told you so."

LJ Cryer

Cryer is averaging 14.8 points (13-of-35 on threes) and 3.8 assists in four Vegas summer league games. He proved he was an NBA-caliber player last season, and one way or another he will be back with the Warriors for the 2026-27 season.

The question with him is should the Dubs upgrade his two-way contract to a standard contract?

How he performs in this game could play a role in that decision. Expect Cryer to come out firing.

Arthur Kaluma and Adou Thiero

Kaluma has been on fire in Vegas, averaging 20.3 points on 63.9/54.5/86.7 shooting splits.

Thiero is averaging 14.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists, getting most of his points slashing to the basket.

Thiero is an athletic wing with major defensive potential. He'll have a big impact on this game on both ends.

Prediction

These teams played in the California Classic two weeks ago, and the Warriors won by 32.

But there are a few reasons the Lakers could turn the tables this time.

For one, Will Richard might be shut down for the Warriors. If he plays, that would improve Golden State's chances substantially.

Aside from that, this Lakers team looks way more settled in than it did two weeks ago.

It has a league-best plus-70 scoring margin in Vegas as well as a league-best 50.4 team field-goal percentage.

If this were Game 7 of the NBA Finals, I'd expect Lendeborg to be the most impactful player on the court. But he might not be as motivated as some of the Lakers are, and perhaps more importantly, he won't be as well-conditioned.

Lakers by 9

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