The Los Angeles Lakers will have marquee matchups on NBA Opening Night and Christmas Day.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Lakers will host Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 21 as part of the twinbill in the NBA’s return to NBC.
It will also be the much-anticipated first official game in a Lakers uniform for the slimmer version of Luka Doncic.
The other game will feature Kevin Durant‘s debut with the Houston Rockets and his return to Oklahoma City to face the defending champion Thunder.
On Christmas Day, the Lakers will host Dorian Finney-Smith and the Rockets as part of the NBA’s five-game schedule.
Finney-Smith bolted for the Rockets after he felt disrespected by the Lakers’ offer and the rumors that came with the negotiations.
According to Anthony Irwin of ClutchPoints, the Lakers were initially looking at signing Finney-Smith to a two to three-year deal worth around a little under the midlevel exception.
It was lower than what Finney-Smith’s camp was expecting.
“On top of lowballing Dorian Finney-Smith, the word out there is that Rob Pelinka was going out there and talking to teams about Dorian’s [ankle] to try to tank Dorian’s free agency value and the offers that could potentially come in,” Irwin said on his podcast “The Lakers Lounge” on June 30, at the start of the NBA Free Agency. “Word is that it got back to Dorian and his camp.”
Finney-Smith underwent left ankle surgery, which cost him a combined 20 games with the Brooklyn Nets and the Lakers last season. He is expected to be ready for training camp.
So, even if the Lakers were to improve on their initial offer, Finney-Smith was not taking it, according to Irwin.
Skinny Luka Drops 19 Points in Limited Action
Doncic battled through jet lag to finish with 19 points on 5-of-11 shooting, including 3-for-6 from the 3-point line in Slovenia’s 103-89 loss to Germany on an Aug. 8 exhibition game.
The Lakers star added three rebounds and five assists before sitting out the entire fourth quarter.
“I still feel a bit jet-lagged, but I think it will pass soon,” Doncic said, leading to the exhibition game. “I probably won’t play the whole game, but I think there will be enough minutes. Depends on how my body feels. I haven’t played 5 on 5 in a long time. It’s a completely different rhythm. But I feel good.”
Doncic showed a fresh burst with his slimmer body, looking slicker and playing faster during his 24-minute stint.
According to Slovenian Pop TV, Doncic lost 31 lbs. since the Lakers’ season ended at the end of April. Doncic has shed an average of over 10 lbs. per month.
Luka Runs Into Foul Trouble, Isaac Bonga
But the game got chippy in the second quarter when Doncic and ex-Lakers forward Isaac Bonga got into each other’s faces.
Doncic took exception to the Germans’ mocking celebration following an in-your-face Christian Anderson slam dunk. Doncic pushed Orlando Magic star Franz Wagner, then Bonga confronted Doncic.
By halftime, Doncic had already five fouls.
