LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic grabbed the microphone at center court and serenaded the Lakers faithful with rare public remarks.
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“It’s the start of something new,” the Slovenian star said, the Lakers now firmly his team going forward with LeBron James no longer in the fold. “It’s going to be a special season.”
That was before the Lakers took care of business, routing the Golden State Warriors, 127-105, in a season-opening victory at Crypto.com Arena. And before Doncic’s chirpy back-and-forth with Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg culminated with the 27-year-old guard baiting his younger foe into a technical foul before nailing a half-court heave over the head of Lendeborg as the halftime buzzer sounded.
In so many ways, Doncic said, “Welcome to the NBA.”
Doncic welcomed a new era of Lakers basketball on a positive note, finishing with 28 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals. He greeted new star center Walker Kessler (26 points, nine rebounds) on the first play of the game with an alley-oop dunk, exploiting the Warriors’ undermanned frontcourt with veteran Draymond Green playing the five and expected starting center Kristaps Porzingis not with the team for the “immediate future” as he deals with an illness that has plagued him for several seasons.
Kessler, who joined the Lakers in a sign-and-trade deal with the Utah Jazz during the offseason, and Doncic combined once again to put the Lakers ahead by 18 points when a behind-the-back pass led to a reverse dunk. Doncic wanted his center – and now he has him.
Kessler finished with 10 dunks – the most by a Laker in a game since Shaquille O’Neal in 2003, per ESPN – and secured a career-best scoring effort in an opening-night performance. Kessler’s 12-for-12 shooting effort is the second-best shooting game from a Lakers player since Wilt Chamberlain went 14 for 14 in 1969.
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The 7-foot-1 Kessler mucked up the paint, securing two blocked shots while committing just one personal foul (coming with 7:25 remaining in the game).
Star guard Austin Reaves added 23 points, six rebounds and four assists to help pace the Lakers, while Quentin Grimes (10 points) and Jake LaRavia (10 points) scored in double digits off the bench. LaRavia exited in the fourth quarter with a right ankle injury after twisting it while driving into the paint.
Outside of Warriors star guard Steph Curry beginning his 18th season in the NBA red hot by scoring 14 of the Warriors’ first 17 points – en route to 23 points on 7-for-15 shooting overall – the Warriors struggled to get things going offensively.
The Lakers held the Warriors to 41.3% shooting for the night. Golden State turned the ball over just five times in the first half. After the break, the Lakers forced nine turnovers with increased defensive intensity in the third quarter alone as they eclipsed the 100-point barrier and outscored the Warriors 36-16. The Lakers led by as many as 35 points in the third quarter.
The Warriors turned the ball over 15 times on Wednesday, with the Lakers scoring 25 points off of their miscues.
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More to come on this story.