Three takeaways from Lakers’ preseason-opening win in Sacramento

The Los Angeles Lakers spent training camp talking about becoming a more disruptive defensive team. Their preseason opener offered an encouraging first look at how that could work.

The Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings 127-103 on Monday at Golden 1 Center, building a 73-47 halftime lead despite playing without Austin Reaves, Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton.

Luka Dončić led the way for L.A. in scoring, while several newcomers made strong first impressions.

Here are three takeaways from the preseason opener in Sacramento.

Defensive pressure sets the pace

The Lakers’ perimeter depth was an immediate takeaway in their willingness to pressure the ball. 

Newcomers Matisse Thybulle, Ziaire Williams and Quentin Grimes helped establish that approach, with Bronny James and Adou Thiero bringing similar activity.

L.A. forced 26 turnovers and recorded 15 steals, turning that pressure into opportunities to attack before Sacramento could get set. Picking up farther from the basket also made it harder for the Kings to get into their offense.

“We just consistently just did the right play, and the right play helped our teammates,” Redick said afterward.

Williams finished with 13 points and made all three of his 3-point attempts. Grimes added 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while Thybulle recorded two steals.

One preseason game will not establish a defensive identity. But the Lakers backed up their training camp emphasis with an active, disruptive performance, even without Kessler.

Dončić gets back to work

Dončić needed only the first half to lead the Lakers in scoring.

In 16 minutes of action, he finished with 21 points, three assists, two rebounds and two steals, shooting 5 of 12 from the field and making three of his nine 3-point attempts.

After the hamstring injury that ended his previous season, Monday marked an important return to competition. His postgame comments reflected how much he had missed playing.

“Basketball is one of the best things in my life, and I miss it a lot,” Dončić said. “It's been five, six months, I think. Being back for the games, being competitive is just a lot of fun for me, and I'm really happy to be back.”

The opener also gave Dončić his first opportunity to work with his new teammates.

The Lakers still need to see how those combinations look with Reaves and Kessler available. For now, Dončić gave them a productive opening half and helped build a lead that allowed Redick to turn the second half over to others.

Carr makes an early impression

First-round rookie Cameron Carr made the most of his first preseason appearance and picked up where he left off in summer league.

The rookie scored 19 points in 23 minutes off the bench, shooting 7 of 13 from the field and 3 of 7 from beyond the arc. He added three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

“I was definitely nervous, but I mean, it's basketball; I enjoy having fun, so I got to go out there and have another opportunity to play basketball, and now at the highest level, so it's fun, get to compete with my guys,” Carr said.

Much of Carr’s opportunity came with the Lakers comfortably ahead.

His debut gave him something to build on, particularly if he can continue contributing defensively alongside his scoring.

The challenge now is carrying that performance into the remaining preseason games as Redick takes a closer look at his rotation.