The Los Angeles Lakers secured their first win of the season on Friday night, dismantling Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves 128-110.
Before the start of the Lakers’ second regular-season game, though, Los Angeles received heavy criticism following their season-opening loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Luka Doncic finished his 2025-26 season debut with 43 points, 11 rebounds, and assists, showing he’s capable of picking up the slack in LeBron James’ absence (sciatica in his right side). However, Los Angeles walked away with a 119-109 season-opening loss in the end.
A day after the defeat, an anonymous coach provided the Lakers with the blueprint for success with James currently sidelined.
“Luka is going to have to do what he did every night just to give them a chance,” the coach reportedly stated.
Doncic can rely on Austin Reaves to hold his weight offensively, as the Oklahoma product is averaging 25.5 points per game to start the year.
However, the same can’t be said about the rest of the Lakers crew, which is a bit concerning in the early going.
Rui Hachimura recorded 23 points against the Timberwolves after netting nine points against the Warriors, but can he be depended upon to look for his shot in the flow of the Lakers’ offense nightly?
Likewise, DeAndre Ayton improved his play in regular-season game No. 2, but will his low motor and tendency to shy away from physicality in the low post affect his production throughout the year?
Who knows, which is why the unknown coach felt comfortable stating that Doncic must perform at a superhuman level for Los Angeles to survive with James temporarily out of the fold.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Lakers perform during their upcoming stretch of games.
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