The practice days are almost over. The Lakers preseason opener is Monday, October 5, at 7 p.m. PT against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Before that, JJ Redick has two more sessions in El Segundo, on Saturday and Sunday. The roster still has one spot too many, two starting jobs are open and a handful of players are working under modified loads. As of Saturday morning, none of that has been settled.
This is where things stand entering the weekend: the roster math, Dalton Knecht’s status, the injury picture, the rotation questions and the opponent.
Lakers Preseason Opener: Where the Roster Stands
The math has not changed since Media Day. The Lakers have 16 players on guaranteed contracts and can carry no more than 15 into the October 21 regular-season opener against the Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena. Barring a trade, someone gets waived.
Rob Pelinka has said the front office is open to a consolidation trade, which means sending out two players for one. That kind of deal usually gets easier once teams have watched a few preseason games. Monday is the first live tape for rival scouts, and five games are on the schedule before the opener.
No roster cuts have been announced yet. The only moves of camp came just before Media Day. The Lakers waived Meechie Johnson Jr. and Chase Ross and signed two forwards to Exhibit 10 deals:
- William Kyle III: a 6-foot-9, 230-pound undrafted rookie from Syracuse who played on the Lakers’ summer league team in July. He averaged 8.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks for Syracuse last season.
- Cole Swider: a 6-foot-8 shooter who came back to the Lakers after starting his career with them on a two-way deal in 2022. He spent last season with Anadolu Efes in Turkey.
Neither camp deal counts toward the 16 guaranteed contracts. Both players are mainly competing for preseason minutes, a possible two-way or South Bay path and a good first impression.
Dalton Knecht: Still Unresolved
Knecht’s situation has not been settled. He is still on the roster and practicing, and there is no report of a trade or a decision. The outside noise has grown, though. Khobi Price of The California Post reported that multiple rival executives expect Knecht to be the odd man out when the Lakers trim to 15. Other bubble names in that discussion include Bronny James, Jaden Hardy and Jarred Vanderbilt.
The contract details matter here. Knecht earns about $4.2 million this season, and the Lakers have until November 2 to decide on his $6.45 million option for 2027-28, according to Hoops Rumors. Last season he averaged 4.2 points in 10.2 minutes over 54 games and shot 34.2 percent from three. His case for keeping a spot is simple: shoot well on the preseason trip to Sacramento and Golden State. Redick’s praise of his work ethic and the full Day 3 story are in our Day 3 report. The open question now is how many minutes he gets in the first two preseason games.
Injury Watch Before Sacramento
The Lakers have not released a formal injury list for Monday. All week, Redick has said that “a couple guys” were being modified without naming them. On Thursday he said it was still to be determined whether any of them would miss preseason games, while stressing that none of the issues is a long-term concern.
There are three things to watch this weekend:
- Whether the limited players go full contact on Saturday or Sunday. If they do, they will likely be available Monday.
- Back-to-back management. The Lakers play in Sacramento on Monday and at Golden State on Tuesday, so some veterans may play only one of those two games.
- Luka Doncic’s minutes. Redick has already said Doncic will play in the preseason, but the goal is rhythm rather than a heavy workload, as covered in our Day 2 report.
The Rotation Questions
Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler are the safe bets to start. Redick has framed everything else as an open competition since the first day of camp, and Monday will offer the first clues. These are the spots to watch:
- The two open starting jobs. Quentin Grimes, Jake LaRavia, Ziaire Williams, Matisse Thybulle, Vanderbilt and Adou Thiero are all candidates on the wing and at power forward. The first preseason lineup is not a commitment, but it shows who has the early edge.
- The backup center order. Kevon Looney is expected to back up Kessler, while Sandro Mamukelashvili’s role has been described as matchup dependent. How the minutes split behind Kessler will be telling.
- The rookie test. Cameron Carr gets his first NBA game action after a camp that brought both praise and on-the-spot teaching from Redick.
- The offensive details. Redick said the weekend practices would keep the emphasis on offense, building on Thursday’s extended scrimmage. On defense, the camp mantra has been ball pressure and keeping opponents out of the paint, a theme from Kessler’s Media Day.
Front Office Note: Pooh Jeter Joins the Staff
One more Lakers change came this week, off the court. According to Marc J. Spears of Andscape, the Lakers hired Pooh Jeter as their new director of pro scouting. Jeter is a Los Angeles native who played professionally from 2006 to 2023, including one NBA season with the Sacramento Kings in 2010-11. He spent the last three years as a player development coach in Portland and had been announced as part of the Trail Blazers’ 2026-27 staff before taking the job in L.A.
Scouting the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento is coming off a rough year. The Kings went 22-60 last season, their worst record since 2000, while dealing with injuries to Zach LaVine, Domantas Sabonis and Keegan Murray. Coach Doug Christie has made accountability and attention to detail the themes of camp, and the Kings ran two-a-day practices this week. Chris Webber spoke to the team at the start of camp, according to Last Word on Sports.
In the preseason, opponents’ lineups matter less than the Lakers’ own process. Still, a Sacramento team looking to prove last season was a fluke should play with more urgency than a typical exhibition opponent. The teams meet again three days later at Crypto.com Arena.
Watch: Lakers Camp Highlights
Here is a look at this week’s practice action from the Lakers’ official channel:
Lakers Preseason Schedule
- Monday, Oct. 5: at Sacramento Kings, Golden 1 Center, 7 p.m. PT
- Tuesday, Oct. 6: at Golden State Warriors
- Thursday, Oct. 8: vs. Sacramento Kings (Crypto.com Arena)
- Tuesday, Oct. 13: vs. Golden State Warriors (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas)
- Friday, Oct. 16: vs. Denver Nuggets (Crypto.com Arena)
All five games air on Spectrum SportsNet. The Lakers preseason opener will not decide the 15th roster spot or the starting lineup, but it starts the evaluation that will. Follow InfanityTV for weekend practice updates and full coverage from Sacramento on Monday night.
