Opening night was supposed to offer a first real look at two of the league’s most watched teams. Instead, the Lakers and Warriors are heading into Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena with the injury report doing as much of the framing as the matchup itself.
Golden State has ruled out center Charles Bassey for the season opener against the Lakers. Bassey had been listed as questionable with knee tendinitis before the Warriors made the call to keep him out.
The Warriors are also entering the game with another absence on the report: Brandin Podziemski is officially out with bilateral low back soreness. A preview of the matchup described Golden State as “wounded” heading into the opener, and the injury list gives that label some obvious weight before the ball is even tipped.
The Lakers, meanwhile, will start their season without Collin Sexton, Cameron Carr and Adou Thiero available.
Sexton is out with a calf strain after missing all five preseason games because of a right soleus strain. Carr is sidelined with a right oblique strain, while Thiero is out with a left knee effusion. Head coach JJ Redick said Carr and Thiero were held out of practice again, and the Lakers took to the floor Tuesday without Thiero.
That leaves Los Angeles with three unavailable players before the first game of the season is even underway, and it comes against a Warriors team dealing with its own absences. The result is a matchup that may tell more about replacement minutes, lineup flexibility and who can absorb missing pieces than about either team’s ideal version.
The Lakers host the Warriors at 7 p.m. PST.