The Lakers’ preseason opener offered an early glimpse of the question that will follow them into October: can the defensive standard become something the players carry, not just something the coach asks for?
Ziaire Williams made the case that it can start with him.
Against the Sacramento Kings on October 5, Williams spent the night doing the kind of work that rarely shows up in a highlight package but does show up in a coach’s film session. He picked up Kings guards full court, hounded them defensively, and said the approach was exactly what the Lakers had been talking about since camp opened.
“From Day 1 of camp, it was all about setting the tone, picking up full, being the more physical team,” Williams said.
That was the assignment, and Williams said he was satisfied with how the group handled it. He also framed the idea in a way that fits the Lakers’ early message: defensive energy can spread from one player to the next.
Williams said he believes that intensity is contagious, and the opener gave him a chance to see that in real time. Matisse Thybulle and Quentin Grimes were among the players who also played aggressively, helping turn the Lakers’ pressure into something more than a one-man effort.
The result was a 127-103 win over Sacramento, a game in which the Lakers forced 26 turnovers and posted a 25.2% opposing turnover rate. It was the first time since 2000 that the Lakers had forced 26 turnovers in a game, according to JJ Redick.
Redick was pleased with the defense, and he had reason to be. The Lakers’ turnover pressure was the clearest sign of the night that the message from camp had carried into a game setting. He was also happy with the offense, but the defensive numbers stood out in a way that the preseason usually does not.
That matters because the Lakers have not been a high-turnover-forcing team under Redick. In his first two seasons as head coach, they finished 18th in opposing turnover rate in 2024-25 and 15th in 2025-26, never going above 14.6%, according to Cleaning the Glass. Monday’s opener did not settle anything, but it did give the Lakers a much louder defensive opening statement than they have had in recent seasons.
Williams added 13 points and went 3-for-3 from three-point range, giving the Lakers a clean offensive contribution to go with the defensive work. The team built a lead as large as 33 points, shot 50% from the field and 45.5% from beyond the arc, and never let Sacramento turn the game into anything resembling a close preseason test.
Still, the more interesting part of the night was not the margin. It was the way the Lakers talked about the margin afterward.
Williams said he wants to focus on defense on every possession this season. He also called the opener a good start. That is the kind of language the Lakers need if they want the defensive standard to come from the locker room as much as from the sideline.
The next chance to see whether that carries over comes Wednesday against the Golden State Warriors at 7:00 PM PT. One preseason game is not a season, but it was enough to show the Lakers what their coach wants and what one of their wings is already trying to lead.