More than three months after the Oklahoma City Thunder capped a tremendous season by winning their first championship since moving to Oklahoma City in 2008, the NBA is back with preseason action. The New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, and New Orleans Pelicans have already played internationally, but now, the domestic slate tips off with the Los Angeles Lakers set to host the Phoenix Suns tonight at 10 p.m. ET.
Preseason rotations can be unpredictable, so it’s difficult to predict how much Devin Booker will see the court, but regardless, basketball is basketball.
The Suns are three-point favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook (-148 on the Moneyline), with the point total set for 219. The Lakers are +124 on the Moneyline. Below, I’ll break down this clash and offer a prediction.
Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers preview, prediction
We already know two men who won’t be taking the court tonight at Crypto.com Arena: Los Angeles’ best players, Luka Dončić and LeBron James. After Dončić spent a long summer being the best player at EuroBasket — though Dennis Schröder took home tournament MVP after leading Germany to a gold medal, Dončić led the tournament in points per game and finished second in assists and steals — the Lakers have decided to rest the Slovenian for both of this weekend’s clashes. James’ absence isn’t a surprise: he’s 40 years old and hasn’t played in a preseason opener since 2022.
That could mean more opportunities for one of Los Angeles’ most impressive players during the Summer League — Bronny James. In four Summer League games, the younger James averaged 14.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game on 48-30-79 shooting splits while looking more comfortable in the offense. It’ll also be a chance for Lakers fans to become acquainted with their new signings, Deandre Ayton and Jake LaRavia. Last season, Ayton averaged 14.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game for the Portland Trail Blazers, while LaRavia averaged 6.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game between stints in Memphis and Sacramento.
Phoenix has several new faces to introduce as well after dealing Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green during the offseason. Green, a mercurial shooting guard who averaged 21.0 points per game in Houston, suffered a mild hamstring strain in practice and won’t participate tonight, but Brooks, a veteran three-and-D wing, is expected to make his team debut tonight. Lottery pick Khaman Maluach should get plenty of minutes at center in the absence of the Suns’ other big man acquisition, near-Laker Mark Williams.
Suns at Lakers pick, best bet
For the best estimate as to what the teams’ rotations might look like in this first preseason game, we can look at the Knicks-76ers game in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. In that game, no expected regular season starter from either team played more than 24 minutes with the exception of Philadelphia rookie VJ Edgecombe, and OG Anunoby did not suit up at all as he deals with a sprained wrist. None of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Karl-Anthony Towns played in the second half.
Last season, Austin Reaves played 25 minutes in the preseason opener, scoring 16 points on two-for-nine shooting, and Rui Hachimura played 22 and had nine points and six rebounds. Other than that, JJ Redick’s rotation was mostly a mix of young guys, including James and fellow rookie Dalton Knecht. Knecht, who underwhelmed in Summer League and was involved in that nixed trade for Williams, should be a major player down the stretch for Los Angeles, given that the team still needs to evaluate his fit in the offense. LaRavia could take over his spot as a bench shooting threat while also providing above-average defense and rebounding, which Knecht does not.
For Phoenix, Booker should be expected to play around 14 minutes like he did in the 2024 preseason opener, when he scored 12 points on four-for-12 shooting. Since he’s played alongside either Chris Paul or Kevin Durant for the past six seasons, it’ll be the first time since 2019-20 that the Suns’ starting lineup will be fully devoid of other All-Star-level talent. Booker’s ability to create his own shot as the defense’s primary focus will be on display this season, and matching up with him will also be a good way to test Redick’s ability to make the most of Marcus Smart’s tenacity. Phoenix’s players have reportedly been impressed with Maluach, so it’ll be interesting to see how Ott utilizes him in his debut.
Unless Booker plays more than 14 minutes, the Lakers have a stronger roster from top-to-bottom, with Brooks and Williams out. Reaves, Hachimura, and Knecht all have chemistry, and Knecht actually posted a positive net rating while on the court with Reaves last season despite being a negative asset overall. Knecht also demonstrated some connection with Jarred Vanderbilt, who had the best on-off splits on the team during the playoff defeat and is expected to be the team’s defensive anchor in 2025-26. If the practice videos of Vanderbilt’s improved jump shot carry over to the game tonight, Los Angeles has what it takes to pull off the upset, even without the elder James and Dončić.
