Los Angeles Lakers training camp and preseason dates to know
With the 2017-18 NBA regular season tipping off in mid-October, we should take a moment to review some important preseason dates coming up on the Los Angeles Lakers’ schedule.
The Los Angeles Lakers are less than a month away from taking the floor for their opening game of the regular season on Oct. 19 when they take on the Los Angeles Clippers. There’s a lot of anticipation around this Lakers team with three new projected starters (Lonzo Ball, Brook Lopez, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope) and a full season under new management with Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka.
But before the Lakers begin their regular season slate, they will undergo training camp and play in five preseason games. The main goal of this period is to build cohesion amongst teammates while keeping everybody healthy. Fringe roster players will dominate minutes, but players in the main rotation will see their time on the court, especially with all of the new faces on the team.
Because of the excitement around the team this season, I thought it would be beneficial to Lakers fans to see important dates leading up to the regular season beginning with the start of training camp and media day.
- Sept. 25- Training camp begins/Media Day
- Sept. 30- first preseason game vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (@ Anaheim Honda Center)
- Oct. 2- vs. Denver Nuggets (@ Staples Center)
- Oct. 4- vs. Denver Nuggets in Toronto, Canada (@ Ontario CBBA)
- Oct. 8- vs. Sacramento Kings (@ Las Vegas T-Mobile Arena)
- Oct. 10- vs. Utah Jazz at Staples
- Oct. 19- regular season tips off vs. Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Lakers confirmed on Twitter that training camp and Media Day get underway on Monday, Sept. 25 at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, California. This gives the team five days to work on playing together before taking on another team that underwent an offseason of change, the Minnesota Timberwolves. The starters should see around 15-20 minutes in this game.
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The Lakers then take on the Denver Nuggets in back-to-back games. The first game is in the friendly confides of the Staples Center before heading north to Toronto for the second contest. I wouldn’t expect the starters to play heavy minutes in the second game due to travel and playing both games in the span of 48 hours, but the game at Staples should see them log around 20-25 minutes of action.
With three days between the Nuggets game and this one, the Lakers starters should see their most minutes during their encounter with the Sacramento Kings. Coaches usually wait until this part of the preseason to ramp up minutes for his starters. It doesn’t hurt that these two teams are full of young talent, either.
Their final preseason game sees them host the Utah Jazz in what should be a short cameo for most starters. Except plenty of court time for players that will spend time in the G League, such as Alex Caruso and Vander Blue.
It’s hard to believe it’s been three months since the NBA Finals concluded and the season is right around the corner. The league has turned into a year-round news cycle and the preseason has its own sense of importance, despite its lack of attention.
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Seeing new pieces share the floor together, especially watching Lonzo Ball play with legit NBA starters, is worth tuning into some Lakers preseason action. I’m a major fan of lineup experimentation, so I’ll be looking for what random units head coach Luke Walton throws onto the floor. The bench is relatively new with rookies Josh Hart, Kyle Kuzma and Thomas Bryant in line for valuable preseason minutes.