LeBron James, Austin Reeves and more star as duo of Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo debut

Jeff Harnisch-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Lakers will take on the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena in their penultimate preseason game.

While it’s still just the preseason, Sunday marked the Bucks’ much-anticipated debut for Damian Lillard, who was acquired in a blockbuster trade with the Portland Trail Blazers just weeks ago Obtained from , forming a superstar combination with Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The Lakers are the first team to land the Lillard-Antetokounmpo duo, which should be a good test to prepare for the regular season. Given Lillard’s outside shooting, he should bring a different dynamic to the Bucks, who have struggled in the half-court in recent seasons. It will be an extremely difficult challenge for the team to keep an eye on Lillard throughout the season while also trying to prevent Antetokounmpo from declining, although it may take some time to develop chemistry.

At the same time, the Lakers’ chemistry has been outstanding in the preseason, and they continue to build on last season’s Western Conference Finals. Perhaps most impressive was their offense, as the Lakers scored 177 points in five quarters of regular rotation.

The Lakers’ outside shooting should be greatly improved this season. In the preseason, they averaged 38.3 shots per game and hit 37.9%. While that may not be sustainable, it’s clear the Lakers want to take more long-range shots this season and have the personnel to knock down opponents quickly.

As for the Lakers’ players in this game, Jared Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent are still out due to minor injuries. With the start of the regular season still a little over a week away, it makes sense to give these players as much time as possible to get back to 100 percent and avoid lingering injuries during the regular season.

LeBron James, Austin Reeves and Jalen Hood-Schifino are also out, with the former two simply resting while the rookie faces a minor knee issue.

That means Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell will lead the Lakers against the Bucks’ rising star duo of Lillard and Antetokounmpo.

After the Lakers take on the Bucks, they will face the Phoenix Suns in Palm Springs on Thursday for their final preseason game before taking on the defending champion Denver Nuggets in their regular season opener on Tuesday, October 24. Gold team.

Los Angeles Lakers (2-2) vs. Los Angeles Lakers Milwaukee Bucks (1-1)

October 15, 2023 at 4:00 pm Pacific Time
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California
TV: Spectrum SportsNet, ESPN
Broadcast: 710 AM ESPN LA

Projected Lakers starting lineup:

Point Guard: D’Angelo Russell
SG: Max Christie
SF: Taurus Prince
Power Forward: Rui Hachimura
Center: Anthony Davis

Main substitutes: Christian Wood, Jackson Hayes, Cam Reddish, Maxwell Lewis, Dermoy Hodge

Projected Bucks starting lineup:

Point Guard: Damian Lillard
GS: Malik Beasley
Small Forward: Jae Crowder
Power Forward: Giannis Antetokounmpo
C: Brooke Lopez

Main reserves: Bobby Portis, Pat Connaughton, Robin Lopez, Cam Payne

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