Lakers backcourt takes shape as minor preseason injuries open rotation battle

The Los Angeles Lakers have started their first season fully committed to a new backcourt built around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, but head coach JJ Redick is less focused on pairing them than on how each looks when running the team alone. With significant roster turnover from last year, the coaching staff is still sorting through roles and combinations before settling on a regular-season blueprint.

Redick has emphasized that training camp has been geared toward basic offensive structure and early offense rather than locking in set units. The priority for now is teaching the group how to flow into actions without relying on a narrow menu of pick-and-roll looks, with the understanding that specific matchup strategies and preferred lineups will come later.

Even without a final rotation in place, Redick has outlined the offensive identity he expects. He anticipates the Lakers will attack the paint more often, take a higher volume of three-pointers and pursue extra possessions on the offensive glass. How those stylistic targets translate into efficiency metrics will be evaluated over the course of the preseason as the revamped roster gains chemistry.

Kessler, Reaves, Sexton and Kaluma sit with minor injuries

The Lakers’ preseason schedule began Monday with several regular contributors sidelined. Walker Kessler sat out after jamming a finger on the backboard, while Austin Reaves missed the game due to a minor ankle issue. Guards Collin Sexton and Arthur Kaluma were also unavailable for the opener.

Redick characterized all of the ailments as minor. Sexton had previously been spotted with his right calf wrapped during shootaround and later spent extra time working with the strength and conditioning staff. For now, the absences are being treated as precautionary as the Lakers try to balance health with the need to build rhythm.

Thiero’s push and a crowded perimeter rotation

Amid the roster changes, second-year forward Adou Thiero views the current landscape as a chance to secure a larger role. With several players from last season no longer on the team and responsibilities still in flux, Thiero believes he has a realistic path to regular minutes in Redick’s rotation. The coach has praised what he called an outstanding two-month stretch of development from the athletic wing and sees his growth as a potential swing factor for the franchise.

Redick also pointed to rookie Cameron Carr and other young players as development priorities, suggesting that turning them into reliable rotation pieces over the next year or two could raise the Lakers’ long-term ceiling. That youth movement will have to unfold alongside difficult decisions: the team must waive at least one guaranteed contract before opening night, putting fringe rotation players under added scrutiny.

During preseason, attention will centre on how the Lakers look with and without Kessler anchoring the lineup, and how perimeter defenders such as Matisse Thybulle, Ziaire Williams, Bronny James, Quentin Grimes and Sexton can disrupt opposing ball-handlers. Those performances, combined with how Doncic and Reaves manage the offense separately, will shape both the final roster and the early-season rotation pecking order.