Dončić's Full Season Nears as the Lakers Fill Out to…

By the Lakers Nightly Desk · Sunday, September 20

The Lakers spent the week finishing a roster instead of opening one, adding two more names on Exhibit 10 deals to reach twenty-one bodies in camp. Luka Dončić, entering his first full season in purple and gold, still waits for a number in the win column, with the opener six weeks away.

Luka Dončić of the Lakers — Luka Dončić. Photo: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A Full Camp

Chase Ross and Meechie Johnson signed Exhibit 10 contracts on September 19, according to Hoops Rumors, pushing the training camp roster to twenty-one players. JJ Redick will have to trim that number before the regular season opens. The additions sit at the back of a depth chart still topped by Dončić, Reaves and Kessler.

The Calendar Ahead

The preseason opens October 5 at Sacramento, with three more exhibition games before the regular season begins October 21 against Golden State on ESPN. The team's cost for this roster sits at $201.3 million, already past the league's $200.4 million tax threshold. Camp will decide who actually plays once the games start counting.

Minutes Up For Grabs

With LeBron James gone to Philadelphia as a free agent, the bench scoring he provided is an open question the roster hasn't answered on paper. Bronny James, back for a second season, is one name in that mix, alongside Jaden Hardy and Dalton Knecht. Off the court, Dončić told Lakers Nation that Michael Jordan is the legend he would most want to face, a small window into how the Lakers' new face of the franchise sees the game's history.

When do the Lakers play their first preseason game?

The Lakers open the preseason on October 5 at the Sacramento Kings, ahead of a regular-season opener October 21 against the Warriors on ESPN.

How many players are in Lakers training camp?

The roster stands at twenty-one after Chase Ross and Meechie Johnson signed Exhibit 10 contracts on September 19, a number JJ Redick will need to cut down before the season starts.

By the Lakers Nightly Desk, written from the club's data and the reports on file, with every name and number checked against them. How the desks work.