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The Marquee · By the numbers

By the Numbers: A 53-Win Team Built on a 1.5 Net Rating

Fifty-three wins, a thin margin and a payroll past the tax threshold: the figures that frame Lakers opening night.

Luka Doncic33.5 pts, 7.7 reb, 8.3 ast in 64 games last season
By the Lakers Nightly Desk · Monday, October 19

The Lakers open the 2026-27 season Wednesday against the Warriors on ESPN, carrying a 2-3 preseason and a roster still being sorted. Before the games count, a handful of numbers explain what this team is and how little they settle.

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

Wins Outran the Margin

The Lakers went 53-29 last season, yet their net rating was only 1.5, 14th in the league. The offense rated 117.0 and finished 10th. The defense allowed 115.5 and finished 19th. The record says they won close games. It does not prove they will slip, because the roster that produced those ratings is not the one walking out Wednesday. Walker Kessler, a center, played just 5 games for them last season.

The Luka Arithmetic

Doncic averaged 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists over 64 games last season. Austin Reaves added 23.3 points in 51 games. Both missed time, and the Lakers still won 53. Kessler's 14.4 points and 10.8 rebounds come from a five-game sample, so they show a possibility and not a profile. The preseason offers little more. The Lakers lost 89-101 to the Warriors and 106-121 to the Nuggets, and Doncic scored 15 in the second of those. Exhibition scores are not a forecast.

Past the Tax Threshold

Payroll stands at $201.3M against a tax threshold of $200.4M. Doncic at $49.8M, Reaves at $41.2M and Kessler at $30.2M account for most of that. The picture is a club with little room to fix mistakes. Jake Fischer reported on Oct. 15 that the Lakers were among teams exploring trades, and he named no players or terms. The payroll figure shows how tight the squeeze is. It says nothing about what, if anything, the front office will do.

What was the Lakers' record last season?

The Lakers went 53-29 last season. Their net rating was 1.5, 14th in the league.

When do the Lakers open the 2026-27 season?

They open on Oct. 21 against the Warriors, a game on ESPN. They play the Clippers two days later.

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.

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