On October 17, Beijing time, Lakers trained to prepare for the opening game of the regular season against the Warriors. Coach Ham also announced the team's latest injury. There is no structural damage to the hamstring of Westbrook and . It is observed every day and is even expected to play in the opening game. Thick eyebrows training is not restricted and was questioned by the Lakers management last season. In addition, Ham did not announce the start of the opening game, but the grouping during training may reveal his plans.
Official Lakers posted training photos and videos, James smiled and brived high with his teammates. Westbrook was also smiling happily. In the video, James assisted Thomas to complete a dunk with both hands. However, before playing in the regular season, five people on the Lakers have appeared on the injury list. Hamm said that Schroder (finger) and Westbrook (hamstring) are currently considered "daily observations", but Schroder has a finger ligament injury and is expected to take longer. Previously, famous reporter Haynes reported that Westbrook's hamstring had no structural damage. Ham said Westbrook is still likely to play the regular season opening game.
former teammate Oladipo talked about Westbrook on the podcast and highly praised Westbrook's competitive mentality. He said: "He (Westbrook) doesn't care about failure. When I say he doesn't care, it's not that he disrespects him. He has been working hard and always maintaining a competitive state. He will continue to compete with you. If he fails once, he will continue to 10,000 times. If he doesn't work once, do it again and repeat it."
reporter Dave McMenamin said that the Lakers will continue to try to let Westbrook play as a substitute in the regular season. Speaking of Westbrook's trading prospects, McMenamin said that sources revealed that the Lakers had talked about trading Westbrook with Jazz , Pacers , and Nets this summer, and the negotiations were deadlocked. Many teams that have negotiated with the Lakers insist on getting the two first-round picks (27 and 29 years), and the Lakers are determined to only give out one of them unless the team can get players like Mitchell or Irving .
The Lakers originally planned to send Westbrook away first and then consider signing Schroeder, but the latter performed well in the European Cup, attracting the interest of many teams in the league. The Lakers can only sign Schroeder before other teams. Schroeder signed a base salary contract with the Lakers for a year of $2.64 million.
As for Lonnie Walker, he looks great in training, and the Lakers just made him missed the last preseason game just out of prevention. Thick Eyebrow had no restrictions before the opening game, which also shows that his waist was not a big problem. Brown Jr. has made progress in recovering from back injuries, but is expected to be out for a few weeks.
Speaking of Thomas' health issues, McMenamin said that sources revealed that there was a view in the Lakers management last season that Thomas' eyebrows did not look like one of the core team that helped the team win the 2020 championship. In the new season, the Lakers look forward to Thick Brow proving themselves again.
Ham did not disclose in advance about the starting lineup of the opening game. However, team reporter Alex Regla said that although players will be substituted during training, the players wearing purple vests (expected starters) include James, Davis, Walker, Reeves and Beverly . This may be the opening game starting lineup that Ham is considering.
