Golden State Warriors vs. Los Angeles Lakers Live NBA Updates, Scores and Highlights

The Los Angeles Lakers made a statement Wedneday night to open the 2026-27 NBA regular season, throttling the Golden State Warriors 127-105.

Luka Dončić did his usual amount of stat-stuffing, finishing with 28 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and a team-best plus-31. After a slow start by his standards, Austin Reaves ended up pumping out 25 points and 6 assists.

But it was Walker Kessler who stole the show. Making his Lakers regular-season debut, he dropped 24 points on a perfect 12-of-12 shooting. Ten of these makes were dunks. You're reading all of that correctly.

Stephen Curry churned out 23 points on 7-of-15 shooting but was just 2-of-7 from three and did most of his damage in the first quarter. Yaxel Lendeborg was solid in his rookie-year debut for someone who spent so much time defending Luka. He was also trolled by Dončić and the rest of the Lakers roster. Silver linings end here for the Dubs.

Scroll on for all the highlights, analysis and takeaways from this lopsided clash that you can handle.

I will pay obscene amounts of I.O.U. cryptocurrency to anyone who can procure the hot mics for this exchange. The world needs to know what Yaxel said.

At long last, the second half that wouldn't end is officially over. The Lakers annihilated the Warriors after the first quarter, outscoring them by a total of 33 points in the second and third frames combined.

L.A. can feel good coming out of this one. Walker Kessler won't always make every shot, but their defensive aggression and depth shined.

The Warriors, on the other hand, have some existential questions to ask themselves. Chief among them: Just what the hell are they doing here?

Sure, this take from The Athletic's Nick Friedell is one way to look at it. But who's to say Steve Kerr wasn't forcing his players to mull over the giant goose egg they just laid a little bit longer by prolonging the game?

Lots of basketball is left to play. This season. Not in this game. This game is over .

Anyway, we shouldn't rush to judgment after a single win. At the very least, though, we can say the trio of Luka, Reaves and Kessler has a chance to be special—if not dominant. The synergy between them is already off the charts, and there's still 81 games left to play.

Score: Lakers 120, Warriors 96 | 3:05 remaining in the fourth quarter

Walker Kessler Went Full Wilt in his Lakers Debut

Even with most of these looks coming as dunks, this is just ridiculous.

Elsewhere, Jake LaRavia badly rolled his ankle and didn't immediately get off the floor. The Lakers have subbed him out of the game.

Score: Lakers 116, Warriors 83 |5:34 remaining in the fourth quarter

So much for shortening that rotation, right?

No word yet on whether Steve Kerr will allow Draymond Green to leave the bench and set up his podcast equipment in the locker room.

The Warriors also sorta stink. But the Lakers' bench does run deeper than last season, when the reserves ranked 14th in point differential per 100 possessions.

From being able to move Sandro Mamukelashvili to the center spot to bringing Quentin Grimes off the pine to take on more ball-handling when Collin Sexton is unavailable, this roster just has more optionality.

That doesn't mean every game will be like this . But it's a pretty good harbinger for surviving the season.

Score: Lakers 111, Warriors 83 | 11:00 remaining in the fourth quarter

In addition to the pain Walker Kessler is inflicting around the basket, the Lakers as a team are shooting 27-of-32 on shots within five feet of the hoop. That's a tidy 84 percent clip.

Score: Lakers 102, Warriors 70 | 11:27 remaining in the fourth quarter

The Lakers Weren't Kidding About Playing Aggressive Defense

On top of forcing the Warriors into 14 total turnovers, the Lakers have seven pick-sixes that they've turned into 19 points. Head coach JJ Redick was serious when he said this team would get after it on the less-glamorous end.

We'd nevertheless be remiss if we declared this Los Angeles' new normal. The Warriors a caricature of a basketball team right now. We need to see how the Lakers' defense holds up against a roster with actual hope for this season.

Walker Kessler Already Making Lakers History

So, um, maybe the Lakers actually underpaid for Walker Kessler?

Score: Lakers 87, Warriors 61 | 4:45 remaining in the third quarter

Walker Kessler is 10-of-10 from the floor, with nine of those shots coming as dunks

Steve Kerr has more rage timeouts (two) than Draymond Green has made shots (one)

Stephen Curry has missed his last five field-goal attempts

The Lakers have a 210 offensive rating in transition

Score: Lakers 78, Warriors 57 | 8:03 remaining in the third quarter

The Lakers are Obliterating the Warriors in Transition

Somebody needs to check on Steve Kerr as we start the third quarter.

The rookie has the entire Lakers bench giving him crap. I'm actually dying.

What a way to make your NBA regular-season debut.

Suffice it to say, the folks at Crypto.com Arena don't seem to be missing LeBron very much.

Luka Hits a Buzzer-Beater from Half-Court 😳

Dončić is showing no mercy to the Dubs' rookie. At all.

Luka is up to 23 points, six rebounds and four assists on the evening. Walker Kessler still hasn't missed. The Lakers' defense held Golden state to just 19 points in the second quarter.

Warriors not named Stephen Curry are shooting 13-of-35 from the floor. Golden State has also allowed the Lakers to shoot 84 percent (16-of-19) around the basket, according to Prime Stats .

Score: Lakers 66, Warriors 52 | HALFTIME

Walker Kessler is up to 6-of-6 shooting from the floor. It turns out playing with Luka Dončić is good.

Score: Lakers 63, Warriors 52 | 22.4 seconds remaining in the second quarter

Yaxel Lendeborg is defending Luka a bunch tonight, and Luka isn't taking it easy on him.

You have to love this energy if you're the Dubs. Heck, even Dončić seems to appreciate it.

In other news, the Lakers are on an 8-0 run and threatening to open the lead heading into halftime. The Warriors' transition and rim defense is suboptimal. Steve Kerr's body language is shimmying between apoplectic and total resignation.

Score: Lakers 58, Warriors 50 | 1:12 remaining in the second quarter

What a catch-and-finish by Jake LaRavia. He looks good to open the year—a lot more comfortable from beyond the arc, too.

Luka owes him dinner for turning this into an assist, by the way.

Score: Lakers 53, Warriors 48 | 2:28 remaining in the second quarter

Golden State is getting rocked in transition right now. Three of the Dubs' five turnovers have turned into pick-sixes.

Steve Kerr isn't happy. While it's tough to blame him, he should take a good look at the roster. This might be a common occurrence all year.

Score: Lakers 45, Warriors 41 | 7:17 remaining in the second quarter

This is a Big Deal If the Warriors Keep It Up

The Dubs wound up finishing minus-one without Curry in the first. But considering those lineups are headlined by the likes of Brandon Williams, Gui Santos, Al Horford, Will Richard and rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, they'll surely take it.

Score: Lakers 34, Warriors 33 | Start of the second quarter

Steph already has 16 points. Luka tallied 13 to go along with three assists. We had 10 lead changes. And 10 ties. Both teams have offensive ratings north of 130. Brandon Williams got all the way to the basket in the half-court, something Golden State isn't used to seeing.

We could be in for some fireworks, folks.

Score: Lakers 34, Warriors 33 | End of the first quarter

Golden State subbed out Steph after he dropped 16 points in under eight minutes. He looks spry for someone who pulled up lame in an open practice and sent everyone into a social media tizzy just a few days ago.

Score: Warriors 27, Lakers 26 | 2:50 remaining in the first quarter

We've been watching stuff like this for almost 15 years. Anybody else feel old?

Score: Warriors 24, Lakers 24 | 3:40 remaining in the first quarter

First Luka-Kessler Alley-Oop of the Season

We need a name for this Luka Dončić-Walker Kessler connection. I have no good ideas. My bad idea: Luka SkyWalker.

Please send all your suggestions my way.

The first of many threes for Chef Curry.

Proof: He already has two on the evening

Score: Warriors 13, Lakers 10 | 7:23 remaining in the first quarter

Yaxel Lendeborg's First Career NBA Points

The Golden State Warriors' rookie is on the board—off an assist from Steph no less!

Relatedly, Steph, Luka Dončić, Yaxel Lendeborg and Walker Kessler all scored within the first 90 seconds. A social media admin's fever dream.

Score: Warriors 10, Lakers 10 | 7:41 remaining in the first quarter

I'm not sure whether Stephen Curry's circus shots are a better pregame tradition than LeBron James' chalk toss. I'm just glad we have both. Still.

The Kristaps Porziņģis Trade Destination Is...

We've got a little time to kill before opening tip, so let's go here. The answer is the Milwaukee Bucks .

Trading Giannis Antetokounmpo has thrust them into a bigger-picture focus. And since they don't control their own first-round pick again until 2030, they needn't be overly focused on rostering players who will actually, you know, play.

Landing Porziņģis is also a way for the Bucks to offload the three years and $81.6 million left on Myles Turner's deal. The trade:

Golden State Warriors Receive: Myles Turner

Milwaukee Bucks Receive: Moses Moody and Kristaps Porziņģis

Sending Turner out in exchange for KP and Moody works financially and gives the Bucks more palatable numbers with which to work. Porziņģis is guaranteed just $3 million in 2027-28 while Moody, including this season, has two years and $25.9 million left on his contract.

Whether the Warriors bite is a separate matter. Having Turner on the books for next season torpedoes their cap-space plans. But star players don't leave in free agency anymore.

If Golden State is holding out hope for Nikola Jokić (player option), Giannis Antetokounmpo (player option), Karl-Anthony Towns (player option) or someone it'll have to strike a trade anyway. Turner's salary would prove to be valuable matching fodder in those scenarios. In the interim, he provides the Warriors with a floor-spacer and rim protector at the 5 who they can sell to the fanbase as (feeble) proof that they're not letting what's left of Stephen Curry go out sadly.

Lakers and Warriors Make Starting 5s Official

Stephen Curry, Yaxel Lendeborg and Draymond Green always figured to be in the starting five. De'Anthony Melton and Gui Santos getting the nod are direct result of absences from Brandin Podziemski and Kristaps Porziņģis.

My guess is Melton will head back to the bench once Podz returns. With that said, Santos may join him if Steve Kerr thinks it's wiser to start Al Horford—something he probably can't even think about until Charles Bassey (knee) or the Dubs trade for another big.

For the Lakers, this is about as expected. Quentin Grimes profiles as a starter over Matisse Thybulle moving forward, but Collin Sexton's absence leaves a backcourt void on the bench.

It isn't only the Warriors dealing with a bunch of absences on Wednesday night. The Lakers will be without rookie Cameron Carr (oblique), Adou Thiero (knee) and Collin Sexton (calf). At least two of those three are expected to be rotation regulars, which is why JJ Redick already seems to be tightening the belt.

This should have the biggest impact on the wing and guard ranks. With Sexton out in particular, it feels like Austin Reaves or Luka Dončić will end up hitting the 40-minute threshold—provided we're not headed for a blowout.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported earlier today that the Golden State Warriors are exploring trades for Kristaps Porziņģis, who is apparently considering walking away from basketball as he deals with lingering effects from his postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

Shortly thereafter, The Athletic's Sam Amick and Nick Friedell confirmed that the Dubs have held discussions with the Milwaukee Bucks about a potential deal.

Porziņģis is making $20 million this year and is guaranteed just $3 million next season, making him a quasi-expiring contract. It isn't clear what Golden State wants in return, or how aggressively it's willing to sweeten a package knowing that Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody won't be playing anytime soon.

This whole situation is insane—right down to the Warriors seemingly having little knowledge on the state of Porziņģis' health.