The Los Angeles Lakers are set to take on the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday as they prepare for their fourth preseason game.
The Lakers captured their first win of the preseason on Sunday over the Golden State Warriors and will look to carry that momentum as the regular season approaches. LA has played its first three preseason games without superstar guard Luka Doncic, and all signs indicate the Lakers will have their 26-year-old on the court Tuesday.
According to Lakers head coach JJ Redick, the plan is for Doncic to play against the Suns.
Doncic, who has not played all preseason long due to rest, could be on the court for the first time in the new season. The Lakers have been extremely cautious with their superstar as he is only a month removed from playing for his home country of Slovenia in the 2025 EuroBasket. The five-time All-Star has practiced with the team during training camp and has looked phenomenal.
Doncic will enter his first full season with the Lakers after he was shipped to LA from Dallas in early February. It was a trade that shook the entire NBA landscape and elevated the Lakers to title contenders for years to come. There were many questions prior to that trade about whether the Lakers could rely on Anthony Davis moving forward, and now there are zero questions regarding the future of the team. Doncic is their present and future, and the Lakers have made that abundantly clear.
The 26-year-old was spectacular in 28 games in the purple and gold. He averaged 28.2 points per game, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals while shooting 43.8 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from three in 35.1 minutes of action. Doncic is set to make his mark in LA as he enters his first full season. The expectation is that he will spend the rest of his career in LA and establish himself as an all-time great while donning the purple and gold.
