The Los Angeles Lakers opened their 2026-27 campaign on Wednesday night with a dominant win against the Golden State Warriors, securing their first victory of the season by asserting control on both ends of the floor. While the evening started positively for the squad and highlighted standout performances across the rotation, it concluded with some concern for forward Jake LaRavia.
LaRavia, 24, exited the game late in the fourth quarter after suffering what appeared to be an ankle injury. The forward went down on the hardwood as play briefly continued before the team’s medical staff attended to him and helped him off the court. Despite the late scare, head coach JJ Redick provided an optimistic assessment during his postgame remarks.
“No update, I’m probably more positive than when it first happened,” Redick told reporters after the game. “But again, he’ll be evaluated the next time I talk to you guys. We’ll have an update.”
Before exiting, LaRavia delivered a stellar performance in his first outing of the new season, exhibiting a level of poise, conviction, and confidence that stood out compared to his play from the previous year. In 18 minutes of action off the bench, LaRavia contributed 10 points on efficient 4-of-5 shooting from the field, grabbed two rebounds, and finished with a team-best +14 rating while on the floor.
Redick praised the forward’s contributions and overall demeanor prior to the injury incident, noting that his strong play fits into the team’s broader identity of incorporating unheralded players who impact winning.
“I saw him being himself. Again, when he’s shooting with confidence and making catch-and-shoot 3s, that’s an added bonus,” Redick said. “I talked about this, I think last week, you know, we have a group of guys that do a lot of things to impact winning that don’t necessarily show up in the box score and certainly won’t show up in a highlight reel on Instagram. He’s a winning player.”
The victory marks the Lakers’ first 1-0 start to a season since the 2024-25 campaign and only their second opening-night win in the last eight seasons. Los Angeles will look to build on that early momentum when they return to the floor on Friday to host the Los Angeles Clippers.
