Luka Dončić scored 28 points with eight rebounds and seven assists in the 127-105 win over Golden State on 21 October 2026.
Yaxel Lendeborg scored 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting and was whistled for a technical foul with 22.4 seconds left in the first half.
The 24-year-old Warriors rookie said after the game that he had lost all respect for Dončić over his complaints to officials.
Walker Kessler scored 26 points in his first game for Los Angeles, according to La Razón and El Confidencial.
The Los Angeles Lakers opened the NBA season on 21 October 2026, beating the Golden State Warriors 127-105 at Crypto.com Arena. Luka Dončić led the hosts with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. He also finished the first half with a shot from beyond half court that dropped at the buzzer. The Lakers led 66-52 at the break after a 13-4 run in which Dončić scored 10 of the points.
Stephen Curry scored 23 points for Golden State, but the Warriors faded in the middle of the game and the outcome was effectively settled in the second half. Other results on the same night included Houston's 128-110 win over Dallas and Minnesota's 131-106 win at Miami.
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Yaxel Lendeborg, a 24-year-old rookie forward who won an NCAA title with Michigan last season, was given the job of guarding Dončić for large parts of the game. Dončić drew a foul on a pump fake in the second quarter, and the two players began trading insults. That foul came with the Lakers ahead 53-48, and Dončić made two free throws while Lendeborg went to the bench. Lendeborg was later whistled for a technical foul after saying something the referees judged over the line, with 22.4 seconds left in the first half. Dončić then went to the foul line for the third time in a little more than two minutes because of the rookie. Lendeborg finished with 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting, three rebounds and two assists in just under 29 minutes.
After the game Lendeborg described the exchange in blunt terms.
“"I was telling him he sucks; he can't score on me."”
At his postgame news conference, Lendeborg said he had lost respect for Dončić because of the complaining he saw up close. He admitted he had mostly known the league through highlights before turning professional. He said the foul call itself was not the problem, but the talking that followed it. He added that the NBA seemed to him to be full of flopping, foul-baiting and appeals to referees.
“"I lost all respect (for Doncic), man."”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he enjoyed the back-and-forth and described the rookie as a competitor. Dončić, for his part, said he was very impressed by the debut of his new teammate Walker Kessler, the centre who had joined the Lakers from the Utah Jazz. Kessler scored 26 points in his first game for Los Angeles, according to La Razón and El Confidencial.
“"I love the back-and-forth."”
Dončić said after the game that he was confident the shot would go in before he had the ball in his hands, and that he practises that kind of attempt often. La Razón reported that the Lakers run a fines system in which players pay for small lapses such as arriving late to meetings, and the money is then wagered on half-court shots in training. JJ Redick, the Lakers coach, said Dončić had by far won the most from those sessions. The result was a season opener in which the Lakers' star produced the night's most discussed play.
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On 21 October 2026 the Lakers opened their season with a 127-105 win over Golden State at Crypto.com Arena. Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg then said he had lost all respect for Luka Dončić after a running exchange of insults during the game.
AI text based on reports by The Guardian, The New York Times, G4Media.ro and other publishers. Published .