Heading into the NBA preseason opener for the Los Angeles Lakers, the new-look roster had two surprising players ruled out, with Walker Kessler dealing with a finger injury and Austin Reaves battling a tweaked ankle.

The absence of the two Lakers stars didn’t seem to matter, as JJ Redick’s squad went on to crush the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center with a masterful performance defensively and with outside shooting.

Lakers Rule Out Majority of Their Key Players Against Warriors

On Tuesday, ahead of the matchup with the Golden State Warriors at the Chase Center, Redick announced that Luka Doncic, Matisse Thybulle, Ziaire Williams, Collin Sexton, Arthur Kaluma, Reaves and Kessler will all be sitting out, according to Dan Woike of The Athletic.

With Kessler and Reaves nursing injuries, there's no urgency to get them on the floor, especially since the team doesn't have to play another preseason game until Thurs. Oct. 8 back at Crypto.com Arena.

The same goes for Doncic, who is clearly in game shape after dropping a game-high 21 points in 16 minutes during the preseason opener against the Kings.

It's the second night of a back-to-back set in the preseason, which is unusual and unnecessary, to say the least.

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