L.A.'s 1986 playoff loss to Sampson's Houston was the only time the Lakers missed the NBA Finals from 1982 to 1989.

The LA Lakers will begin their 2025-26 season against the Golden State Warriors at the Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, one of just two games on opening night.

Jimmy Butler led the Golden State Warriors to a road win over the Los Angeles Lakers on opening night while the Oklahoma City Thunder outlasted the Houston Rockets on opening night.

NBA.com’s John Schuhmann releases his rankings every Monday during the season, and Starting 5 is here to highlight the biggest shifts and storylines week-to-week. Before any on-court action impacts the standings, check out this initial ranking of the pure potential of all 30 teams this year.

While the first-round series did not go their way, what stands out to Coach JJ Redick is how hard his team played last spring – and how this year’s roster needs to get to that level.

Rockets predicted to trade for $53.8 million, 34.2 PPG superstar to replace Fred VanVleet originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception. The model is on a sizzling 42-25 run on top-rated picks dating back to 2024. Anybody following its NFL betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting sites could have seen strong returns.

NBC's broadcast of the NBA tip-off was up 87% in viewers compared to last year and marked the season opener's biggest audience in more than a decade.