The competition for who starts on the wings beside Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and Walker Kessler had two early winners in the Los Angeles Lakers' 127-105 beatdown of the Golden State Warriors during the season opener. Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams got the nod.
That was the same combination on the wings that ended up starting the preseason finale against the Denver Nuggets. Is this a trend? Has JJ Redick officially identified who his first five will be moving forward? Maybe that is the case, but there is still reason to speculate otherwise.
Notably, that comes down to who was absent from this game. Collin Sexton missed this matchup with a calf strain. Without their lead guard off the bench, the Lakers were short on ball-handlers among that second unit. Worry not, that is where Quentin Grimes came in.
Grimes was featured off the bench against the Warriors, delivering 10 points and four assists to help spark the second-unit offense. It is fair to wonder whether that was a decision fueled by the personnel who was missing, or a sign of what is to come for the Lakers.
Quentin Grimes or Matisse Thybulle is still a fair debate to have about the Lakers starting lineup
Grimes' ability to deliver complimentary offense beside Doncic and Reaves cannot be undersold in its value. Out of all the options, the Lakers guard delivers the best balance of a potent attack and solid defense to go with it. That makes him an attractive starting option in Los Angeles.
Naturally, this would come down to a discussion of Grimes versus Thybulle. Williams should have the other starting position locked down when he is available.
Thybulle is a superior defender to Grimes, no one is going to challenge that notion. However, his offense is always going to be a bit of a wild card. The Lakers leave themselves exposed to defenses just forgetting about Matisse and attacking their stars anytime he is on the floor. That tactic is harder to justify when it is Quentin flanking Doncic and Reaves in Los Angeles.
Lakers starters did look excellent against the Warriors
On the other hand, even with all the fair questions that are around, the Lakers group of Doncic, Reaves, Thybulle, Williams, and Kessler was fantastic against the Warriors. That combination played 12 minutes together, more than any other five-man group. They posted a net rating of 37.3.
One-game sample sizes are always imperfect. Even so, for at least one night, the call made by Redick ended up returning the type of results that made the Lakers look like a genuine powerhouse. The final score from the Warriors matchup does not even truly reflect how one-sided the matchup was.
Perhaps that gave Redick more than enough reason to move forward with this starting group as his go-to unit to open up contests on a nightly basis. However, it is still worth monitoring how things progress as the Lakers get healthier with a guy like Sexton returning to the floor.
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