Luka Doncic will play in his first preseason game against the Suns on Tuesday
When Luka Doncic plays his first exhibition game of the season for the Lakers against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night, Coach JJ Redick said the plan with his star is pretty simple.
“Give him the ball,” Redick said, laughing.
Announcement
Redick paused for a second.
“Are you talking about minutes?” he asked.
Redick said they’re “still working on what that’s going to look like” with the Lakers staff and Doncic’s team.
Read more: JJ Redick isn’t overly concerned about the Lakers’ on-court chemistry
“I think there will most likely be some sort of increase between tomorrow and when he plays the second game,” Redick said. “What that would mean in terms of total minutes, I don’t know.”
But one thing is for sure when Doncic steps onto the court with his teammates.
“Yes, it will touch basketball,” Redick said.
Announcement
The Lakers will play back-to-back games in Las Vegas on Wednesday night against the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic’s old team, but it is highly unlikely he will play in that game.
The Lakers finish their preseason against the Sacramento Kings on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena, which is when Doncic will likely play, especially since he said last week he wanted to play two preseason games.
The Lakers will open the regular season on October 21 against the Golden State Warriors at home and that is the main thing Doncic is preparing for.
He did more in practice, giving his teammates an idea of what Doncic is like.
Announcement
“Oh, he’s moving great,” Jarred Vanderbilt said. “Everything I’ve seen from him, is he’s vocal. He’s leading the charge. He’s everything we need him to be right now. So, we’re happy to have him out there right now during this week, having some good practices and running with us, and just starting to build that momentum heading into the regular season.”
Etc.
Redick said Marcus Smart, who is recovering from an Achilles tendinopathy injury, will play against the Suns. … Redick said Maxi Kleber (quad) participated in the Lakers’ preparation game Monday.
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.