Why Luka Doncic is excited to face Stephen Curry in the opener

LOS ANGELES – Although LeBron James will be secondaryd for Los Angeles Lakers‘ opening game against the Golden State Warriors, the game will still have plenty of star power Luka Dončić on one side and Stephen Curry on the other hand.

While Luka Doncic and Stephen Curry likely won’t be guarding much, if at all, during the Lakers’ opener against the Warriors, Doncic revealed after the Lakers’ practice on Monday that he’s looking forward to taking the court against his fellow All-Star.

“As an opponent, it’s obviously very difficult, very difficult to guard him. He’s constantly moving, he can shoot from anywhere,” said Doncic. “I feel like it’s tough, but it’s exciting. Against a player like that, it’s very exciting, and for the first game that opens the season, it’s going to be a great game.”

The The Lakers and Warriors have developed a bit of an in-state rivalry over the years, going back to before Doncic joined the Lakers. The last time these two teams met in the playoffs was in 2023 when the Lakers eliminated the Warriors in six games in the Western Conference semifinals.

Much of the rivalry centers around James and Curry and their status as the two faces of the league even as they approach the twilight of their careers. Although Doncic doesn’t quite credit the rivalry aspect, he acknowledged the magnitude of the game as a whole.

“I don’t know if it’s a rivalry or not, but it’s obvious that Steph is against LeBron, everyone in the world will be watching. Obviously, it’s very exciting against Steph, but it’s going to be difficult,” Doncic said. “I don’t know if it’s a rivalry, but it will be an exciting game for sure.”

Lakers coach JJ Redick also echoed Doncic’s sentiment that the game has a little more to it than just another regular season game.

“The Steph rivalry, the LeBron rivalry, whatever you want to call it, that matchup has always been great for all the teams they’ve been on in the league itself,” Redick said. “I know we had some great games against those guys last year, it was great to be a part of.”

The Lakers will open the season with three of the first four games at home. After the Warriors game, they have two days off before taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, October 24th. They then travel to face the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, October 26th before returning home for the second night of back-to-back games on Monday, October 27th against the Portland Trail Blazers.