Coming into the 2025-26 regular season, there seem to be a couple of questions regarding the Los Angeles Lakers starting lineup. Obviously Luka Doncic and LeBron James are locks, as is center Deandre Ayton, whom the Lakers added in free agency this offseason. Austin Reaves will almost certainly be starting as well, though there are some who wonder whether he might be better utilized as the head coach JJ Redick’s sixth man.
With the team signing Marcus Smart, Redick could turn to the former Defensive Player of the Year to pair next to Doncic, or he could even go small and start all three while moving Rui Hachimura to the bench. There are also other possibilities such as Jarred Vanderbilt and Jake LaRavia if Redick wishes to insert another defender into the starting lineup.
Needless to say, there are a number of options at the disposal of Redick, but as far as what he is thinking in terms of his starting lineup to begin this season, the Lakers coach wouldn’t commit to anything fully but feels there are multiple players capable of starting.
“It’s not that important to me. I haven’t spent a ton of time thinking about it,” Redick said. “We certainly have a number of players, let’s call it seven or eight, that are starter-level players in the NBA. I do know this, I did say that last year, and that lineup started seven or eight games at the beginning of the season and we started 24 lineups throughout the year. So not gonna spend too much time banging my head against a wall on that before we have a practice.”
Redick keeping his options open and allowing things to play out during training camp and preseason makes a lot of sense. The head coach has to figure out how to maximize this team on both ends of the court and seeing which groups play best together is crucial in the Lakers success and that could lead to some difficult decisions.
There is no doubt that Reaves is the Lakers’ third best player, but being paired with Doncic in the backcourt forces him to take on the role as the primary defender on the opposition’s top guard. And while he certainly gives his all in that role, he is not physically suited to handle that responsibility, hence why other possibilities such as Smart, Vanderbilt or LaRavia could be considered.
The decision on Hachimura will also be an interesting one as he has played extremely well as a starter with the Lakers, but has been far more inconsistent in previous seasons when asked to be a reserve and last season saw him make improvements in all the areas he was asked to by Redick. But in the end, it will be about what is best for the team as a whole and Redick must figure that out over the next few weeks.
Luka Doncic wants to be more vocal for Lakers this season
Regardless of who is next to him in the starting lineup, this Lakers team will be led by Luka Doncic. And that isn’t just with his play on the court as Doncic wants to be more of a vocal leader on this team as well.
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