Three Lakers players who performed well in Thursday’s win over Kings

The Los Angeles Lakers looked out of sorts on Tuesday in their second preseason game of 2026, which they lost to the Golden State Warriors, 124-98. On Thursday, they took the court at Crypto.com Arena against the Sacramento Kings, a team they defeated 127-103 in their 2026 preseason debut on Monday.

Luka Doncic and Matisse Thybulle returned to action after sitting out Tuesday’s contest, while Austin Reaves played for the first time this preseason. While L.A. got off to a slow start on Thursday and scored just 20 points in the first quarter, its defense kept it in the game until its offense started to get going in the second quarter. Overall, it shot 46.2% from the field and had 27 assists and 19 fast-break points, although it allowed the Kings to score 27 points on the break and notch 22 second-chance points.

Still, Los Angeles outlasted Sacramento for a 114-110 victory. Three of its players performed particularly well in this game, starting with one of its most promising young prospects.

Thiero scored just six points on 3-of-7 shooting, but as usual, he played with plenty of energy. He got a couple of fast-break dunks, including one of the alley-oop variety early on.

He was disruptive on defense, resulting in two steals and two blocks. He also contributed three rebounds and one assist in 21 minutes.

Adou Thiero vs the Kings
6PTS-3REB-1AST-2STL-2BLK-3/7FG pic.twitter.com/CyVlpKiSsU

— Laker Performances (@LALPerformance) October 9, 2026

Mamukelashvili has done well in the Lakers’ three preseason games thus far. He had 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting on Tuesday, and on Thursday, he performed even better.

He made seven of his 10 field-goal attempts and three of his six 3-point tries to score 19 points, and he also had three rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block in 21 minutes.

The hybrid power forward/center is looking about as good as advertised so far. His fluidity and triple-threat skills (shooting, passing and dribbling) are helping the Lakers’ offense function well, both in the halfcourt and in transition, and he has even made some occasional contributions on the defensive end.

LaRavia struggled mightily with his shooting last season, but in three preseason games this year, he looks like a much improved version of himself. He has gotten back to being a reliable 3-point shooter, and it looks like he has regained his confidence in his shot-making abilities.

Versus the Kings on Thursday, he made six of his nine field-goal attempts and half of his six 3-point attempts, giving him 19 points in 24 minutes. He also chipped in four rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block.

This article originally appeared on Lakers Wire: Three Lakers players who performed well in Thursday’s win over Kings