After a dominant victory over the Sacramento Kings in their preseason opener, the Los Angeles Lakers were back in action against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night in the second of a road back-to-back.

The Warriors were clearly the fresher team and had just about everyone in the lineup, while the Lakers looked like a team that was shorthanded and played the night before.

Warriors 124, Lakers 98: key takeaways from preseason game two Key players out

For the second straight night, the Lakers were missing key players as Austin Reaves (ankle), Walker Kessler (finger), Collin Sexton (lower body) and Arthur Kaluma (lower body) didn’t play due to minor injuries.

Additionally, Luka Doncic, Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams did not suit up in the second night of the back-to-back. With so many guys out though, that gave the coaching staff a closer look at some players who are battling for minutes and roster spots.

Warriors take control early

Much like the Lakers did the night before, the Warriors took control of the game early with their potential starting lineup out there. Stephen Curry looked ready to go for his 18th NBA season with 17 points in the first half, while Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg picked up where he left off against the Lakers in Summer League with an exceptional first half of his own.

Golden State led by as many as 31 in the first half and never looked back, making this a game about reps for both teams with things out of reach early.

Bright spots for shorthanded Lakers

Sandro Mamukelashvili got his first start in a Laker uniform and looked solid in his minutes. While not much of a defensive threat inside, Mamukelashvili is a versatile offensive player and led the starters with 15 points, three rebounds, two assists and one block on 6-of-10 shooting and 3-of-4 from deep.

Arguably the highlight of the night was a thunderous dunk from Adou Thiero, who got the start and held his own. He took a hard fall on the dunk but ended up being OK and finished with seven points and four rebounds.

Jarred Vanderbilt also had some quality minutes off the bench with four steals and five rebounds as he looks to earn a spot in the Lakers’ rotation.

What’s next for the Lakers

This was the second of five preseason games for the Lakers with one more coming this week. They will now return home to take on the Kings again on Thursday at Crypto.com Arena before a quick trip to Las Vegas.

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