With Kawhi Leonard gone and Brandon Ingram, Max Strus, and Jordan Miller among several players unavailable due to injuries to open the season, Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue faces his toughest challenge yet in 2026/27, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. The Clippers got off to a good start on Wednesday, with a 121-96 win over Sacramento.

Lue and multiple Clippers players spoke in their post-game media sessions about the absence of team owner Steve Ballmer, who is suspended for the entire ’26/27 season for violating the NBA’s salary cap circumvention rules. As Beth Harris of The Associated Press relays, Darius Garland and Brook Lopez said they missed Ballmer’s “energy” on the Intuit Dome sidelines, while Lue dedicated the victory to the Clippers’ owner.

“First off, that win was for Mr. Ballmer,” Lue said. “Just want to say thank you for everything and we’re still fighting for him. … We keep him in our hearts. He provided a great living for everyone in this arena. One of the best men that I know.”

In the view of columnist Mirjam Swanson of The Los Angeles Times, the Clippers should be focused more on “fighting” for their fans rather than the billionaire owner who was involved in the cap scandal that cost the organization five first-round picks. While the organization allowed 4,000 customers to swap Leonard’s No. 2 jersey for a new one, Swanson argues that the team’s fan appreciation efforts haven’t been “nearly far-reaching enough.”

We have more from around the Pacific:

Walker Kessler’s Lakers regular season debut couldn’t have gone much better, according to Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Los Angeles Times, who notes that the center’s 12 field goal attempts without a miss were the most by a Laker since Wilt Chamberlain went 14-for-14 in a game in 1969. Head coach JJ Redick praised Kessler’s for his “end-to-end transition running,” which led to some easy baskets, per Law Murray of The Athletic. “Contrary to my name, I run a lot,” Kessler quipped after contributing 26 points and nine rebounds in Los Angeles’ blowout win over Golden State.
The Lakers led by as many as 35 points in Wednesday’s opener and won by 22, but Luka Doncic believes we haven’t seen the best version of the team yet, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “That’s just the first game. I think our ceiling is even higher,” Doncic said. Ziaire Williams, who earned a spot in the starting five after signing a minimum-salary deal with Los Angeles over the summer, agreed with Doncic’s assessment: “We’ve got a great starting five and a great unit behind us. All the holes are filled in, and the puzzle is complete. … Luka and (Austin Reaves) are great play-makers. Walker has a good feel around the rim. It’s a perfect setup honestly. There will be a lot more of that to come.”
After playing all 82 regular season games – and six postseason contests – for the Suns last season, Oso Ighodaro exited Wednesday’s regular season opener early due to a right hip injury, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. The severity of the injury is not yet known, but Ighodaro was ruled out for the rest of the night after getting hurt in the second quarter.
In case you missed it, we rounded up a handful of Warriors notes earlier today.