Can The Lakers Win Without LeBron? YES!

First, the correction the question needs: LeBron James is not hurt, and he is not resting. He is a Philadelphia 76er. James informed the Lakers on June 30 that he would not return, and on July 24 he signed with Philadelphia — a two-year deal at the veteran minimum, $8 million with a player option, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN’s Shams Charania — after making about $53 million in his final Lakers season. Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena was Game 1 of the era after him, against the Golden State Warriors. The Lakers won it 127–105, and it was not close after halftime.

The shape of the night: 34–33 after one, then the Lakers took the game in the middle quarters, 32–19 and 36–16, for a 102–68 lead after three that peaked at 35. Los Angeles shot 57 percent. Golden State shot 22 percent from three and gave up 25 points on 16 turnovers.

Luka Dončić ran it: 28 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists — including a shot from beyond half court at the halftime buzzer. Beside him, the new anchor. Walker Kessler, acquired from Utah for multiple first-round picks and signed for four years and $130 million, scored 26 points in his Lakers debut on a perfect 12-for-12 shooting, with 9 rebounds and 10 dunks — the most dunks by a Laker in a game since Shaquille O’Neal in 2003, by ESPN’s count. O’Neal told him afterward he was “the best big man” in the NBA. Head coach JJ Redick, starting his third season, called Kessler “a perfect fit for Luka and AR… an anchor for our defense.”

Austin Reaves added 23 points and 6 assists. The starting five — Dončić, Reaves, and new additions Ziaire Williams and Matisse Thybulle at the forward spots, with Kessler in the middle — is the answer the front office gave to the obvious question: there is no one-for-one replacement for James, so the minutes went to a committee. Stephen Curry scored 23 for Golden State, 16 of them in the first quarter, and played only 21 minutes as the game got away; the Warriors were shorthanded, with Jimmy Butler inactive and Kristaps Porzingis, Charles Bassey and Brandin Podziemski out.

The front office, for its part, closed the old chapter in public. General manager Rob Pelinka called the split “amicable” and “respectful”: “It was a great era, and we’re grateful for it.” The recent past backs the idea that the Lakers could survive his absences even before he left: by StatMuse’s count, the Lakers went 20–14 in games James missed across the last two seasons, including 14–8 in 2025–26.

And James himself? He won his opener too. On Tuesday in New York, he put up 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists as Philadelphia beat the Knicks 106–100. Both eras started 1–0.

The Lakers’ next test comes Friday, at home against the Clippers — the other Los Angeles team, also 1–0 after beating Sacramento. One game proves a night, not a season. But the question over the franchise all summer was whether there was a team left after LeBron. On the first night, there was.

Sources: ESPN; Reuters and USA Today game reports; StatMuse.