Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, left defends against the Golden State Warriors guard Donte DiVincenzo, right on Tue Oct 18, 2022 at the Chase Center in San Francisco (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors started the season with a resounding win over the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night at the Chase Center. The final score was 123-109. The Warriors want to win their fifth championship in nine years. They lost four or five key players after the season ended. The Warriors added Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green to go along with James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, and Moses Moody. 

The Warriors gave out their championship rings to the players before the start of the game. NBA commissioner Adam Silver was in the house to congratulate the players. The game was on TNT, and TNT had Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Ernie Johnson doing commentary.

The Warriors had guard Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, and Kevon Looney on the court to start the contest. The Lakers started LeBron James James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverly, and Lonnie Walker.

The first quarter started slowly. As it was the first game of the year, both teams were slow to get things going. The Warriors finished the quarter leading 25-22. Things heated up in the second period. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 34-30 to finish the first half with a 59-52 lead.

The Warriors were up by 11, but LeBron James made two buckets to cut the deficit to seven. Curry paced the Warriors with 16 points. Jordan Poole, leading the second unit, added ten. Anthony Davis had 15 for LA. LeBron added 14 and Westbrook 11.

As they have done so many times in the past, the Warriors dominated the third quarter. Thompson led the way as he tallied nine points early in the period. With the score 66-58, the Warriors went on a 25-4 run to lead 91-64. The Lakers fought back and made it a 91-71 game at the end of three. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 32-19

Los Angeles went on a 22-9 run in the fourth quarter. They trailed by 13 100-87. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr called a timeout so that the Warriors could regroup. Curry and Wiggins led the offensive surge to put the game out of reach.

Wiggins made three threes, and Curry had a three, a deuce, and a four-point play to put the game away. The score was 121-104 with 1:52 left to play. Kerr allowed the bench players to finish out the game.

The Warriors played well on both ends of the court. They continued to shine on defense. They showed the NBA that they have a powerful offensive juggernaut. The fans went home happy, but was Kerr satisfied with his team’s effort? Coaches always say players have to improve.

Game Notes and Stats: The Warriors’ offensive stars were Curry, Wiggins,Thompson, and Poole. Curry finished with 33 points. Curry knocked down four three in 13 attempts. A couple of the threes came in the fourth quarter when the Lakers made a comeback.

Thompson, playing just 19 minutes, finished with a18 points. Thompson knocked down two threes. Wiggins had 20, and Poole had 12. Warrior bench players contributed too James Wiseman, JaMychal Green, and Donte DiVincenzo each had eight points. JaMychal Green and Wiseman each pulled down seven boards.

The Lakers had four players in double figures. LeBron paced the Lakers’ attack with 31 points and 14 rebounds. Davis had 27 points and six boards. Russell Westbrook had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Kendrick Nunn added 13. The Lakers’ bench did not produce much Tuesday night.

The Warriors play Friday night again when they host the Denver Nuggets. The game will start at 7 pm at the Chase Center.