THE LOS ANGELES AREA — The Los Angeles Lakers lost an exhibition game against the Milwaukee Bucks by a score of 108-97 on Wednesday at the Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers were missing at least two starters for the game, along with a few other players.

As part of their strategies to get ready for the regular season, LeBron James and Austin Reaves sat out for a third consecutive game during the preseason.

They are scheduled to participate in the Lakers’ “test run” on Thursday, which will take place at Acrisure Arena in Thousand Palms and feature the season-ending matchup between the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers in the preseason finale. The regular season will begin on October 24 against the Denver Nuggets.

The two recognized starters that participated but were limited to first-half minutes were Anthony Davis (16 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals in 19 minutes) and D’Angelo Russell (11 points in 19 minutes).

Taurean Prince, who is competing for the fifth starting position, spent 15 minutes of the first half playing with the starting unit during the preseason and scored eight points on two of five 3-point attempts, making him a candidate for the starting lineup.

Cam Reddish made his way back onto the floor after being out for three straight contests due to discomfort in his right ankle. In the end, he played for 21 minutes and finished with 10 points (4-of-11 shooting, 2-of-5 on 3s), along with five rebounds.

Ham complimented Cam on how good he looked. “It is to be expected that he is out there a little bit gassed at this point. However, he is still another skilled player operating at a high level. Can both shoot and guard effectively. Plays the defensive side of the ball with great intensity and competition. able to deal with, go through, and complete. It was encouraging to see him there making donations to the cause. I am looking forward to interacting with him more.

Also scoring in the double figures was Max Christie, who finished with 10 points and four rebounds.

In addition, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, and Jalen Hood-Schifino were unable to play on Sunday’s game due to discomfort in their respective lower backs, left heels, and right knees, respectively.

The decision to have Vincent sit out of the remaining two games was made for precautionary reasons. The organization wants to “evaluate it some more and make sure we know what we’re dealing with,” according to Ham, who stated that Hood-Schifino bumped knees with another player during Friday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors at their home arena.

Vanderbilt, who will be reevaluated on Friday and is anticipated to miss Thursday’s game against the Suns based on the results of that evaluation, has now missed four games in a row due to injury.

It is now unknown whether he will be able to participate in the opening game of the regular season.

In response to a question about whether or not Vanderbilt will be able to play against the Nuggets, Ham said, “We’ll see.” “Once he undergoes the reassessment that is scheduled for this Friday, we will proceed from there.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, a guard who has appeared in seven All-Star games and was acquired by the Bucks from the Trail Blazers on September 27, both had their first appearances of the preseason against the Los Angeles Lakers.

In the opening 15 minutes of the game, Giannis Antetokounmpo racked up 16 points, eight rebounds, and two blocks. In a total of 22 minutes of play, Lillard ended with 14 points, three assists, and three steals.

Ham described it as “one hell of a combo” and “one hell of a one-two punch.” “Just Dame with the ball, and Giannis as a screener,” the coach instructed. Or Dame might play the role of a screener while Giannis was in possession of the ball. Nobody is going to have a good time as a result of this. We wish the best of success to everyone else, including the other 28 teams, as well as to ourselves, as we find out a means to attempt to prevent it from happening. The fact that we only have to play them twice during the regular season makes me very delighted.

Following a stretch in which they played once every other day for more than a week, the Los Angeles Lakers will now have a gap of three days until their next preseason contest.

The clash against the Suns should shed light on the starting lineup that they will use to begin the season.

“We got a few days in between now and then as we build up toward it,” said Ham. “We got a few days in between now and then.” “Obviously, it’ll be a little bit of a test run for us to see what our normal rotation looks like for us to see what our normal rotation looks like – it looks like that being the last preseason game of the preseason. ” We’ll get a good look at ourselves for the next three quarters. Again, throughout this time, you should focus on improving your skills in a variety of areas.