With the 2015-16 NBA season officially in the books, the Los Angeles Lakers will attempt to steer the franchise back in the right direction this summer with a new head coach in place and optimism fueling the team forward.
On Friday, May 6, the team announced the dates, times, and locations for their 2016 preseason games, via Lakers.com:
As usual, the Lakers will play eight preseason games before heading into the regular season with the majority of those teams being against Pacific Division opponents. Unlike last year, the Lakers will not be heading to Hawaii for the team’s training camp and subsequent preseason games. Kobe Bryant and company played two games against the Utah Jazz in Hawaii while also conducting training camp.
With the start of preseason way down the line, the Lakers brass is currently focusing on building up the roster. The team has already replaced head coach Byron Scott with Luke Walton and now hope to hold onto their first-round draft pick.
The next important date for the Lakers franchise is May 17 when the team will find out whether they’ll be able to retain their first-round pick in the NBA Draft Lottery. The results of the lottery will drastically impact the team’s immediate future with LSU’s Ben Simmons or Duke’s Brandon Ingram potentially within in the team’s grasp.
The 2016 NBA Draft will take place about a month later on June 23 followed by the start of free agency on July 1. The NBA Summer League will get underway a week after the draft with the Lakers possibly having one or two new rookies on the team playing alongside D’Angelo Russell and company.
