LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony and Trevor Ariza to sit out vs. Nets

The Los Angeles Lakers’ star-studded preseason opener against the Brooklyn Nets just lost nearly a whole constellation of interest, as head coach Frank Vogel told the media after the team’s third practice of training camp that LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Russell Westbrook and Trevor Ariza would all be out on Sunday.

The first three will only be out to rest after several days featuring multiple training camp practices, but Ariza also missed practice on Friday, his second-straight day being sidelined with a sore foot.

“There may be others, but as of right now those are the guys that we know will not play,” Vogel said.

The Lakers will at least have one star, however, as Vogel added that Anthony Davis will play, but “likely just the first quarter” on Sunday.

“We’ll huddle up after practice tomorrow and see if any of the other guys will not be in there, but right now that’s what we’re thinking,” Vogel said.

With all those veterans out, expect young guys like Talen Horton-Tucker, Malik Monk, Kendrick Nunn and Austin Reaves to all get plenty of minutes to make their case for roles in the rotation.

That’s right: #PreseasonTHT is BACK. The Nets aren’t ready for this 40-piece.

The group of absences also features three of the Lakers’ rumored starters for this season and their two main playmakers, so even though preseason games tend to give us very little meaningful basketball to analyze, this one will have even less than usual.

Despite far less intrigue than the NBA originally intended for this one, the Lakers and Nets are still scheduled to tip off at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 3 at Staples Center. The game will be televised locally on Spectrum SportsNet, and nationally on NBA TV.

This story may be updated with more information as it develops. For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.