The Warriors beat the Lakers 119-109 on opening night as Golden State overcame a heroic performance by Luka Dončić in Los Angeles. Stephen Curry put the game away with a spectacularly deep three-pointer in the final minute of the game as the Warriors got off to a 1-0 start on the season.
But what if I told you the game was never in doubt? No, this isn't a conspiracy about the NBA being rigged. Instead, it seems possible that the result was predetermined, foretold in two pregame highlights from the contest's biggest stars. Consider this...
First, you have a classic Stephen Curry trickshot during pregame warmups. Curry's daughter Riley seated courtside sets the rock like a volleyball. It bounces once and is then passed again in one motion to the Warriors point guard who catches the ball in the corner and shoots it off one foot, makes it and runs to the locker room.
In the game Curry had help from multiple teammates, including Jimmy Butler (31 points), Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Heild. In the trick shot he had help from his daughter and coach.
Compare that to what Luka Dončić did before the game. All alone on the wrong sideline he kicked a ball up into his hands and shot the ball from three-quarters court. It swished and he too ran to the locker room.
This pregame shot from 3/4 court??
— NBA (@NBA) October 22, 2025
Luka makes it look easy 😮💨 https://t.co/kR4LytJvp5 pic.twitter.com/GQkZjL7GNR
In the game he had to do it all for the Lakers to keep it close. He played a game-high 41 minutes, five minutes more than any teammate and eight minutes more than any player on the Warriors. He had 43 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and one block which means he led or tied for the team lead in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks.
It was all Luka. Just like the trick shot. The Lakers never stood a chance.
More NBA on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Luka Doncic, Stephen Curry's Pregame Trick Shots Prophesied Warriors-Lakers Result.
