LOS ANGELES — Cameron Carr felt the nerves almost two weeks ago when he relaxed in the Lakers locker room before the Lakers’ first game of the 2026-27 season.
He wasn’t suiting up for NBA action – a right oblique strain he suffered during the preseason, keeping the rookie guard in street clothes on the bench while he rooted on his teammates in the Lakers’ season-opening victory over the Golden State Warriors – but the first-day jitters still commenced.
Carr is feeling those nerves again Sunday night at Crypto.com Arena, officially cleared to make his NBA debut after participating in a trio of practices with the G League’s Coachella Valley Lakers last week and exiting the league-mandated injury report on Saturday afternoon. The Lakers’ first-round selection, drafted No. 24 overall in the 2026 NBA draft, was officially “available,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said pregame before the Lakers played the Toronto Raptors.
“I feel physically pretty good,” Carr told the Southern California News Group on Friday afternoon. “I’m excited. Just ready to get the nerves out, make one big play, do something good, get a deflection, get a steal, do something that’ll get my body moving, get the nerves out.”
The 21-year-old guard called the opportunity to make his NBA debut on Sunday a “blessing,” adding that he’s soaking in the moment before stepping onto the hardwood tonight. At Baylor last season, the lanky wing with a 7-foot-1 wingspan averaged 18.9 points per game on 49.4% shooting from the field and hit on 37.4% of his looks from beyond the arc.
Playing seven games over the summer during the NBA Summer League and the California Classic, Carr averaged 17.4 points per game on 42.3% shooting. During the preseason opener against the Sacramento Kings last month, Carr recorded 19 points on 7-for-13 shooting while sinking three of seven shots from beyond the arc.
When Carr first spoke to the media after joining the Lakers as their first-round draftee, the son of former NBA guard Chris Carr, he said that he wanted to hit the weight room to get physically stronger and repeatedly referenced developing defensively to impact the game with pest-like traits.
Carr said he feels like he’s improving on both ends in his first five months with the Lakers.
“I definitely feel stronger,” Carr told SCNG. “I feel like I’m just, every day, just taking and learning more and more and and and picking up as much as I can, becoming a better defender day by day. A lot of great vets in front of me, so (I’m) just listening and learning from them.”
During his pregame press conference on Sunday afternoon, Redick shared what he hopes to see from his rookie – should he see the court against the Raptors.
“If he gets an opportunity, hopefully he shoots the ball well and all that,” Redick said when asked about what he expects from Carr in his potential debut. “But I think again, with all our young guys, continuing to learn our stuff, … be good in our shell, be good with being a low man, be good with off-ball physicality, be good at the point of attack, crash, make shots, that’s what we need from him.”
Lovering loving L.A.
Two-way center Lawson Lovering had just a few hours to pack when he heard Wednesday morning that the Lakers wanted to sign him to a two-way contract. It’s been a whirlwind over the last few days as he’s gotten acclimated to Los Angeles, the 7-footer told SCNG on Sunday.
Lovering, who averaged 7.7 points and 7.0 rebounds for the Memphis Hustle in the G League last season before signing his two-year contract with the Lakers, said he’s practiced with Coachella Valley since joining the team Wednesday.
The 23-year-old big man added that being able to set picks for a player such as Luka Doncic is a “cool thought,” and that he’s also looking forward to watching how center Walker Kessler works on a daily basis, adjusting his routines accordingly to become a better player.
“I just think I can bring elite size, my feel for the game,” Lovering told SCNG of what he can add to the Lakers’ roster. “I think defensively and rebounding, I can show up and set hard screens, get guys open. …”
Lovering continued: “Being a dirty work guy, I’m a two-way guy – so not expected to have a huge role, which I never really thought I was going to – but just do dirty work and do the things that I’m asked to do every day. So just do what the coaches say and live with the rest, man. Just compete as hard as I can.”
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