Anthony Davis on Lakers vs. Warriors: 'It's Always Good to Spoil a Ring Night'

The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to bounce back from a non-playoff season, but they will have the opportunity to play spoiler before they play the role of potential contender in the Western Conference.

Los Angeles starts the 2022-23 campaign with a road game against the reigning champion Golden State Warriors before its home opener against the L.A. Clippers. The Warriors will celebrate last season's championship by handing out their rings before the game.

"Our first two games are against two title contenders," Anthony Davis said, per ESPN's Dave McMenamin. "It's always good to spoil a ring night. So our mindset is going up and starting this season with a couple W's."

The only thing the Lakers spoiled last season was their chances at an 18th championship in franchise history.

They were the most disappointing team in the league with a 33-49 record, which wasn't even good enough to qualify for the play-in tournament. Injury concerns for Davis and LeBron James certainly didn't help, and the addition of Russell Westbrook didn't go as planned as he struggled to adjust and hit shots from the outside.

Los Angeles is always under the spotlight given the franchise's storied history and the presence of stars such as James and Davis, but it will draw even more attention in 2022-23 because of last season's struggles.

It didn't make many significant changes other than firing head coach Frank Vogel and bringing in Darvin Ham, as the core remains largely the same despite trade rumors circulating around Westbrook throughout the offseason.

The season hasn't even started yet and the Lakers are facing adversity, as Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Dennis Schröder will miss 3-4 weeks because his thumb injury requires surgery.

A slow start would only serve to dial up the pressure, and the schedule doesn't get much more difficult than an opener on the road against the Warriors.

Golden State dealt with adversity of its own this offseason considering Draymond Green punched Jordan Poole during a practice altercation, but ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported one of the contributing factors for the team's decision to fine and not suspend him was that opening night is ring night.

That means Davis and the rest of the Lakers will have to spoil the championship party for a Warriors team that will be operating with the entire Big Three of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Green.