The LA Clippers got their 2026-27 regular season off to a strong start on Wednesday night with a monster win over the visiting Sacramento Kings. Darius Garland led the way for the Clippers, but it was Keaton Wagler who impressed everyone.
The Clippers defeated the Kings, 121-96, in their season opener, leading wire-to-wire and by as many as 28 points. Garland scored 16 of his 30 points in the first quarter, helping the Clippers punch first and start the game off strong.
Rookie Keaton Wagler made his official NBA debut against the Kings, coming off the bench to score 15 points in 28 minutes. Wagler also added five rebounds, five assists, and two steals while shooting 50 percent from the field
Back on October 29, 2003, LeBron James made his highly-anticipated NBA debut. Ironically, that game was also against the Sacramento Kings. James finished that contest with 25 points, six rebounds, nine assists, and four steals while shooting 60 percent from the field.
At 19 years and 261 days old, Keaton Wagler became the second-youngest player in NBA history to have at least 15 points, five assists, and five rebounds while shooting at least 50 percent from the floor in an NBA debut. The only player to do so who was also younger th an him did it back in 2003 and goes by the name LeBron James.
Pretty good company to be in.
“I felt good,” Wagler said of his debut. “I went out there, just wanted to play hard. As a team, we played really good. We started the game off really good and that kind of got us in the flow.
Article Continues Below“It was definitely good. It kind of got the nerves out, definitely, just being able to get in the paint and get a layup for the first one.”
Wagler had a bit of an up-and-down preseason, averaging 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists, but shot just 30.3 percent from the field and 25 percent from three.
Keaton Wagler and the Clippers will remain in Los Angeles for a Friday night showdown against the Los Angeles Lakers.