The Los Angeles Lakers are back at it tomorrow night as they gear up to play the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.Â
It doesnât take a genius to know it is currently tough-sledding in Los Angeles. The team has suddenly been decimated with injuries to its best players. With the regular season coming to a close and the playoff race taking shape, all the disappointing news is ill-timed, to say the very least.Â
The Lakers lost stars Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves in the same game. Last Thursday, as Oklahoma City was busy handing L.A. its worst loss in multiple years, the latter watched its first and second-best scorers incur a pair of soft-tissue injuries. Both have been ruled out for the remainder of the regular season.
GettyLos Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic
With how the standings have shaped up thus far, the good news is the Lakers cannot finish worse than the fifth seed in the Western Conference. They can certainly retain the third seed, but the chances that happen have diminished tremendously in the wake of multiple devastating injuries.
Los Angeles will try to pivot and cultivate some sort of plan heading into the postseason. For that to happen, the team needs to figure out a plan of attack within the next week-and-a-half.Â
Los Angeles Lakers unleash loaded injury report ahead of Thunder game
Last time out, the Lakers were dealt their second loss in a row at the hands of rookie sensation Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks.Â
Flagg, 19, continued to assemble a strong case for the Rookie of the Year award, scoring 45 points â just one game after he poured in 51 and became the youngest player ever to tally a 50-point game â on over 50% shooting.Â
LeBron James, meanwhile, played like he and Flagg were close in years, tallying a 30-point, 15-point assist and becoming the oldest player ever to register such a statline.Â
The back-and-forth between the 19-year-old and 41-year-old was a treat on national television, but it wasnât enough to mask the sudden disappointment amid a promising Lakers season.Â
Coming off a loss to the lottery-destined Mavs, L.A. certainly wonât be favored to win tomorrow nightâs home game against the Thunder, who delivered a 43-point blowout on their home court when the two teams met a few days ago.Â
To add insult to injury (literally), L.A. could be even more shorthanded tomorrow. Here is the official injury report announced by the team today:
- Luka Doncic: out (left hamstring strain)
- Austin Reaves: out (left oblique strain)
- Marcus Smart: out (right ankle contusion)
- LeBron James: questionable (left foot injury management)
L.A. is fighting to keep its head above water as playoffs loom
Just when the Lakers were gearing up for a potentially lengthy playoff run, things came tumbling apart.Â
Doncic and Reaves are reportedly determined to make a return in the postseason, but the only reason thatâs possible â apart from them actually progressing quickly enough to receive the clearance to play â is if L.A. can escape the first round. Without both stars in the lineup, it would take the Lakers to greatly upset the odds to obtain a round one triumph.
Meanwhile, Smart continues to be out after head coach JJ Redick announced over a week ago that the 32-year-old defensive ace is considered âday-to-day.â Smart has not played in nearly three weeks.
Added to the teamâs injury report is James. The 41-year-old Lakers star could miss Tuesdayâs tilt due to injury management.
Even if James does play, the Lakers have to muster up almost a brand-new identity late in the season. Supplanting Doncic and Reavesâ production isnât possible, so it will take an enormous by-committee-style approach for the team to stand a chance.Â
L.A. seeks to pull the upset at home tomorrow night and grab win No. 51 of the season. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.Â
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