Lakers News: L.A. Could Be Down Some Starters Vs. Portland, Per Injury Report
Your Los Angeles Lakers will get an opportunity to once again secure an encouraging home victory against a solid playoff contender after having botched a pretty winnable evening against the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
Tonight's opposition will be a still-feisty Damian Lillard-less Portland Trail Blazers squad.
The NBA's latest injury report, has unveiled some interesting ailments for a few key Lakers starters. Let's dive into it.
As usual, Lakers stars LeBron James (left adductor strain) and Anthony Davis (low back tightness) remain "probable" to play. They've been banged up for most of the year, and James was able to play through the adductor issue during back-to-back wins against the San Antonio Spurs last week, plus the Pacers game, so the 37-year-old seems likely to suit up. Davis missed the Saturday Spurs game, but was available for the Indiana game.
In a bit of a disappointing wrinkle, a notable recent injury addition is starting small forward Troy Brown Jr., who is listed as questionable with a sore left foot. In his absence, it seems quite possible that head coach Darvin Ham will do what he's done in the past sans TBJ, moving Lonnie Walker IV up a spot to starting small forward, and inserting reserve guard Austin Reaves in as the starting shooting guard.
Should Brown not play, more rotation minutes for players like fringe Lakers Juan Toscano-Anderson and rookie Max Christie could open up on the wing.
Beyond Lillard, fans will have to wait at least a bit longer to see a key offseason signing, JTA's old Warriors teammate Gary Payton II, makes his Blazers debut, as the defensive-minded guard continues to work on his conditioning. Shooting guard Keon Johnson (left hip point) and small forward Nassir Little (right hip strain) have also been ruled out. Ex-Laker Josh Hart, who has been pretty solid with the Trail Blazers since joining the team as part of the CJ McCollum deal last season, is questionable with a left ankle sprain.
The fun kicks off at 9:30 p.m. PT in Crypto.com Arena.
