Lakers, Jazz Announce Starting Lineups for Rematch

The Los Angeles Lakers will face the Utah Jazz for the second consecutive time on Sunday, this time on the road.

The Lakers last played on Tuesday, a game that marked the return of forward LeBron James, who missed the beginning of the season due to sciatica.

James is not listed on the injury report for Sunday's game. Per Underdog NBA, the four-time MVP will start at one of the forward positions alongside Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic.

Additionally, Deandre Ayton (who had been sick) has been cleared to play the center position, while Rui Hachimura will take the other forward spot.

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Guard Bronny James and forward Adou Thiero are the only players listed on the injury report, and although they are currently assigned to the South Bay Lakers in the G League, both are healthy.

The Jazz, meanwhile, have Georges Niang and Walker Kessler unavailable for the game, with Elijah Harkless, John Tonje, and Oscar Tshiebwe playing in the developmental league.

According to Underdog NBA, Utah will roll out guards Keyonte George and Svi Mykhailiuk in the backcourt, rookie small forward Ace Bailey, All-Star power forward Lauri Markkanen, and center Jusuf Nurkic.

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The Jazz are 5-10 on the season entering Sunday, having lost two straight games to the Lakers and the Thunder on Friday.

They have allowed more than 140 points in each of their last two games, and with the Lakers healthy again, it could be a similar story for Los Angeles.

The Lakers have been off since Tuesday's game against the Jazz, helping to give the team a good amount of rest from their brutal five-game road trip that ended last Saturday.

Redick Savoring Extended Break

Head coach JJ Redick is happy to have a notable break amid the brutal run of games, and he is pleased that his team is entirely healthy.

“We got through this week without wanting to kill each other. So that was good,” he said, according to Khobi Price of The Orange County Register.

“I lived it as a player when you have these stretches when you are competing against each other, it just naturally gets a little chippy. We’ve had a couple of chippy practices this week. But I view it as a really good thing, and it can also get a little monotonous.

“Getting through this week healthy and getting through this week where we feel like we got better on some stuff, but also broke up the monotony a little bit. It was good.”

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