The Los Angeles Lakers announced that Luka Doncic and Marcus Smart are available to play in the Emirates NBA Cup Opener against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night.
Doncic has missed the last three games while dealing with a left finger sprain and lower left leg contusion, but the Lakers went 2-1 in those contests thanks to the heroics of Austin Reaves.
Smart is also back after missing the last two games with a right quad contusion, giving the Lakers another backcourt player who can create, not to mention one of their top defenders and a player who brings a ton of energy to the court. This is also a return to Memphis for Smart, who spent nearly two seasons there before being traded to the Washington Wizards at the trade deadline last season.
The return of Doncic is obviously massive for the Lakers as he had gotten off to a ridiculous start with back-to-back 40-point double-doubles in his first two games. While Reaves has more than held down the fort, getting Luka back will allow for the Lakers to employ what has to be considered the best offensive backcourt in the NBA today.
Reaves and Doncic have proven that they can play off of each other very well and this will allow for the rest of the Lakers’ role players to fall back into their more traditional roles. Smart’s return also gives the Lakers some more depth and hopefully, allows for a bit more rest for Reaves, not to mention allowing head coach JJ Redick to have something closer to a standard rotation of players he can trust.
This is also great timing as the Lakers are kicking off the Emirates NBA Cup, making this game a little more important. Of course, the Lakers won the inaugural tournament but failed to defend it last season with the Milwaukee Bucks taking home the crown. And with the recent history of the Lakers in Memphis, the atmosphere is sure to be kicked up a notch.
The rest of the Lakers’ injury report remains the same as LeBron James (right sciatica), Gabe Vincent (left ankle sprain), Adou Thiero (left knee surgery recovery) and Maxi Kleber (abdominal muscle strain) remain out.
Lakers’ Luka Doncic takes to social media after Austin Reaves game-winner vs. Timberwolves
While Luka Doncic was out it was Austin Reaves taking on the role as the Lakers’ primary scorer and playmaker. After 51 and 41-point nights, Reaves was held to 28 against the Timberwolves, but it didn’t matter as he knocked down the game-winning floater at the buzzer, causing Doncic and many others to take to social media and sing his praises.
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