The Los Angeles Lakers have ruled out Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Marcus Smart, Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia and Bronny James (ankle sprain) for Wednesday’s preseason game against the Dallas Mavericks in Las Vegas. It marks the second night of a back-to-back for JJ Redick’s team after playing in Phoenix on Tuesday, so they will understandably be cautious with Opening Night in less than a week.
Other key players like Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt and Jaxson Hayes sat out against the Suns, so will now suit up against the Mavericks. They will all be in the starting lineup along with Dalton Knecht.
Injured players for the Lakers, including LeBron James, Maxi Kleber, Adou Thiero and Chris Mañon, remain out of action.
The Lakers have two preseason games remaining, first against the Mavericks in Las Vegas and then back home against the Sacramento Kings on Friday night. Considering the roster was essentially split in half for the back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday, the final opportunity to get them all in the lineup together to build chemistry before the regular season will be on Friday.
On the Mavericks side of things, former Lakers star Anthony Davis is expected to see heavy minutes as he ramps up for the regular season. While it would have been fun if Doncic and all of the key Lakers players were in the lineup as well, it just doesn’t make sense to play back-to-back nights in a game that doesn’t count.
It’s unfortunate for the fans in Las Vegas that were hoping to see Doncic against his former team, the Lakers are focused on getting their stars healthy and ready for Opening Night next week.
Jarred Vanderbilt happy to get Luka Doncic back in Lakers lineup
Luka Doncic played in his first preseason action on Tuesday night in the Lakers’ loss to the Suns, and Jarred Vanderbilt was happy to get him back in the lineup.
“He’s moving great, everything I seen from him. He’s being vocal. He’s leading the charge,” Vanderbilt said before the game. “He’s being everything we need him to be right now. So, we happy to have him out there right now during this week and him getting some good practices and running with us and just starting to build that momentum toward the regular season.”
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