A decimated Los Angeles Lakers squad was blown out by the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday, Jan. 17. It was an uphill battle from the beginning as L.A. was without Luka Dončić, Deandre Ayton, Jaxson Hayes, Austin Reaves and Adou Thiero. The Lakers also took some hits to Marcus Smart and Jake LaRavia in-game, throwing their statuses for the second half of a back-to-back against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, Jan. 18 in doubt – at least initially.
Adding to the laundry list of question marks, LeBron James is expected to be a game-time decision, as is to be the case with every back-to-back going forward.
The Lakers are getting some much-needed relief on Sunday, with both Ayton and Hayes expected to back on the court. It also appears as though they’ve dodged a bullet as neither Smart or LaRavia were listed on the injury report.
That leaves the two biggest questions that likely won’t be definitively answered until we get closer to tip-off: Will Dončić and James take the court vs. the Raptors?
Here’s everything you need to know about the status of the two Lakers stars:
Is Luka Doncic playing tonight vs. Raptors?
Dončić is questionable to play with left groin soreness, according to the latest NBA injury report released at 5:30 p.m. ET. He originally told reporters on Jan. 12 he ‘felt something’ in his groin/inner thigh area during pregame warmups, but he ended up playing through both games of the Lakers’ back-to-back early last week.
Dončić also played in Thursday’s loss to the Charlotte Hornets, scoring 39 points before sitting out on Saturday.
Is LeBron James playing tonight?
James is also listed as questionable for Sunday night’s games, which is to be expected after the 41-year-old said as much to reporters a week ago.
James did play in the Lakers’ most recent back-to-back on January 12 and 13, logging 33 minutes in each and coming up just one rebound shy of a 31-point triple-double in a 141-116 blowout win over the Hawks.
In Saturday night’s loss to the Trail Blazers, James scored 20 points and led the team in assists and rebounds with nine and eight, respectively.
Lakers injuries
Ayton and Hayes both did not play on Saturday, leaving the door open for Drew Timme to see extended minutes at center. Smart limped off the court following a collision midway through the fourth quarter, but he was not listed on Sunday’s injury report. Both Ayton and Hayes are also expected to return against Toronto.
The only other names on the Lakers injury report ahead of the game are Reaves (left calf strain) and Thiero (right MCL sprain), who have both missed extended time and are expected to be re-evaluated towards the end of the month.