With the two teams tied record-wise, Wednesday night’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers is shaping up to be one of the biggest games of the entire season. But the Lakers also remain concerned with the overall health of their two stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Davis and James are the leaders of this team, but with LeBron only recently returning from injury, and Davis having a long history himself, the idea of playing in a back-to-back might not be the best even at this point in the season. The Lakers have a lot of momentum, but the health of their players once again overrides everything else.
With that, both remain questionable for Wednesday night’s game while D’Angelo Russell and Mo Bamba are both probable:
Looks like #Lakers will get DLo and Bamba back tonight but LeBron and AD remain questionable. pic.twitter.com/G0Vo2kzNdo
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) April 5, 2023
It’s looking like both James and Davis will test out their respective foot issues pregame to see how they feel before determining if they can play.
While it would obviously disappointing not to have either of the team’s two stars on the court for this pivotal matchup, it is understandable why the Lakers would choose to play it cautiously. Simply put, the team doesn’t want to risk aggravating any injury for either LeBron or Davis as they ramp up for what they hope will be a long postseason run.
LeBron hasn’t even been back for two weeks from a torn tendon in his foot and though Davis has been back since the end of January, his injury history especially over the past two seasons will always lead the team being more cautious.
The other side of this, however, is that this contest could be the difference in deciding which team is locked in to the top six in the West and which will have to participate in the Play-In Tournament. The Lakers are currently tied with the Clippers for sixth and do not have the head-to-head tiebreaker against them, meaning a loss here will almost definitely keep them behind in the final standings.
While James and Davis’ status remain up in the air, it is good to see that Russell and Bamba will both likely be back. Russell has missed the last two games with a minor foot issue while Bamba has been out four weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Lakers’ Austin Reaves looking forward to ‘big game’ vs. Clippers
One person who will definitely be suiting up for the Lakers Wednesday night is Austin Reaves, who has turned into one of the most essential players on the roster. Reaves is fearless and unafraid so it should be no surprise he is looking forward to this game against the Clippers.
Following the Lakers’ win in Utah, Reaves called the upcoming contest against the Clippers a ‘big game’ while adding that these are the types of games everyone should be prepared for.
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