The Lakers will be short-handed again on Saturday night. Ahead of their road matchup with the Atlanta Hawks, four players have officially been ruled out and another remains questionable, according to Jovan Buha.
LeBron James (right sciatica), Austin Reaves (right groin strain), Adou Thiero (left knee surgery recovery), and Gabe Vincent (left ankle sprain) are all listed as out for the game. Maxi Kleber, who’s dealing with an abdominal muscle strain, is questionable.
While several Lakers players have struggled to stay healthy, Maxi Kleber is finally getting right after months of recovery. He joined the team last season as part of the Luka trade but has yet to play a game. That could finally change this week if JJ Redick calls his number against the Hawks. It’s a shame the same can’t be said for some of the other Lakers.
Austin Reaves, for example, continues to be sidelined. He hasn’t played since the matchup with Miami earlier this month, and this will mark his third straight missed game. Before this setback, Reaves was having a stellar season, averaging 31.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 9.3 assists per game on 48.9 percent shooting.
His absence is a tough blow for a Lakers team that has managed to stay afloat early in the season, but the injuries keep piling up. With multiple rotation players still out, including several key role players, head coach JJ Redick will once again have to get creative with his lineup.
The good news is that Los Angeles will be facing a Hawks team without Trae Young, who has been ruled out for the next four weeks with a sprained MCL. At 4–4, Atlanta has been mediocre so far this season, and the Lakers will be a tough matchup for them, even without Reaves.
As for LeBron James, we know not to expect him back on the court for a while. While he’s progressing from his sciatica injury, he is not traveling with the team during this five-game road trip. The earliest we might see him return is November 18 against the Utah Jazz.
While the Lakers are one of several teams facing injuries right now, they’ve managed to endure them better than most. Despite LeBron’s absence and the rotating cast around Luka Doncic, the team is currently second in the West standings at 7–2.
Led by Luka, Deandre Ayton, and Rui Hachimura during this stretch, the Purple and Gold have adopted a “next man up” mentality that has a lot of people rethinking where the Lakers stand in the Western Conference.
The injuries have been frustrating, but they haven’t broken this team. If anything, the adversity has only made them tougher. With LeBron on the mend and Kleber potentially returning soon, the Lakers are inching closer to full strength. If they can stay the course and keep banking wins, they’ll be in a great position once the roster is whole again.
What’s important is that this group is whole come playoff time. At full strength, they can challenge any team in the West, but it requires balance, patience, and a level of teamwork that is rare to achieve in the NBA.
