The Los Angeles Lakers are set to face the Oklahoma City Thunder for the final time this regular season on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.
This marks a quick turnaround after Los Angeles dominated the Thunder on Sunday with a 126-99 blowout win in Oklahoma City.
Despite that victory, the Purple and Gold enter tonight’s matchup with a lengthy injury report that could significantly impact their rotation.
LeBron James and Luka Doncic are both listed as questionable due to groin strains, casting doubt on the availability of Los Angeles’ top offensive engines.
Austin Reaves is also questionable with a right ankle sprain, while Rui Hachimura remains out with left patellar tendinopathy.
Dorian Finney-Smith (ankle effusion), Gabe Vincent (knee effusion), and Bronny James (illness) are all questionable for the contest.
Maxi Kleber, who underwent foot surgery, has been ruled out.
JJ Redick’s squad currently holds the third spot in the Western Conference at 48-30, sitting 16 games behind the top-seeded Thunder.
Oklahoma City, which has already clinched the No. 1 seed, comes into Los Angeles with a league-best 64-14 record.
The Thunder are looking to rebound from consecutive losses, including Sunday’s 27-point defeat at the hands of the Lakers.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads OKC in scoring with 32.36points per game this season, and the Thunder rank second in the NBA in point differential at +12.5.
However, Mark Daigneault’s group will once again be without Ousmane Dieng, Alex Ducas, Ajay Mitchell, and Nikola Topic due to long-term injuries.
Jaylin Williams is listed as questionable with a left ankle sprain.
This will be the third and final regular season meeting between the two clubs. Oklahoma City won the first matchup on November 30, 101-93, while the Lakers evened the season series with Sunday’s rout.
The Thunder are looking to secure the best record in the NBA, with the Cleveland Cavaliers (62-16) trailing closely behind in the Eastern Conference.
Home-court advantage throughout the playoffs is on the line for Oklahoma City, which owns a 34-6 record at home but is 29-8 on the road.
Los Angeles is 30-10 at home this season and holds a 34-14 record against Western Conference opponents.
