A Blog devoted to Lakers News, Commentary, and Analysis
The Lakers (50-28) are back home where they will play three of their last four games of the season, starting with a rematch against the Oklahoma City Thunder (62-16) on Tuesday. Realistically speaking, Los Angeles looks to make this one a, at the very least, respectable matchup against the best team in the league. Start […]
If it wasn’t already a mess, the NBA’s award voting process is about to face another challenge. As it stands, Luka Dončić is not eligible for postseason awards. However, he intends to appeal that by using the Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge, citing him having to travel Europe for the birth of his child earlier this season. […]
The Lakers got a double dose of bad news over the weekend as both Luka Dončić (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) are done for the regular season. Their status for the opening round of the playoff remains murky at best as well, although they’re both aiming to return as evidenced by Luka heading to Europe […]
While it’s now quite some time into the relative past, one of the big talking points, given hindsight, of Thursday’s game against the Thunder was the decision to play both Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves in the second half of a blowout. Given that the game was out of hand, the pair have played heavy […]
Following a weekend of catastrophic injuries that saw their star backcourt ruled out for at least the regular season, the Lakers still had a game to play on Sunday in Dallas. The ripple effects of this will reverberate not only through the summer but also force an already thin roster to completely restructure its style […]
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Lakers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. Throughout the season, conversations about the 65-game rule have been ramping up as players who are worthy of […]
It was a good job and good effort from the Lakers, but they came up short in their first game since learning that Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves would be out for the rest of the regular season. With three starters unavailable against Dallas, LA struggled early on defensively. Cooper Flagg made another strong case […]
You can’t fault Luka Dončić for not doing all he can to get back on the court. It appears that Luka is heading to Europe in an attempt to get specialized treatment to return from his hamstring strain earlier than expected. His agent Bill Duffy relayed the message to Shams Charania and Dave McMenamin of […]
After a whirlwind weekend, the shorthanded Lakers gave it a go in Dallas but a huge start from the Mavs paved the way for them to pick up a 134-128 win. Behind Cooper Flagg, who finished with 45 points, the Mavericks raced out to a lead as large as 22 points at 58-36 in the […]
The Lakers (50-27) are back in action on Easter Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks (24-53) on the road. L.A. looks to sweep the four-game season series against Dallas this season. Start time and TV schedule Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks When: 4:30 p.m. PT, Apr 5 Where: American Airlines Center Watch: NBC, Peacock Just when the […]
Well, now what? The first version of this article lasted all of about 55 minutes before Austin Reaves was ruled out for the regular season and likely the playoffs with a Grade 2 oblique strain. He will join Luka Dončić, who is out for the rest of the regular season and likely the first round […]
The haymakers are coming left and right for the Lakers right now. Luka Doncic’s hamstring injury took center stage from Thursday’s loss to the Thunder, but Austin Reaves was also injured and it’s much worse than he initially indicated after the game. The Lakers announced on Saturday that Reaves would be out for the regular […]
Nothing is going to loom over the Lakers’ offseason more than LeBron James. Will he retire? Will he want to remain with the Lakers? At what price? Under what expectations for a role? For chunks of the season, it’s felt like the swan song for LeBron in Los Angeles. All of the mesaging from the […]
Something close to the worst-case scenario was confirmed on Friday as the Lakers announced Luka Dončić suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain against the Thunder on Thursday and would be out at least the rest of the regular season. While there are many ramifications of that injury, particularly when it comes to the Lakers’ postseason […]
The worst possible news has arrived for the Lakers as Luka Dončić will reportedly miss the rest of the regular season with a left hamstring strain. He is out indefinitely, meaning that his status for the postseason is now in question. Luka’s hamstring has been diagnosed as a Grade 2 strain, which is likely why […]
Last season, the WNBA held an expansion draft for the Golden State Valkyries and the Sparks lost forward Stephanie Talbot. This year, they held another expansion draft, but this time for their two new teams, the Toronto Tempo and the Portland Fire. There was just one draft for both teams, with each franchise selecting in […]
With the Western Conference a tight-knit race yet again this season, this series will look at the standings and games to watch across the league as the Lakers look to secure home court and move up the standings. The Nuggets are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now. They’ve won seven straight […]
A hyper-anticipated matchup between surging MVP candidates Luka Dončić and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was dead on arrival on Thursday. OKC went up 25-9, led by 23 after the first quarter, and that was all she wrote. LA’s kryptonite all year had been teams that have physical defenders who play with a consistent level of ball pressure […]
The biggest gut punch from Thursday’s loss to the Thunder was Luka Dončić‘s hamstring strain, but he wasn’t the only star with a visible injury in the game. Prior to Luka going down, Austin Reaves was the one who made a trip to the locker room. Reaves was holding his back for much of the […]
This game was over once the ball went up. The Thunder showed the Lakers why they are 10 games behind the defending champs. They suffocated them defensively as the Lakers didn’t make a field goal until the 7:07 mark in the first quarter. OKC jumped in front by as many as 23 in the opening […]
On a night where everything that could go wrong did for the Lakers, the biggest blow did not come on the scoreboard. In the third quarter of Thursday’s demoralizing loss to the Thunder, Luka Dončić came to a stop for a jumper and immediately grabbed the back of his left leg. He lost the ball […]
The Lakers were bludgeoned from the opening tip of Thursday’s showdown with the Thunder, falling behind by double digits minutes into the game and trailing by as many as 45 en route to a 139-96 loss. Turnovers plagued the Lakers from the jump, allowing OKC to jump ahead early. The Thunder shooting an incredible 53.9% […]
One of the crazier rule changes the NBA has made in recent years was the 65-game minimum for players to qualify for awards. It’s led to some truly wonky results like a whole host of the league’s top defenders being ineligible for Defensive Player of the Year and plenty of deserving players missing out on […]
One of the few things that hasn’t gone right for the Lakers during their recent winning run has been Marcus Smart’s injury. After establishing himself as a valuable role player and starter this season, Smart has missed six straight games due to injury. In the team’s stop in Orlando, Smart injured his ankle after Goga […]
Things couldn’t have gone better for the Lakers this week. Not only did they win, but they did so with pizzazz. LeBron James had multiple jaw-dropping dunks, Luka Dončić scored more baskets in the month than any Laker ever, and the Lakers find themselves already at the 50-win mark with six games left to play. […]