NBA
Lakers LeBron James and Anthony Davis are reported out for today vs. Brooklyn Nets
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All posts by Antonio KozlowUpdated30 Jan 2023
Both LeBron James and Anthony Davis have been ruled out for tonight’s match against the Brooklyn Nets. The Lakers stars are reported to suffer physical overload before their first of two consecutive matches in New York, as they should be back in action for Tuesday’s clash against the Knicks.
While James is only 117 points from overcoming Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s historic scoring record, his absence tonight will delay the milestone, which should happen next week either against the Pelicans on February 4th or the Thunder on February 7th.
Besides the player’s fatigue, the King’s left ankle has been hurting, although is does not appear to be anything serious. LeBron has already missed eleven matches this campaign.
In Davis’ case, his rest comes after disputing two games last week after missing 20 consecutive matches due to the right foot stress injury he suffered for over a month. The same pain will allow him to repose over tonight’s encounter in Brooklyn.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis are out for tomorrow’s game in BKN, per the Lakers pic.twitter.com/Zp90N6dmEi
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 29, 2023
The other player in the Los Angeles camp who’s definitely out due to injury is Austin Reaves, who’s recovery is still uncertain as he “will be re-evaluated next Thursday” for his strained hamstring.
Although the Lakers guard has missed the last 11 games, as he hasn’t played since January 4th, he is considered a key reserve for his squad and his return is ideal for these moments when their main stars are called to be out of action. Reaves’ has averaged 10.8 points per game and a 36% three-point efficiency this campaign.
On the other hand, Lonnie Walker IV is reported as “questionable” for today’s match, after many games injured on the sidelines. This could not come at a better time, although his return must not be pushed just because he is required. The 24-year-old has averaged 14.6 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game this season, after a total of 33 games.
The last time the Lakers played without both their main stars was at the beginning of the year, when they surprised fans and all after they beat the Miami Heat with a great teamwork display and the internet went into a frenzy.
Lakers demand more justice after this weekend’s controversy
After this weekend’s overtime loss against the Celtics, the Lakers squad went into hysteria as they blamed their defeat on the referee’s last-second-call when Jayson Tatum fouled LeBron James just before he was about to dunk the basketball and win the game. Although many believe the King was “traveling” on his way to the rim, it didn’t prevent the Lakers showing their immense dissaproval.
Watch the action below and judge it for yourself:
Dennis Schröder was one of the players who took it to social media to show his take on the matter. “The refs gotta start getting fined for their mistakes! They are also giving technical fouls to people who are reacting to their mistakes,” he wrote on his Instagram page. “The replay center should also use replay to get this calls right.”
Many of our recommended sport betting sites consider the Nets to be favorites for tonight’s clash at a -9 with a -107 juice, whereas Los Angeles are the underdogs at a +9 with a +113. The over/under for this game is 230 1/2.
The Lakers rank 13th in the West with a 23-27 record, as for Brooklyn is having an amazing season so far as they are the East’s 4th best team (30-19). Tonight’s encounter will start at 6:30pm CST at the Barclays Center in New York.
