The Los Angeles Lakers are set to play the Washington Wizards on Monday night, March 30, in a game that will not feature NBA superstar Luka Doncic due to a one-game suspension.
Doncic has been suspended by the NBA for one game after receiving his 16th technical foul of the season in the Lakers’ last game against the Brooklyn Nets.
Still, the ‘Lake Show’ must go on, and before their game against the Wizards, Los Angeles announced the starting lineup and final injury report for Monday night.
Los Angeles Lakers Announce Starting Lineup vs Wizards
GettyAustin Reaves #15 and LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers
In a post on social media, the Lakers announced their starting lineup, one that does not feature franchise star Doncic.
Austin Reaves, Jake LaRavia, Rui Hachimura, LeBron James, and Deandre Ayton all got the nod from head coach JJ Redick to start Monday.
Along with not having Doncic, the Lakers have another key player who is set to miss the game against Washington, which subsequently impacted their starting lineup.
Over the past few months, Redick and Los Angeles have been going with a consistent group of starters, but amid the injury concerns and the Doncic suspension, plans had to be changed.
Neither LaRavia nor Hachimura has been featured in the starting lineup much recently, but both will begin the game for the Lakers against the Wizards.
Lakers Injury Report
Before the game, Los Angeles also revealed its final injury report for Monday.
The injured list featured Marcus Smart (ankle), rookie Adou Thiero (knee), and Doncic (suspension), who obviously does not have an injury designation, but is named on the list regardless.
Smart has been dealing with the ankle injury for the Lakers’ past few games. According to the latest update from Redick, he isn’t expected to be out too much longer, but the ankle issue comes on the heels of a hip injury, so Los Angeles is playing it safe with the former Defensive Player of the Year.
Thiero has been managing a knee injury he suffered in college last year. The guard has bounced back and forth from the G-League, and remains out Monday.
Luka Doncic Suspension
Doncic was suspended for one game after receiving his 16th technical foul of the season after jawing back and forth with Ziaire Williams of the Nets.
While the Lakers did attempt to repeal it, which they were successful in doing last week, that was not the case this time, and he will miss Monday night’s game.
However, while Doncic will sit for the contest against the Wizards, it’s not all bad news for Los Angeles.
Firstly, Doncic gets some much-needed rest against a team that has no plans of competing at this point in the season. It’s also the first night of a back-to-back, as the Lakers will face the much-tougher Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday.
Additionally, Doncic is fourth in the NBA in minutes per game, so just like the back-to-back angle, he is getting much needed rest at a crucial point in the year.
Finally, Doncic doesn’t look to be at risk of missing out on the NBA’s end-of-season-awards. He has already played in 62 games this season, and just needs to play in three more to pass the 65-game rule and be in contention for the MVP award and All-NBA honors.
Doncic is averaging 33.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.6 steals on 47.6/36.6/77.6 shooting splits this season.
Los Angeles Lakers Right Now
The Lakers are currently 48-26 and third in the Western Conference standings, with a one-game advantage over the Denver Nuggets.
Los Angeles has been red-hot this month, with a 13-2 record in March. That’s been in part due to Doncic’s MVP-level play, but the success has also come by way of James buying into his new role as their official third option on offense.
With a win and a Phoenix Suns loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, the Lakers will clinch a spot in the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
That would mean that if both outcomes happen, Los Angeles could lose the final eight games on their regular-season schedule and still make the postseason, which would be their fourth appearance in the past five years.
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