The injuries to Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves forced the Los Angeles Lakers to trot out their 17th different starting combination this season in a 128-106 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. After the game, LeBron James attributed the Lakers’ recent struggles to injuries.
“We haven’t had our full team all year,” said James, who himself missed the first 14 games of the season with sciatica, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
“…We have our All-Star two-guard [Reaves] out, Rui is out, Gabe [Vincent] has been out, Jaxon [Hayes] just came back. It’s very hard to get a rhythm and chemistry when guys are going in and out of the lineup.”
“…No excuses, we still have to go out and execute,” James added.
Lakers Injury Woes
While Reaves (grade 2 calf strain) is set to be sidelined for at least a month, the Lakers are expected to get Hachimura (mild calf strain) back early next week. Gabe Vincent, the team’s backup point guard, has been out since Dec. 14 with a back strain.
Thus far, Jake LaRavia has been the only Laker to appear in all 31 games. DeAndre Ayton (four), Hachimura (four), Jaxson Hayes (five), Luka Doncic (seven), Austin Reaves (eight), Marcus Smart (nine) and James (16) have all missed significant portions of the season with various injuries.
Familiar Issues Plague Lakers
Healthy or not, the Lakers have persistently dealt with the same issues through the first 31 games of the season: poor interior defense, turnovers and streaky 3-point shooting.
In Tuesday’s loss, they gave up a staggering 74 paint points and 31 fast-break points, while committing 20 turnovers. They shot 11-of-39 from three (28%) while allowing the Pistons to shoot 11-of-24 (46%) and light them up from deep.
“The turnovers, the fast break points … just killed us tonight,” Lakers head coach Redick said, via AFP.
“We’ve really tried to play the right way every night and have the right intent, but the flow of lineups and rotations — all of that has been challenging for everybody.”
“It’s a challenge for everybody — and building an identity is difficult.”
Meanwhile, James, who suffered a loss on his 41st birthday, gave major props to rising Pistons superstar Cade Cunningham, who finished with 27 points and 11 assists.
“Cade is playing like the number one draft pick he was drafted as and as a franchise player on a very good team,” James said of Cunningham.
“Give them a lot of credit. They’re a fast, explosive team.
“We haven’t had a full team all year. We’ve got some very important guys out. It’s very hard to get a rhythm on the floor. But the better team tonight won.”
The Lakers (20-11) will next face the Memphis Grizzlies (15-18) on Friday night. LeBron James and Co. have lost four of their last five games.
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