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The Los Angeles Lakers will welcome the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night — well, whatever is left of those Sixers, that is. Joel Embiid (shoulder) and Ben Simmons (back) are both out for Philly, though neither really stack up to the Lakers potentially missing Alex Caruso, so we’ll just call this an evenly-played game.
In all seriousness, it really is a bummer that Simmons and Embiid are both out given the fun matchup this could potentially have been. As they always say in boxing, styles make fights, and, if healthy, the Lakers and Sixers matching up against each other is a legitimate heavyweight bout.
As things stand, though this game could be missing all four of its All-Stars. As previously mentioned, Embiid and Simmons will definitely be out, and over the last week, both LeBron James and Anthony Davis resided on the sidelines for a game. To be clear, James is not on the injury report, and Davis is listed as questionable. And all that isn’t even counting Caruso.
- UPDATE: Davis is playing, while Caruso is out
Anthony Davis, who missed last game with a sore knee, will start tonight. Alex Caruso will miss a second straight game with a sore hamstring, though Frank Vogel allowed that Caruso is feeling OK and may be able to play were it a playoff game.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) March 4, 2020
UPDATE: Davis is playing, while Caruso is out
Anthony Davis, who missed last game with a sore knee, will start tonight. Alex Caruso will miss a second straight game with a sore hamstring, though Frank Vogel allowed that Caruso is feeling OK and may be able to play were it a playoff game.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) March 4, 2020
Original story follows.
Honestly, given the lead in the conference the Lakers currently hold, and how shorthanded Philadelphia will be, this feels like the kind of night where either James and/or Davis take it off completely and hope the Lakers can win anyway, or they play and hope to knock out the Sixers as quickly as possible.
Worst case scenario here would be Davis and James playing and then messing around with Philly to the point where they have to play long minutes to pull out the win. I’d frankly rather lose than have that take place.
Another thing to keep in mind when considering who may or may not play is the Lakers’ upcoming schedule. Following Tuesday’s matchup, they’ll have a couple days off, then take on the Milwaukee Bucks Friday and Clippers on Sunday. Given how the Lakers have fared against the league’s elite to this point, it’d be nice to walk away from those couple games with at least one win.
It’s really too bad how injuries have ravaged this matchup, but the Lakers will still want to take care of business, whoever is on the court.
Notes and Updates
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Anthony Davis, who missed last game with a sore knee, will start tonight. Alex Caruso will miss a second straight game with a sore hamstring, though Frank Vogel allowed that Caruso is feeling OK and may be able to play were it a playoff game.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) March 4, 2020
Tip-off for Tuesday night is slated for 7:00 p.m. PST and will be aired on TNT.
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