The Los Angeles Lakers will return home on Monday against the Detroit Pistons following a successful 2-0 mini-road trip against the Sacramento Kings. For a team that has seen their share of injury concerns this season, the Lakers listed both LeBron James and Anthony Davis on their injury report ahead of their matchup with the Pistons.
Both LeBron James and Anthony Davis were listed on the Lakers’ injury report as questionable. James has been dealing with a foot issue while Davis suffered a brief injury scare against the Kings on Thursday.
Davis first tweaked his shoulder against the Memphis Grizzlies back on Dec. 15. He exited that game only to return and finish out the win. The same thing happened against the Kings as he ultimately came back into the game.
James has now played in three straight games since missing two games and being listed with a left foot injury. Both players’ inclusion on the team’s injury report is likely just precautionary. They will both probably be available as the Lakers return home against the Pistons.
As far as the rest of the injury report, Jaxson Hayes, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Christian Wood and Jarred Vanderbilt all remain out.
Lakers on a win streak
Coming into Monday’s matchup with Detroit, the Lakers have won three straight games. They defeated the Grizzlies at home last weekend in one of their best wins of the season. They then followed that up with back to back solid road wins against the Kings.
The team’s win streak has coincided with James’ return to the lineup. In the three games since he’s been back, he’s averaged 23.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists, as per StatMuse. He’s been shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 66.7 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
He exploded for one of his best games of the season thus far in the Lakers’ most recent win against the Kings on Saturday. He finished with 32 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals.
The middle of the pack in the Western Conference is so close that with the recent win streak, the Lakers have jumped up into sixth place in the standings after hovering near ninth/tenth. A margin of one and half games is all that separate the No. 5 seed from the No. 11 seed.
The Lakers are currently 16-12 and have gone 5-5 in their last ten games. It’s going to be an interesting race in the West throughout the rest of the season and the Lakers reportedly continue to be active in trade talks to upgrade the roster.
